The X Files | Levi Ackerman

File 5: Lucifer

"'Lucifer,'" Levi glanced up at the chief and the intern, flickering them back onto the page and adjusting his reading glasses once he pondered about the name for a few moments.  "'Nothing is known of the killer other than that they have a very specific method of killing.  No name was given to us by the serial murderer themselves, but because of the horrific scenes that they left behind, this murderer was deemed with the official name, Lucifer.

        "'Lucifer's method of killing is an elaborate ritual consisting of throat slitting, dismembering and mauling limps, and terrifying mutilation of the body to the point of unidentification.  These murders have been going on for the past few months, just after the arrest of Kenny Ackerman, named the source of the Skull Ripper Case.'"

Levi shivered, closing his eyes and taking a breath as he collected himself, clenching his jaw as he continued reading the file.

"'Over the past six months there have been exactly seven murders.  Inside these ghastly scenes, the victims, mainly males and females within their late teens to early twenties, were tortured viciously with earlier said methods; another chilling connection between all of these victims were that they were all current or future students of Trost Prep School for Law and Crime (TPrep) who held rather high rankings in their class.'

        "It seems Lucifer is after the more potentially great detectives that will rise in the future, as though he wants to eliminate the young investigators altogether."

He paused for a bit, clearing his throat as he processed the text through his head.

"'In comparison to the Skull Ripper Case, investigated by the...admirable Mr. Levi Ackerman," Levi scowled, growling a bit before continuing, "Kenny the Skull Ripper, or 'Kenny the Ripper' for short, and Lucifer both mutilated their victims immensely, slitting their victim's throats in a very similar way with a consistent slash of ten centimeters across and three centimeters deep; there is visual evidence that these two cases, one solved and one unsolved, are indeed linked.'

        "Hold on a second," Levi spoke up, breaking away from his reading.  "You're saying that Kenny was a part of this case too?!"

Erwin stared at his detective with icy eyes.

"You've seen the evidence," he rumbled darkly, grabbing a picture on his desk.  "Look at these slashes across the throat; they're all exactly ten centimeters across and three centimeters deep, just like all of the Skull Ripper's murders."

"There must be a misunderstanding!" Levi insisted, furrowing his dark brows as he skimmed over the passage again.  "There must be a misinterpretation in here somewhere!"

"Levi," Erwin said lowly.  "How do you think this all adds up?"

"It wasn't him!" Levi screamed, throwing the papers onto the ground.  "God fucking dammit, I swear to god it wasn't him!"

"Well what do you think, Levi?" Erwin retaliated, standing up suddenly from his seat and slamming his hands hard onto the wood surface of his desk, raising his voice.  "That someone actually practiced slitting things just so they could mimic Kenny the Ripper exactly?  Did someone admire Kenny the Ripper, so they wanted to become Kenny the Ripper?!"

"Shut the fuck up!" Levi screeched, now slamming his hands onto the desk, getting into the chief's face.  "How many fucking times do I have to tell you to stop calling my father that?!"

"Stop bringing personal matters into your work life, Ackerman!" Erwin spat back.  "Your love for your excuse of a father is blinding you from the justice these victims and their families deserve!"