Xterminating the Norm

Mandated Mania

Days after Zer0 and Soras encounter, the rest of the city still moved in a chaotic hustle. Including none other than the MPD. Otherwise known as, the Mantara Police Department. Sounds of rustling files could be heard from within the station. The officers were hard at work this time around. They were stuck on a case. And it was as cold as ice. There were a team of officers assigned to the case. Everyone seemed to cooperate with each other fine. People in the group were laughing and talking amongst themselves. 

"Haha! Cant believe our shift ended that quickly! this stuff is like free money! But you and Rennels got it handled as usual, right bud?"

The flamboyant and carefree detective stood straight and turned to face the rest of the group. Stacks of papers dropping back down to the desk. He put a hand on his desk behind him while leaning on the desk. 

"Why, of course! Anytime fellas!"

The men responded positively to his enthusiastic response. One of the men patted him on the back.

"Hah! Thanks man! Try to leave the station in one-piece, alright Kenji? See you!"

The rest of the team walked out.  Kenji dropped the charm. He ran his fingers through his short pale-pink hair, stressed about the work he has to do. No thanks to his team leaving. They never had as much passion for cases like these. They always view them as pointless. They hate playing the long game. They would rather blindly go into the action and take the credit when they barely make it alive. Kenji took off his hat, looking at the dim reflection in the gold MPD badge on the hats black band. His stressed pastel yellow and cherry pink eyes staring back at himself. He tossed his hat aside. He looked back at the case files. Eyewitness statements, messages left behind, victim files, autopsies, everything you think would help solve a case like this. But no, they weren't near close to cracking it. This case was probably the hardest he's ever had to solve with his fellow partner Rennels. The Zer0 case. He reviewed the messages again first like he always did. Since there were new messages here and there. He looked at what the new message said. His eyes widen as he read it aloud.

"Fun fact, my favorite color is pink! Maybe that's why you silly officers think they can lure me in by putting a guy with pastel pink hair on your team! He looks nice though! It would be fun to play with him sometime! Maybe tag?"

He puts down the letter quickly. She knows of his existence. How? None of the eyewitness statements says she was near the station! There's no way she knows them! Does she know their names too? Addresses?? His dates on Grindr?! What else does she know that she isn't disclosing with them? Well, why would she disclose anything? Shes a serial killer after all! Kenji, unhinged, laughed at his own stupidity. He gasped for air and looked at the open door. A girl with a slim short figure was waiting for him to calm down, coffees in hand. Her short faux locs slightly swaying from the wind the door produced when she pushed it open. She had sienna skin, and familiar tired eyes. The maroon eyes staring at him with exhaust and worry.

"Sorry, Rennels... just got-"

Rennels finished his sentence for him.

"Caught up trying to solve another case alone?"

Kenji sighs, trying to reassure Rennels.

"I'm fine, Rennels! I swear it!"

"We're good friends, idiot. Call me Lyra like any other normal person would."

Lyra chuckled and handed him his coffee. 

"New case or not, you got to pull yourself together. If you quit this entire operation will collapse."

"Thanks, Lyra."

He took a sip of his coffee. Mocha Frappuccino with 2 extra shots of expresso and a vanilla pump. His favorite! Lyra watched in horror as he chugged the entire thing in seconds. 

"Ahhh...perfect."

"You're starting to worry me. I mean, eyebags, psychotic laughter, chugging coffee as if you haven't eaten in days... You need to hold off the cases for a while. A long while."

"Me? Lay off a case? Thats ridiculous! I'm perfectly fine! I'm happy and mentally stable!"

Kenji's eye twitches involuntarily. Lyra looked at him with worry.

"Look, the rest of our team doesn't really do that much. You're stressing yourself out. "

"What are you, my mother?!"

Kenji suddenly lashed out at Lyra. Lyra jumped back. Kenji then went back to shuffling between files. While he may not be the sanest person on the planet, he has more passion than anyone when it comes to his work. 

"There has to be something! I'm close! I can feel it! We was meant to solve this case! I'm not going back to taking violin gigs from Craigslist!"

