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VALENCIA NOIR

ACT V

The sleuths’ day at the race track ended with Dexter going back to pick up Tyler. The werewolves managed to rough up and scare the goons away, but in doing so, never found out what they or their bosses were up to. That really didn’t matter to the wolves though. They just loved sharing a good scrap together. So a heart broken Dexter and a tackle happy Tyler said goodbye to Lillian, told her to look out for trouble and left to go back to their office. They had crime scene photos and notes to go over. When they got back to Lower L.A and to their office, they spent the afternoon hunched over photos and notes, going over everything multiple times and looking at the details as if with a fine toothed comb. But despite that, they only found out so much.

Photos and notes were scattered over the tops of their desks and used sucker sticks were starting to build up in the ash tray. Tyler had his feet propped up on his desk as he read from a file and Dexter was at his desk, looking over photos with a magnifying glass. They both had been at this for hours and it was starting to wear them down. “Gaaahh! This is useless! We’ve been at this forever and nothing new has popped up!” Tyler finally let out, tossing the file back on the pile and giving his chair a good spin out of frustration.

“I know, I know! But we have to keep looking. But then again, you’re right.” Dexter admitted while setting down the photos. “So far, all evidence is suggesting that Tay-Miss Fallon was at the scene of the crime, possibly the murderer…but the evidence is weak. Only the hair in Gilmead’s hand and talon marks on his body link her to the crime. There aren’t any feathers, footprints-“

“Any chance she could have been flying when she killed him? Maybe hovering?” Tyler offered up as a suggestion.

“No, I thought about that. The room is too small to do something like that. You need a couple of feet around you to do something like that and not get your wings crunched.” Dexter replied.

“If that’s the case, this whole thing could already be sunk and Fallon’s goose is gonna be cooked.”

“I don’t want to believe that! The evidence is…it just doesn’t feel right. I believe there’s more to it. We can’t give up on this…”

As Dexter started to look back over the photos again, Tyler couldn’t help but let out a sigh. The angel had been like this ever since Tayte gave him the old heave ho into the gutter. He was hurting bad and he couldn’t stand to see it. “Dexter. You have to get this girl out of your system. She’s no good and you know it!”

“…I know…but…I don’t think I can…”

“Can you at least give it a try? Try and forget about her! Just think of her a suspect and nothing more.”

Dexter looked at Tyler for a moment before looking back down at their notes. “That’s weird. The police reports say that there’s been a decrease in gang violence and fighting between them over the last few months. But there are still complaints of extortion, property damages and the like from all over the city. And listen to this-every once in a while, a gang takes control over a business that was previously under another gang’s protection-just like that!”

Tyler had to let out a huff before checking this out for himself. “The Fallons are some of the gangs listed in this…I guess the cops thought that maybe the murder was tied into this. I can’t really see how though…” Dexter would need some time to really think over what he said. And he would let Dexter have it.

“Me either…” Really, the angel was just looking for a distraction. Somewhere deep inside, he couldn’t even think of giving up on Tayte. Even with his broken heart, he couldn’t bear to let her go…

As the detectives started to go over their notes again in an attempt to break the awkward silence between them, they saw a flash of light from outside their window-like from a camera. The instance they saw the flash, they knew what it was and sprung for the window. The glass panel was flung up, their bodies scrambling out onto the fire escape and struggling to pull the flash’s source back into the room. “Get him!”

“You’re not getting away this time!”

After struggling on the fire escape, the angel and werewolf crawled back into the room and let the man that they dragged back inside flop to the ground like a freshly caught fish. “Yang, you no good sneak! What are you up to this time?!”

The man that the detectives found snooping on them was Yang Tamagi. Yang was a merman with long black hair kept tied up in a pony tail, with sly, squinty eyes and a Chester cat smile. There was Press card tucked into the band of his hat and a camera hanging around his neck. He liked to wear his yellow shirt open under his black coat to show off his chest and the bandages wrapped around his waist. He never wore shoes but cheap reed sandals instead. “Fellas, fellas! Why do you always assume that I’m up to no good? Maybe I just came by to say hi to my good friends!” Yang replied, shooting them both a signature Chester smile.

“My a** you are!” Tyler exclaimed.

“You always show up to do some snooping for the L.A Times or play some stupid prank on us! We’re still mad at you for giving us those gag suckers! Our mouths were black for a week!”

Yang couldn’t help but laugh at this, even with both of them mad at him. “Hey, you have to admit, that was still pretty funny! And you could benefit by cutting down on those things!” A quick glare from the angel and werewolf made him stop laughing before he got down to business. He crossed his legs and looked up at the boys, a note pad and pencil in his hands. “Word on the street is that you two are looking to keep the littlest Fallon bird out of the bird cage.”

