Burnt Skies

Chapter 1: Pilot

✆Season 1, Episode 1✆

Officer Maria Nash talks on the phone with her father, "Listen, I have to go. Athena's looking at me like my training officers did before they told me to run laps."

"I would never make you run laps..now," Athena smiles, setting her and Maria's to-go cups of coffee in the cup holders.

"Still, uh, I've gotta go. Don't die," She hangs up on her father before he can say anything, "Why are you looking at me like I'm insane?"

Athena shakes her head, "I'm not going to pass judgement. I just think you should have an actual conversation with your father, though."

Maria sighs, shaking her head as Athena starts to the sirens, "Look, he just got back on the job a year and a half ago. I'm not gonna suddenly forget what happened before that."

"Like I said, I'm not here to pass judgement."

As they pull up to an apartment building, Maria takes note of the firetrucks already in front of the building as she snorts, "Athena, you were my TO. All you do is pass judgement on me."

Athena just smirks as they exit the vehicle and meet another officer who fills them in, "Fire and Rescue were the first to arrive. Theory is that some kid gave birth on a toilet and tried to flush the evidence, which got stuck in a pipe."

A young firefighter runs down the stairs, pass them, as he checks Maria out before continuing to the truck.

"Theory?" Maria asks.

"Has anyone located the mother to see if the theory's correct?" Athena finishes.

Getting no response, Maria sighs, "How many floors above where you heard the crying?"

"Uh, floor five and floor six."

"All right, let's start on five," Athena tells them, "Knock on every door. And don't be shy about going in if something doesn't seem right."

"Don't we need a warrant or something?" 

Maria rolls her eyes, quickly catching up to her partner as Athena quickly moves forward, "She's not asking you to make an arrest."

"LAPD!" Is heard up and down the halls as officers bang on doors, "Do you have a teenage girl living here? LAPD! Open up!"

"LAFD! No one flush your toilet! Do not flush your toilet!" Hen yells as she races up the stairs, "This is LAFD! No one flush your toilet!" 

Athena and Maria are passing the staircase Hen's coming up, "Hey, Hen. How's your day going?"

"Athena, Maria. Peachy. Do not flush your toilets!" She yells down the hall, "Maria, did you dye your hair? It looks good, girl."

"Thanks! Did myself last night," Maria smiles before knocking on the next door, "LAPD! Open up. LAPD!" Maria notices a young girl and a man watching them, "LAPD. Hey, sir, sir!" She yells after them as they turn to walk away, closing the door.

"What you got?" Athena asks.

"I don't know. Something's off," Maria says before knocking on door 513, and seeing the man peek out, "Sir, we're looking for a girl-Hey!" She's cut off when he tries to close the door.

Athena looks around a little more and sees drops of blood on the floor, "Nash..." The two follow the trail, walking past construction workers. 

The blood drops get longer and longer before they come across a room with a hole in the middle of it. Walking up to the pipe, the trail of bleed leads right to it.