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Post by jarahamee on Nov 13, 2020 22:14:41 GMT -6
The senior officer did not resist being moved by Agent Lin; the man seemed to have things under control. At least as much as could be given the situation. His tense muscles relaxed, though his mouth remained an unhappy twist.
Cassius breathed a sigh of relief, more of a hiss between his teeth than anything. These were the kinds of answers that he imagined would at least open the door for some real answers, and soon. They would need to get to the bottom of this, and perhaps, find out what had happened and why Aaron was compromised.
“I have potions for you as well; I brewed up an extra potent batch so I am hoping it will improve your condition.”
He lacked his usual enthusiasm for good work. It all felt more hollow now, especially given the dire situation. He wasn’t sure that Dust would appreciate the potions, but they would hopefully hasten his departure from the medical wing.
The scarred man patted Agent Lin’s arm, as if in support, and then began to move towards Dust’s hospital room. He had visited a couple times and knew where he stayed.
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Post by Sharei on Nov 13, 2020 22:40:50 GMT -6
The gentle urgings from friends and acquaintances hung heavy in the air as Koji stared Lin down in the wake of the agent's request. Aaron was the security breach? It left a lot of unanswered questions, some of which Koji didn't want to contemplate. But the new information didn't clear the WDSA of its suspicion, either, and Koji shot a skeptical look up and down the draconic agent.
"I have always tried to cooperate with officials to the best of my ability," Koji said, and that part was true. From tweaking out information on Zramek to therapy, Koji had always been as transparent as possible in the interests of trust. "But the WDSA lost it's credibility with me when your partner lied to Sara about Aaron's whereabouts. He's my friend, and if he needs help, I'm going to help him. But nothing any of you says can be treated with confidence anymore."
In the end it was Faolan's presence, and Sohl's uncertain shape at his back, that convinced Koji to back down. He glanced at each in turn. And Cassius, at least, he knew that he could trust. The Genasi let out an explosive breath that seemed to take some of the aggression with it.
Some.
"I am willing to answer questions," Koji said at last, putting his hands on the chair wheels to turn around. "But only after you explain what's going on."
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Post by MP on Nov 14, 2020 3:53:59 GMT -6
[Cassius, Faolan, and Koji]
Lin cocked his head at that. "Lied?" Surely not. What had Todd said to her? And come to think of it, how had Koji heard? He wished he'd gotten out of the briefing sooner, or made it here faster. But the doors were so little that he often cracked them, or marred the floors if he wasn't minding his horns and claws. Now the Genasi was hostile toward them, and without Nora here - Lin's ears flattened. He didn't know how he could break the facts to him now.
He let the not-orderly wheel Koji back to the room. His own help would probably be unwelcome. The only issue was ushering the little yellow one out afterward. He definitely wasn't cleared to hear this. Lin gave another anxious yawn, wondering if he'd have to translate the request through Dr. Mura. To his relief, the yellow one glanced back as they entered the room, seeming to sense Lin's reservation.
"I think I should get going," Sohl whispered to Koji once they'd eased the Genasi back into bed. "Just call if you need anything, okay?"
Lin waited until the footsteps died down the hall. With a deep huff, he plunked himself down on the floor. It wasn't a huge drop in height, with how short his legs were. But he did his best to lower his head and look nonthreatening.
I don't know what you heard, he signed apologetically, but I'll tell you as much as I can.
Do or die. Most likely die. Lin sucked in a breath, bracing himself.
There's a strong possibility that the Telmore we've been working with is not who he says. For several weeks now. We haven't been able to identify any obvious differences, but we've found evidence of a...double. The rapid hand signs faltered for a moment. Telmore's kept up with his schedule, his workload, and his tests have come back normal. His photomancy, bloodwork, and polygraphs all check out. But so did the other tests.
Lin twisted his tail, anxious at the thought. It still didn't make sense to him, but scent didn't lie. Neither did Todd, came the defensive thought.
We're investigating the possibility of a Doppelganger. Or a Changeling. But those leave signs. We'd like your input on whether this could be Zramek involvement. Whether, to your knowledge, they have the means to imitate a person, down to the memory. I know your stance on psychics - he held up his hands in a peaceable gesture - so if you're not willing, I'd like your permission to...
He twisted his tail again. Lin lowered his head another few inches, gaze sliding sheepishly off to one side.
To watch your eyes. Very closely. While we speak. I've read Telmore's briefing on your eye indicators. My eyesight and color vision is...not very good.
[Sara]
"Sara," Todd protested, his voice rising in a vain attempt to break through the shifter's rising voice. "Sara, no one's saying he'll be forced."
His voice was lost beneath her growing volume, but he tried anyway, gesticulating through her words.
"Sara, we know Koji doesn't -"
"- I'm not saying he's-"
"Listen, we can't -"
Until at last, a shout drowned out the shifter's voice.
"They found a body."
Todd was breathing hard, his own body angled, his shoulders set in mirror of the shifter's aggression. But as soon as the words were out of his mouth, the fight seemed to drain out of him. He passed a weary hand over his face.
"They found a body," he repeated hoarsely. "On the mountain."