“Who gave you a crazy idea like that?” Tyler asked, quickly casting a glance behind them to the notes on the desks.

“I got several sources placing you two at the nightclub she’s been working at-and that you two have been asking about her and where she was on the night of Cyrus Gilmead’s murder.”

“You’re still talking crazy, Yang.”

“It was a Mr. Adriel Everhart and a Mr. Lorcan. They asked me to deliver you some messages too. Mr. Addy said to tell you… ‘You miserable pricks owe me a better tip and not the crap you just pull out of your pockets. And to the angel…congratulations on discovering you can get a boner around a girl. It looked like this was your first time.’”

“I’m gonna kill him!” Dexter shrieked, cheeks going bright red with fury and embarrassment. It wasn’t that noticeable! …Was it?

“And Mr. Lorcan told me to pass his phone number onto Tyler here!”

“He can cram it where the sun don’t shine!” Tyler shot down.

“Can I have it then?”

“What else do you want, Yang?”

“Just to ask the who, what, where, when and why behind this investigation. But I think a better thing our readers would want to know is…” He quickly stood up and got right into Dexter’s face. “Are you really in love with Tayte Fallon?”

“GET OUT OF HERE!!!” Dexter got a hand on the scruff of the merman’s coat and the back of his pants before giving him a good shove out the door and into their front office where Sveta was typing. “This is no place for a gossip columnist like you, so scram!”

“Okay, okay! I can take a hint, I’m gone…but your reaction tells more than your mouth could! And I will find out what you guys are investigating. Oh, hey Sveta. You look extra pretty today! Don’t worry, I’ll see myself out!”

“Uh…okay. G-Good to see you again, Yang… Oh dear.” She could still remember the gag suckers fiasco.

“That was smooth…”Tyler said as he watched the merman leave their office.

“Cram it. I can’t work anymore now…” Dexter replied as he walked over to get his coat and hat. He also scooped up some of the photos and tucked them into his breast pocket. “Let’s go to Dani and Ellie’s and get some fish and chips.”

“Oh yeah, tonight’s their Ace Plate Special! I could really get into that!” Tyler was a sucker for good fish and chips so he was up and getting his coat and hat in no time. Once they were ready, they were heading out the door. “Sveta, take the night off! We’re out!”

“Okay! I was going to ask for the night off…to spend with the Sisters, so thanks!”

“Say hi to them for us!” And Dexter and Tyler were off. Walking through the familiar grey of their neighborhood, they started to make their way to their favorite diner, Dani and Ellie’s. This set of British siblings had set up their diner on one of the biggest intersections in the city, fading between the colors and the grey depending on the day. The detectives have been valuable customers of theirs ever since their opening. The diner was within their range of sight, the smell of oil, batter and hot meats detectable by the werewolf. They were almost at the door…when they heard the screech of tires, the crash and slash of metal…and a young woman’s scream. “What the heck was that?!”

“It sounded like a crash…come on!” Fish and chips would have to wait. The duo made their way to the source of the scream and to the fast growing crowd. Pushing their way though, they saw that a beautifully kept black car had been pinned to a brick wall by two other cars that appeared to have come from the hilltop. It was almost crushed into two halves…and there were two people trapped inside. “Good God…”

“We got to them out! I’ll help push the cars aside, you check inside!” Dexter said, quick to jump into action with the other men trying to push the cars aside.

“Got it!”

The angel wedged himself between the black car and the other car, back pressed against one and feet planted against another. A unique power of his started to kick in-super human strength that aided in times of peril. The car was pushed back as easy as one could push back a chair. The werewolf rushed over to this car as Dexter repeated this process. Flinging the door open, the werewolf looked inside. “Just hold on! You’re going to be-“ But there was no one inside the car. The only thing inside was some bricks on the gas and ropes tied around the steering wheel. “What the Hell…?” Jumping over to the other car, he found the same thing inside. “Dex!”

“Hold on!” Dexter was trying to get the passenger side door open on the crushed car before deciding to simply rip it off and put it aside. A young woman started to topple out, falling into the angel’s arms. “Hey! Hey, come on! Wake up! You can’t sleep now!” The young lady was as pretty and as delicate as a pearl. A head full of long blonde curls rested against his shoulder as he tried to wake the girl up. Small cuts and scrapes marred her otherwise perfect skin, her blood matching her artfully done red lips. Her soft pink dressed was torn and dirty from the crash, pearls loosely hanging from her neck and ears. Her thick eyelashes started to flutter then, opening up to reveal groggy, startled but deep baby blue eyes. “Okay, that’s good! Stay awake now, sweetie. What’s your name? Tell me your name.” The angel was trying to keep her awake and to check and see if she had a concussion.