Kenji continues to overview the files. Chaotically tossing manila envelopes aside. Until, Lyra grabbed his hand.

"Pull yourself together! You don't have to solve everything right now!"

Kenji pulls away. He felt morally obligated to solve this case. Its more than just a paycheck for him. It's to serve the people of Mantara the best he can. But is this really a service to the people? He cant even solve this case. There's so much for him to work with, yet nothing for him to get closer to closing the case. It was like a never-ending loop of working overtime, feeling the pressure of the entire police force breathing on his and Lyra's necks, and going back home to no one but himself. Was this worth it? Was anything worth it? Why is he even going out of his way to do everyone else's dirty work? Is this case even worth solving? His mind continued to trail off. He leans on his desk and grabs a handful of his hair, scrunching it up. He laughed to himself.

"This is all pointless... this case is unsolvable! It's like god himself is preventing us from cracking down on this mother fucker!"

Lyra tried to protest.

"It isnt pointless! Divine intervention has nothing -"

Lyra was cut off by Kenji, who was grasping at straws and needles with every syllable that came out of his mouth.

"Divine intervention! That must be it! There's no other explanation for it!"

"You're insane! There's definitely a logical explanation for this -"

"AND WHERE HAS LOGIC GOTTEN US?!"

Lyra immediately became quiet. Silenced by Kenji's outrage. Kenji inhaled; his breath unstable.

"Logic has only forced us to work ourselves to the bone! Following the rules play by play is getting us nowhere but the bottom of the barrel! We aren't even paid as much as those braindead idiots who just taze whoever and drink like they have a Deathwish!"

Kenji was shaking with rage. Breathing faster and faster. He couldn't calm himself down. He swipes away a file from the desk and shoves it towards Lyra. She looked at it. It was the clearest photo they had of Zer0. No other feature could be recognizable, except her pink eyes. And that joyful smile. Alongside a few body parts and gore of course. It was pulled from security footage that came from a home camera.

The victim was a cop. What was the purpose of showing her this? Lyra and Kenji already know how twisted Zer0 is. She takes pleasure in others pain. Thats the only reason why she smiles. Isn't it? Kenji interrupts Lyras train of thought.

"There's a deeper reasoning behind that smile. One the department refuses to accept."

Lyra looked at him with confusion. What was he getting at? The department said that from their analysis that's the only reason to her lust for blood and violence. Especially if you take into the account the brutality of each murder. She only murders for pleasure.

  "What are you getting at?"

Kenji snapped.

"She murders because it's her way of servicing the world!"

"What the-"

Lyra never saw this side of Kenji before. Unhinged, manic, a crooked smile going ear to ear, nearly foaming at the mouth. Kenji continues to ramble on.

"It's divine intervention, my friend! This case, its not a case at all! It's a blessing and curse from a higher being!"

Lyra backed away as Kenji got closer.

"What normal human could evade police forces for this long? What normal person can accomplish such a feat? No one, that's who! This killer isn't human at all! She can't be! This must be a sign! A sign someone above is real and interfering with our dull lives! Thats the only way -"

Lyra slapped him across the face; under the impression it would snap him back to reality. It did the exact opposite. He looked at the worried Lyra, hand trembling from slapping Kenji. He now had a twisted smile on his face. 

"Oh, you poor thing...you were so overwhelmed you decided to slap me."

"...A-And? What about it? "

"So what? Dear friend, do you really think i will hold this slap against you? No! Of course not! This was all their fault, not yours. You have done nothing wrong! I now see the truth!"

"...The truth?"

"Yes! Since this was all divine intervention, i must go seek out our true purpose! How we will solve this case once and for all! It never hurts to think outside the box, right?"

"...Yeah. I suppose so. But you wont do something crazy, right?"

"Heavens no! You know how i am! I play it smart!"

Kenji flicked his wrist with sass. Lyra gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"Good luck, partner."

"I swear, i get back at those idiots in the department for underestimating us! Ill get as close to this case as possible!"

Kenji left with a manic laughter. And never came back.