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Post by tsukikoko on Nov 14, 2020 4:28:47 GMT -6
Even through all of her shouting and ranting, a portion of Sara's consciousness told her she should stop. It had simply been drowned out by the rising tide. None of Todd's attempts to interject had made it through.
Until those few little words.
The shifter froze, her mouth parted slightly. Words that had been fighting to spill out, like a violent purging of toxins, shattered into scraps of nothingness as the shock hit. Apology and disbelief at her own explosiveness came next, shining in the woman's gaze and visible the anxious creasing of facial features.
Finally, the horror; chilling her marrow, turning her blood to ice, it neatly extinguished what fire she'd had, until Sara could only ask, "Who's body?" Her voice, previously booming, had now fizzled out to hardly even a whisper.
Only Telmore.
It- No- no, they'd have told her straight if- if he'd been- She was jumping to conclusions, leaping headlong to her worst fears. Someone... else? That wasn't better, but a selfish part of her hoped it the case.
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Post by beastly on Nov 14, 2020 5:01:16 GMT -6
Simon felt marginally better that they didn't think Aaron had been swapped with some Halloween horror. Hell, if that was the case, then he was pretty sure that Aaron was Aaron. Stress can really get you, can really mess you up, and Aaron stunk of the stuff. His job wasnt an easy one, and then to put everything else that had happened on top of it... Poor dude was probably just exhausted. You can't blame a guy for seeming a little off.
"...Alrighty," Simon stuck his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his feet a little, "If it's worth anything, I think he's just... Stressed out."
He accepted the card, peering at it momentarily, and then sliding it into his pocket. He gave a dry chuckle. Whole thing made him uneasy.
"Yeah. Okay... lemme know if there's anything else I can do. Dunno what, but- I care bout that guy, y'know...? Thanks."
He'll let her leave the room first. He needed a moment to digest before getting himself in a headspace to consider internship options for a salamander.
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Post by Sharei on Nov 14, 2020 13:58:58 GMT -6
The Genasi stared Lin down as the last of the draconic's signs faded into anxious fidgeting, mind turning. A doppelganger? Had Aaron been acting differently? He thought of the way the agent had flinched from him during their argument - no, he was sure that had been Aaron. And why would they suspect Zramek? But they didn't know, he supposed, how it actually was. The fear for Aaron's life that had been driving his aggression toward the agents eased into something more pensive. With it, the tension in the air cut itself in half.
It did spike up at the mention of psychics, and the glare he shot Lin was even more murderous than the one they'd been introduced with. He told himself to calm down, soothing the stung emotions and unexpected hurt. If there was a doppelganger running around then it was a perfectly legitimate concern.
"You have my permission to watch," he said, finally. "But no, I don't think it's Zramek."
The Genasi spread his hands helplessly. "You don't understand," Koji said earnestly. "Zramek is anti-super. They are human purists, they won't work with supernatural creatures in any capacity. We Genasi were as close as they've ever gotten to using supers and we are half-human as it is. And they spent our entire lives mind-raping us to a point where we obediently accepted the unrivaled cruelty of all of their members - people would beat the shit out of us just because we met their eyes. That's not an organization that would send a fae or a changeling, no matter how useful or advantageous they might be."
The color in Koji's eye remained stable. No stressed, or excited, or even burnished color that indicated his trauma. Talking about Zramek's cruelty had become second nature.
"Nor can they imitate a person. Nevermind that whatever clone they decided to make would be an infant, psychic intervention isn't something you can do in an hour or two," Koji expressed, chopping one of his hands into the other palm. "It took them a decade to get complete obedience out of us, and even then, we went to weekly check-ins to make sure the commands and altered pathways were still working as they should. To do what you're suggesting would require a psychic of unprecedented ability and months - probably years. There's just no way."
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Post by jarahamee on Nov 14, 2020 22:10:45 GMT -6
Cassius frowned. Doppleganger? They had thought that Agent Telmore was a fake? Why would they think so? That did not sound like any of the work of the Zramek. It was something entirely separate. And then, when did they think he had been replaced?
He held his thoughts in; the questions for Dust were likely not over yet. He imagined there were more things they would wish to ask him.
The senior officer did not want to interrupt the proceedings; these were important matters that were being attended to, though he looked down at his fingers. There were ways to replace someone’s physical body perfectly, and he knew them well. For that matter, there were ways to replicate a man’s memory. To make a perfect man. A perfect slave, or simply, a perfect replacement. He would have to discuss what he knew with Agent Lin afterwards, and yet…
He rubbed the back of his neck as he considered all the possibilities. Did that mean that Aaron he had seen in his office, the Aaron he had told he was proud…wasn’t the real Aaron? He had been as perfect as he could have ever imagined. Nothing different, spoke with him like the Aaron he knew. Had always been as reliable as ever…
I gave him confidential data…
The thought dropped in the back of his mind. Had he given intelligence to their enemy instead of the real enemy?
His frown deepened, and he waited for a pause in the conversation before he added;
"Agent Lin, there are certainly ways to do such a thing. In fact, I could, theoretically, create a perfect homunculi. It is well known that you can transplant memories into them with the appropriate methods, and they will have no idea they are carrying out your orders. This is all very...forbidden."