“Hmmm…Kr-Kristine…Kristine Wellington…” She managed to push passed her lips. She had a hard time keeping her head up and her eyes opened. “I have to go…we’re meeting my daddy tonight…he’s going to wonder where we are…”

“It’s okay, Kristine! I’m sure your daddy will understand. He would just want you safe.”

“The man in the car…how is he?”

“Tyler!”

“Hold on, I’m on it!” The werewolf was currently on the hood of the destroyed car, pounding at the front window with a brick to get to the man inside. When the window was shattered, he started to pull the unconscious man out and onto the ground. “Come on, jack! Time to get up!” It was only when he had the man out of the car did Tyler get a good look at him. And when he did, whatever color was in his face started to drain. “Dex-!!!” A hand quickly shot up and wrapped itself around the werewolf’s throat.

“See? He’s just fine. Just hold on. The ambulance is on the-WAY!”Dexter was abruptly yanked away from Kristine, leaving her to tumble to the ground as he and Tyler were both pulled over to the wall. Feeling their backs slammed up against the bricks, they were being pinned by the man that was just pulled from the car. “What the-AAAHHH!!!”

“NICKY FALLON!”

The harpy male, Nicky/Nicholi Fallon, had a look that could kill right now. Standing a few inches shorter than the detectives, he was still able to pin them both against the wall and get them on their toes. Even with his black suit destroyed, blonde hair a mess and blood dripping down from his forehead, those crimson eyes were still burning with hatred and razor sharp instincts. His black wings were open to make him look even more menacing-the perfect Grim Reaper for the Fallon Family gang. “You two…destroyed my car.” So Nicky let rumble from his throat.

“Wh..what?”

“You two destroyed my car!!!” Nicky shrieked, giving them both a solid slam into the wall. It was safe to beat that it probably left a dent in both the wall and the detectives.

“We didn’t do it!”

“Honest!”

“That was someone else!” Both sleuths knew that it was wise to fear Nicky Fallon. His reputation as the muscle behind the Fallon family was legendary…so was his habit of breaking limbs to relieve stress. If no one ever heard about this, all they had to do was stand next to the harpy to feel the aura of bloodlust and doom radiating from him. Those with animal instincts-such as Tyler-knew that it was smarter to run away from Nicky and tell everyone else to do the same than to try and fight him.

“I’m going to enjoy…pulling your limbs off…and peeling back each layer of muscle off of you two…for destroying my car!” The screams and pleas from the two sleuths weren’t doing much to stop Nicky from tightening his grip on them and letting his talons sink into their flesh. The only thing that did stop him was the tiniest of whimpers coming from behind them, the source being Kristine lying on the ground. Looking at the girl and then the detectives, Nicky slammed them into each other before he released them both to walk to Kristine. “I’m not going to forget about this! If I see you two again, you’re dead!” Leaving them like nothing took place, Nicky went to Kristine’s aid. Along the way, a slip of paper fell out of his destroyed coat pocket.

With butts on the ground, heads spinning and hearts racing, the detectives exchanged a quick glance between them. “Run?”

“RUN!” They needed no more reason to start running down the street and away from the accident. If it wasn’t for Nicky, then it would be because the police were on the way and Raphael did seem serious about getting them arrested. So they ran away from the scene of the accident…but not before nabbing that slip of paper. They finally stopped running about three blocks away and ducked into an alley to hide and catch their breaths. “Man…I thought he was going to kill us for sure… What’s on the paper?”

“It looks like an address…I think this is where those two were going tonight…”Dexter replied as he looked at the address. “This is along the riverside! Where the ships go to dock and hold their cargo!”

“Why would they be going there?”

“It seems like something worth looking into.”

“What about fish and chips at Dani and Ellie’s?!”

“That may have to wait. This could be useful.”

“Gah! Fine…you’re paying for everything though if this doesn’t lead us anywhere.”

“Consider it done. Now, what was in the cars that got you so excited?”
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The grays of Los Angeles started to turn dingy and murky as they started to creep into the shipping yard. A film of mist hung over the rusted steel and damp wood of the docks, the cargo warehouses silent and sober observers to the boats gliding over the dark waves of the bays like phantoms. There was barely a sound, save for the occasional foghorn, slush of ocean water and the scurrying of rats. And tonight, there were the footsteps of a certain angel and werewolf. They decided to check out the address left behind by Nicky Fallon after all. “Are you sure we’re going the right way?” Tyler asked.

“I think so. The maps say to go down this way and the numbers on the warehouses are leading to the one on the paper.” Dexter replied. “I think it's a few more units down this way.”

The warehouse in question sat on the end of the dock and overlooked the bay. Like the rest of the storage yard, it was gray and dingy and looked like it was abandoned. But the doors on the building were new and strong looking. And all the windows were boarded and covered up. Along with that, fresh tire marks tattooed the wood boards around the building. Very unusual for a building that’s been abandoned and it didn’t escape the detective’s attention. They needed a closer look to determine the reasons behind these things. So they would try one of the doors. “It’s locked.”

“On the count of three, we drop kick the door then. One, two-“ Before Tyler could reach three, someone had managed to sneak up behind him and hit him in the head with a two by four. As he fell to the ground unconscious, Dexter was quick to follow as he tried to see who hit his partner and took the piece of wood to the side of the head. As he laid there on the ground, slipping out of consciousness, he came to a horrible realization as he saw blurred feet walk towards them- they were surrounded.
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“…Dex…Dex…Dexter! Wake up! Come on, buddy!”

Tyler’s voice was bouncing off of the inside of Dexter’s skull before the angel finally followed it back to where the rest of his body was. “Tyler…?” His head was pounding, blood dripping from the side of his head…and he couldn’t move his arms or legs then. Letting his eyes adjust to the light, he saw that Tyler was beside him-and tied to a chair. Dexter was also tied to a chair, his wings strapped down as well for good measure. “What…what happened? Where are we?” From the looks of it, inside one of the warehouses that was still in use. There were still lights that worked and tools everywhere among the crates that lined the walls.

“One of the warehouses. Not the one we were looking at that, though. Sorry, guy…I should have smelled those buffoons coming. I never should have let my guard down and those chumps get the jump on us…”

“Don’t blame yourself. You can’t catch all the guys that try and get us from behind. You can’t get them every time.”

“We’re in a pretty heavy soup because of it though.”

“Who got the jump on us anyway?”

Before the werewolf could answer, men started to enter the warehouse. Finely dressed, heavy muscled and carrying various weapons and suitcases, they seemed to have made a path for one individual that had yet to enter the building. “Sorry to keep you from your appointment, boss, but me and the boys thought you would want to see this… Yeah, these are definitely the two. We saw them trying to kick down the door to the joint.” Standing in the darkness, the one man started to walk down the path that was made for him. The muscled individuals started to straighten up then, and the two detectives finally saw the man’s face as he stepped into the light. He wore a black suit with a white shirt and a red tie. His blonde hair was neatly kept, along with his short blonde beard. He glared at the two detectives tied in the chairs with harsh gray eyes, tucked behind horn rimmed glasses. The two detectives started to feel panic rise in their stomachs when they realized who it was.

“A-ARES!”

“OH GOD!”

The god of war himself. Former mobster ruler of Los Angeles before he dropped out about…eighteen years ago. Word on the street was that he was on his way back to the top and waiting for the right moment to strike at the new gangs for the top slot in the mobster world. Ares and the detectives had history. They were responsible for sending one of his b*****d sons-Kaede- to jail to serve out several life sentences. Needless to say, he was mad. And they made an effort to avoid him from that point on.

“We…We haven’t see you since the trial!” Dexter managed to squeeze out of his lungs.

“You mean the one that sent my son to prison for two hundred years?” Ares growled. He snapped his fingers and his men started to present him with weapons and various tools. “I haven’t forgotten.”

“L-Look! You’re a smart guy, you have to appreciate that society has different rules now since your hey-day back in Greece. Guys like you and Kaede can’t just get away with whatever you wish anymore.” Tyler tried to reason, squirming along with Dexter at the sight of the weapons.

“Shut up. Things hardly change when you’re a god. At least they shouldn’t when you’re powerful enough to rewrite the rules.” Ares replied, selecting several different blades and a sledge hammer from his men. He pointed to Dexter then. “Him first. Break his wings.” Ares kicked down Dexter’s chair, enjoying his pain as he fell onto his wings and arms as several men surrounded him. Several others went to hold down Tyler as he tried to escape and help the angel.

Dexter was having a turtle moment in a bad way. Ares was going to kill him and Tyler unless they could either escape or fight their way out! Held down by the chair and the men, his wing was being pulled out and placed under the hammer on the ground as he struggled to escape. Feeling more and more panicked, he started to say whatever came to mind. “Wait-wait! You don’t have to do this! We’re just investigating a case! This doesn’t have anything to do with you!”

“Get him ready. I want those wings for a trophy afterwards.” Ares told his crew, not listening to the angel.

“It’s the Gilmead murder! The police believe that Tayte Fallon did it! But the evidence isn’t agreeing with that! We’re investigating to see who really did it!”

Ares snapped his fingers and one man got the sledge hammer ready. He practiced some swings before walking up to the angel. Dexter’s breathing started to increase, his heart racing and eyes growing wide. The man was swinging the hammer up and getting ready to bring it down.

“We don’t think Tayte did it! It-It may have been someone else! Someone with a grudge against the Fallons! AND THAT SOMEONE MAY HAVE TRIED TO KILL NICKY FALLON AND THE GIRL HE WAS WITH TONIGHT!!!” The hammer was coming down then.

“DEXTER!!!”

The hammer was about to make contact with Dexter’s wing-but was quickly caught by Ares before anyone could blink. In one swift move, he tossed the hammer to one side of the warehouse and through the wall and the man that was throwing it through another. He looked…deeply disturbed then by something. “…Kristine?” He kicked Dexter’s chair back up and grabbed the back of it so he could look the angel in the face as he lifted it off the ground. “Someone tried to kill my little girl!?!”


Dexter was really surprised by this. “Y-You’re Kristen’s daddy..?”

“WHAT HAPPENED!?!” The warehouse shook from the power of Ares’ voice.

“AHH! Nicky and Kristen were in a car crash! They were pinned between a wall and two cars!” Dexter quickly explained, panic still in his voice. He had no idea where he got the idea that Tayte was being set up in this case, but mentioning Kristine seemed to have saved him…for now.

“S-Someone rigged the two cars to roll down the hill and nail their car so there wouldn’t be any drivers to arrest!” Tyler threw in, still trying to escape the men and the chair holding him. It felt like he had to choose his words very carefully. Ares held Dexter’s life in his hands. But thankfully, that didn’t last for long. The god dropped Dexter suddenly back onto the legs of his chair.

“PACK IT UP, BOYS! We’re checking out every hospital in town until we find Kristine!” Ares declared, quick to turn on his heel and head for the door. “Cut them loose!” Several men quickly sliced the ropes tying Dexter and Tyler to their chairs before following the rest of their gang out of the warehouse. The two detectives freed themselves before following them outside.

Everyone was getting into their cars then, Ares in the back seat of a long and expensive looking car at the head of the pack. He had the window down and was looking right at the angel and werewolf. “Forget what happened between us in the past. You two work for me now. Find out who did this. Whether it’s some dumb chump or a fellow mobster out to get me, I don’t care. Just give me a name. I’ll make them curse their mothers for giving birth to them…” And like that, the cars took off with Ares’ taking the front of the charge in the crusade to find his injured daughter. That left Dexter and Tyler feeling very tired, confused and emotionally drained.

“…What…just happened?” Dexter finally asked.

“We were going to be killed…by a guy that hates our guts…”Tyler started to reply.

“But he just hired us, I think…to work a case that may not even be connected to the one we’re already on.” Again, he didn’t know where he got an idea like that. Maybe it was just fear talking…or his heart sneaking ideas into his brain. “It’s nonsense.”

“…Life is weird like that.”

“Good thing he appears to love Kristen more than getting revenge for Kaede…go figure.”

Deciding that it was best to forget this incident and get back to work, Dexter flew himself and Tyler up to one of the windows of the warehouse they were trying to inspect earlier. The angel held the werewolf as he pried the boards loose with his claws. Once enough boards were removed, he crawled inside and allowed the angel to follow. For all the trouble they went through to get here, they were going to check out this place and what made it so interesting to Nicky!

Once inside, they started to explore the floor of the warehouse they entered. It was dark and dusty, like an abandoned warehouse should be…but there was still energy in the air. And soon, they started to hear noises. The sounds of people talking, shouting…and music! Following the noise, the space started to open up to the rest of the warehouse. Light started to creep around corners and those lights led to the rafters of the building. As the detectives started to climb through the rafters, they finally came upon the source of the noises, light and energy. Down below them, sitting smack dab in the middle of the large warehouse, was a casino.

“It can’t be…Dex, I think this place is-“

“Casino Thunder Mouse!”

Despite all the towering crates and boxes left lying around, a massive casino was still able to take residence in the warehouse. Bright yellow lights lit up the space and everything from the carpets to the gambling tables and the wheels were decorated with shades of yellow and black and outfitted with silver metal strips. Yellow and black cartoon mice were plastered on every table and flat surface. The crowds below were dressed in fine clothes and having fun as they gambled to their hearts content. Too bad it was all illegal.

“The police have been looking for this place for ages! Casino Thunder Mouse…I can’t believe we found it.” Dexter said, amazed by what he saw down below their feet.

“The casino where anything goes, anything can be collateral and there’s nothing that can be bet on.” Tyler stated, watching the masses below gamble away their money, their property…and even their clothes if it came down to it! “Any chance Nicky was coming to play the slots with his girl?”

“I don’t know…” The angel looked around and saw something interesting in the back: A giant crowd of people were gathering around a massive domed cage of steel and yellow features. There was shouting, and the sound of steel hitting steel. “What’s going on over there?” The angel gestured for Tyler to follow as they scaled and crawled over the rafters, careful to watch their step and to not attract any attention. Climbing over the domed cage, they looked down inside…and saw that people were fighting. To the death! He swallowed a hard knot down in his throat at the sight. Tyler was flicking his tail in aggravation and disgust. But they still had to watch and observe, and as they did, they saw several things. There were box seats around the dome for the highest paying members, and for the competitors as they took turns fighting…if they survived to leave the dome, that is. The people sitting in the boxes…were very familiar to the detectives.

“AH! That’s-That’s Eclipse Amantra! She’s in charge of the vampire gangs and controls the German businesses in town!” Dexter exclaimed when he saw the vampire woman, black braid and red eyes touched with purple surrounded by several vampires in her box.

“And that’s Evangeline! She protects every working gal in town! From call girl to waitress, any word of trouble and some poor man ends up fished out of the river the next day!” Tyler exclaimed, pointing to the ghost woman in blue as she floated in her box along with her lovely ladies.

“Seth Tarik!” A handsome Egyptian man with messy dark locks and alluring green eyes. He and his men all sported jewelry from their homeland under their suits, and the same could be said for their weapons. The list of gangsters could go on and it did. Every major name in Los Angeles crime-excluding Ares-was present at Casino Thunder Mouse and at the battle dome, and that included the Fallons. Tayte and her brother Laurent were present, along with the last of the brothers, Donavan. A strapping harpy male he was, with his hair dyed blue, red eyes gazing from beneath those bangs and platinum white wings resting against his back. The Fallon clan still looked menacing, even with their most vicious family member absent. “Every gangster in town is here…”

“Step right up, ladies and gentlemen! Place your bets! You better act fast before the odds change out of your favor! In games like these, they can change as quick as lightning!” A young man with a microphone stood in one of the top boxes, the lights from above shining in his blond hair-and off of the one eyed metal blinder that covered his eyes. He wore yellow and grey in his suit, with bits of metal cleverly interwoven into pieces of the suit.

“Virote! The banished demigod of lightning!”

“Head of the gang, Vivi’s Bolts. They ran this casino wherever possible and keep business away from the others in town.”

Behind Virote was a giant chalk board. It had every gang’s name on it and showed their odds, victories and loses in several categories of competition and gambling event. The names and stats near the bottom were always changing by several people hidden behind him, but the ones near the top were always the same. At the very top of the list were the Fallons. Their strongest numbers were in combat, certain gambling events in the casino…and with the horse races.

The detectives were studying this board when the match beneath them ended. A man had his arm sliced in half as the victor stood proudly over his defeated foe. As the crowd cheered, the leaders of the respective gangs met outside of the dome. The loser presents the winner with a suitcase and an official looking piece of paper with an address on it. In the rafters above, things started to connect for the detectives. “Dex, this is how they’ve been doing it! The gangsters! They do all their fighting here!” Tyler exclaimed.

“They keep it off the streets and away from the eyes of the police. Once they’re here, there can be fighting while using any method they can think of-including beating the snot out of each other!” Dexter concluded. “All of those scores help show who’s the top of the food chain in this town. And the races are included since everyone owns a horse…” He and the werewolf exchanged a look. Maybe there was more to the Gilmead murder than they originally thought.

Before they could figure out what though, Virote announced that it was time for the next match to start. It was the Fallon Family against the Troll Boys-for control of Parkins Street to Magnolia Bridge. Laurent had been looking around for some time before this match was about to start and now he looked worried. The detectives couldn’t hear the conversation between the harpy siblings but it looked like they were discussing who would be fighting in this round. After a few minutes, it was Tayte who was walking down from their box and down into the area. Her opponent was obviously a troll twice her size and a sword as tall as she was. The harpy was only armed with a halberd with a red lily on it. Dexter felt something gnaw at the pit of his stomach then.

The match began shortly with a bell ringing, people running to place their bets and Virote announcing the odds of the match. “And they’re off! With the odds being 10:1, things wouldn’t be easy for our favorite fire bird of mayhem and doom! I personally got money on the Fallon bird but let’s see where this goes!” And the way that it went was quick, dangerous, too close for comfort before ending in a shower of blood. The troll had the advantage of size and a longer weapon but Tayte had wings, speed and flexibility. Between the movements of her body and the control of her halberd, it made for a beautiful but deadly show. The troll never touched her…he was only able to cut the ends of her hair and a few stray locks before she quickly decapitated him. She stood on his fallen body as the crowd cheered wildly. “So much for those odds! Fallon wins the match! And the house takes a sweet cut!”

Despite the violence of what he had just witnessed, Dexter found himself…spellbound. Tayte was beautiful while in flight, surefooted on ground and merciless all around. There was a light in her eyes that drew the angel in…before the werewolf stopped him from falling off the rafter. He quickly snapped out of it as the harpy left the area and the dead troll body. That was the first time the pair noticed something else. Each of the gangs had a medical crew with them. All of them wore the same uniform of white and at one point or another, they reported to someone hidden in a shadowed spectator box. This someone was very small, dressed in a cloak that…moved on its own. This person was accompanied by a taller individual who never said a word. The detectives were watching this for a while before they decided that it was time to start sneaking out-they saw all that they needed to se. So they started to slowly back away and try and turn around. There was only one flaw in their silent attempt to leave: Dexter tripped over a piece of wiring and nearly fell. Tyler caught him, but only to knock over the smallest group of screws resting on the rafters. The screws fell with the grace of raindrops that would normally escape notice…but they quickly caught someone’s attention. The taller individual in the shadowed box noticed this and looked up, revealing him to be a young man with long black hair and violet red eyes. Searching the rafters above the dome, he turned his gaze to where Dexter and Tyler were.

“Oh crap.”

Suddenly, they found themselves surrounded by…strange little flying things. They were eyeballs with bat wings…with lit fuses on their heads.

“Double crud.”

The flying little bombs went off then, destroying the rafter the two detectives were on and sent them plummeting towards the ground with screams and shouts. The top of the caged dome gave in under their combined weights and allowed them to fall right smack dab in the middle of the battle area. Once the pain started to fade away and their vision returned, they saw that every eye in the warehouse was on them.

“Ahhh…”

“Crap on a cracker.”

“GET THOSE SONS OF BITCHES!” Virote shouted into his microphone as everyone cheered and started to rush down into the dome-most likely to rip them both limb from limb.

“Ty, grab on!” Dexter shouted as his wings opened up and snapped them both back into the air as bullets embedded themselves in the ground were they once stood. The angel was aiming to escape through the hole that they just made, but it was quickly blocked by the Fallon brothers who took to the air with a speed that matched sharks in the water. The flying bodies collided and started a struggle between those trying to escape and those trying to kill. The Fallon brothers had the advantage of two fliers against one and took advantage of that by trying to separate Dexter and Tyler and let the werewolf plummet to the ground where the mob was waiting. Fists and talons were going in every direction then and the werewolf nearly fell to his doom as the angel fought to keep them both in the air and the Fallons at bay. Tyler grabbed onto Dexter’s leg though and held on. The angel summoned up his last bits of super strength to sock Laurent hard in the face, sending him flying into the cage as he swung his leg up and allowed Tyler the chance to slam both feet into Donavan’s chest, stunning him as he spun wildly through the air. That gave them the chance to escape from the domed cage at last-but just as the rain of bullets started again, slipping through the openings in the cage and compelling them to run down as best as they could. Several large spikes of shadows erupted through the cage, tearing it apart as it aimed to impale them both. The shadow attack came from Eclipse as she ordered her to vampires to pursue them. The spikes forced the detectives to slide down the rest of the dome before they could jump off and hit the ground running.

The whole casino lit up like someone just sent a fire. Everyone that wasn’t a gangster was trying to run and hide, either from fear of getting involved or from fear of being recognized and arrested. The gangsters, meanwhile, were in hot pursuit of the detectives as they tried to escape the warehouse. The pair tried the front doors but they were quickly blocked off and they had to make a hasty retreat or else to be cut to ribbons and pumped full of lead as swords and guns bit at their feet. They had to start fighting as they searched for another way out. Fists and feet flew into whatever face and body came their way, the tables and chairs used to aid their desperate fight for freedom. Dexter was being pinned down onto a table with a man strangling him before he had to call upon another ability of his-the ability to summon a katana from the palm of his hand-and send the blade into his shoulder to free himself. After that, it was sword fights everywhere he looked. Tyler was using his flexible body to fight around and on the tables to keep from being torn apart by the vampires. It was sheer chaos in every direction.

It got even madder as the angel found that he was suddenly blocking a swing from Tayte’s halberd. She looked furious. “I told you to stay away from me, you idiotic angel! Now you're going to die here by my hands!"

“That’s really not necessary!”

“I beg to differ, snowflake!” That was the beginning of a massive sword/ halberd fight. It went on top of the tables and in the middle of utter chaos. Men tried to kill Dexter as he fought, forcing him to defend himself from all directions and therefore, get sliced up like deli cheese from either direction. He never did anything to attack Tayte though. He found that he couldn’t. Somewhere in the middle of their match, their weapons locked and they could look each other in the eye. “I hope Tristan’s money was worth losing your life. It wouldn’t do you much good where you’re going!”

“I JUST WANT TO PROTECT YOU!!!” Dexter found himself shouting to Tayte. He didn’t know where that came from but it just…exploded out of him. It was embarrassing…but it made Tayte stop then. She looked…really surprised by what he just said. Some of the fury left her eyes. Their fight stopped then…before a vampire was sent flying between them with an arm missing.

“Dex! Dexter, we need to get out of here! NOW!” Tyler shouted, a severed arm in his hand as he used it to beat away some poor gangster. He looked just as bad as Dexter did, his eyes wild and a snarl in his voice. If this kept up, he may have to go full wolf just to survive. But that would have meant going psycho on the vampires with so much of their scent in the air and then…there may have been no control over what he could do.

Tayte snapped out of whatever state of mind she was in and punched Dexter in the face. He went down hard and she was on top of him with her halberd. “I don’t NEED protecting. Not from someone like you!” She was ready to decapitate him then before Tyler slammed into her and pushed the harpy off of the angel. He helped Dexter up to his feet before they saw what was coming at them next. The young man with long black hair-and black wings-was standing before them. On his side was the short individual in the cloak. The cloak was purple with a jeweled eye around the neck, the hood pulled down to hide the face. This person…looked like a child. In a child’s voice, there was chanting. The black haired man had summoned up his winged bombs and thanks to the chanting, they got bigger…and bigger. Soon they were as big as boulders and barreling towards them. Dexter and Tyler would surely be destroyed if those things went off! Not only that but Tayte would be caught in the blast as she started to pick herself up nearby. Without even thinking, the angel pushed her as far as he could-which was far-and turned around, sword in hand and determination burning in his eyes.

“I’ve had enough for this! TY! GET BEHIND ME!!!” The angel took a stance like he was on a batting plate as he faced the incoming bombs. The katana’s flat side would act as the bat. He started to swing like there was no tomorrow at the bombs that were coming at them, all of his superhuman strenght in each swing. There was a slow push at first before they started to fly and spin with great speed towards the wall and the doors. For a moment, there was nothing. And then, a massive explosion occurred that could be seen from across the bay.

The entire front of the warehouse was gone, the rubble scattered all over the docks, the wood burning as it drifted in the waves. And from the destroyed section of wall, there came Dexter and Tyler, running for their lives. “Running, running, AND WE’RE RUNNING NOW!!!” Whoever wasn’t blown away was beyond furious and shooting at them as they ran down the docks with everything they had. With no other way to escape, the detectives jumped off and dove into the water as everyone chased after them. They shot into the water blindly, waiting to see blood drift to the surface in the glow of the burning warehouse. There was none, and everyone was very displeased by this. Particularly Virote as he walked up the dock, sparks escaping his body.

“They blew up my casino…they blew up my casino…THOSE MOTHER ******** BLEW UP MY CASINO!!!” Grabbing a hold of a wet chain and whipping it into the water, the demigod pumped several thousand volts of electricity into the water in hopes that he would fry the detectives. The entire bay light up like a thousand light bulbs, sparks dancing along the water’s surface before it finally fizzed out. Hundreds of dead fish started to float to the surface…but no angel or werewolf. Dissatisfied with the results, everyone started to leave the dock, not bothering to check underneath it.

Dexter and Tyler were clinging to each other and to a wooden beam that hung a few inches above the water. They swam under the docks and grabbed a hold of the beam before Virote showed up. After that, they held on to each other and the beam and prayed to God that they wouldn’t get fried. Sparks danced extremely closed to their backs, but thankfully they didn’t catch onto their wet clothes, fur and feathers. The detectives waited several minutes for everyone to leave and for the water to be safe again before they let go and flopped back down into the bay. The salt water stung in their wounds and their ears were ringing from the explosion. Exhausted and breathing hard, they allowed their bodies to simply float among the dead fishes. The sound of cars leaving soon faded away back into the sounds of the night. The night sky above them was almost mocking how calm it was as it sat aside and watched the events of that evening unfold. The warehouse had been truly abandoned and left to burn.“You okay, Ty?"

“Considering what just happened…I’m good. You?”

“I've been better…Ty?”

“Yeah Dex?”

“…we’re asking Tristan for a bonus if we live to the end of this case.”