He did not elaborate further for now. This knowledge might be helpful in their investigation.
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Post by qhostqrowls on Nov 15, 2020 5:03:48 GMT -6
Faolan listened quietly from the corner of the hospital room, a numb feeling of shock settling over him. The Aaron he'd spoken to in the past weeks had seemed perfectly normal. His usual stoic self. Nothing to indicate a doppelganger or a copy. But they must be investigating him for a reason - it obviously wasn't a baseless claim.
But still, it was hard to wrap his head around. Hard to accept or even consider as a possibility. He watched Lin's clawed hands shape out the signs, listened as Koji spoke back, and only felt a disconnected feeling of disbelief. Surely it wasn't true. Couldn't be.
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Post by MP on Nov 15, 2020 22:02:43 GMT -6
[Simon]
"You too. Appreciate it,"
The agent parted ways with a two-fingered salute, the door swinging gently behind her. As far as Simon saw, that was the end of it. But to superior werewolf hearing, her presence lingered. The footsteps only went a little way. Down the hallway and stopping near the wall. There was a sniffle. A second, softer one, followed by the scrub of cloth over skin.
Then her footsteps resumed, down the hall and towards the elevators with fresh fervor. With her departure, the silence seemed more pronounced. Aaron should have passed by on his lunch run by now, or nodded a greeting from the favorite, non-Waters-frequented Keurig. He might not be the friendliest agent around, but he was regular - or at least regularly busy. The fact that he hadn't passed by cemented Ruiz's words. Only a scent by the elevator, faint and fading, suggested he'd been in that morning at all.
[Cassius, Faolan, and Koji]
Lin craned in until his breath ruffled the Genasi's hair, though the scrutiny was more from shortsightedness than suspicion. He shrank back several times, from both embarrassment and the Genasi's glare. But ultimately it was the officer's input that turned Lin's head. He craned around to look, glad for the reprieve.
We haven't investigated the alchemical possibilities, he signed. If this is true, I'd appreciate your input in Interrogations as soon as possible.
He looked back to Koji, bobbing his head apologetically. He didn't enjoy peering into the Genasi's eyes, but at least Koji had stopped glowering.
I have to ask. If Zramek isn't capable of a duplicate, would they - or Strid - have reason to harm Telmore specifically? This would be within a six week time frame.
Just after the Genasi's abduction, Lin added mentally. But he didn't need to remind Koji of that. The powerful tail curled. He found the idea doubtful after Koji's assessment. But with recent Zramek and Soundless activity confirmed in the area, the question had to be asked.
[Sara]
Todd's silence was as good as confirmation. And for once, the piercing eyes didn't quite meet Sara's own.
"We don't know for sure," he said at at last. "It was - we couldn't visually ID it. But the - the dental evidence was a match."
He rubbed the back of his neck, clearing the hoarseness from his voice.
"The tests were positive. For both of them. Sara, it - we may be wrong. Telmore hasn't shown any suspicious behavior. But that's all I can promise right now."
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Post by tsukikoko on Nov 16, 2020 10:47:06 GMT -6
The silence was deafening.
A loud rushing, as though a dam had burst open inside her own head, filled Sara's ears. She could see Todd's lips moving, forming words, but they had lost all meaning. Her heart was no longer frantic as a frightened bird. Rather, it was as though the organ had died inside her chest, falling still beneath her ribs. The coldness with her veins had spread, coating the shifter's entire body so thoroughly she wasn't sure she would ever be warm again.
Bile rose, thick and choking. She couldn't see through a film that had descended over her eyes. Couldn't breathe. Could barely think. The walls were closing in, trapping and suffocating her.
This place, this damn place. What sort of backwards, twisted organisation wouldn't tell her straight the suspected fate of her own fiancé? Instead dancing around the subject until she forced a confession by damn near screaming? Perhaps it was an unfair assessment to make, but the shifter didn't care. She had to geT oUt.
Skin rippling so wildly it was a wonder her flesh didn't flay itself off her body, Sara made for the door without a word, pushing past Todd if she had to. Cursed. Still she couldn't breathe, her lungs spasmed as though she were drowning. Calls for her attention fell upon deaf ears. Not careful enough. She was staggering for a window more by memory than conscious decision, only aware that she needed to get away. Her tail collided with something or someone. She didn't stop to find out who. Her exit loomed, the only beacon of light in a darkening space, creeping in on the edges of her vision.
Your fault.
At the window, Sara underwent the most rapid series of transformation ever in her time as a shifter; there was a raptor first, shoving it's head into a gap too small for the rest of it's body, snarling and flailing in panicked desperation and leaving claw marks all over the walls and sill. When her snout collided with the wall there was suddenly a large salamander squirming its way outside. Fingers grasped at her tail and hind legs, a restraining force that only spiralled the shifter's panic to new heights. Now, a cat had emerged, swivelling inside it's own skin and emitting a horrific, screeching wail, kicking out with legs tipped with vicious claws.
She slipped free.
Air whipped past ginger fur, bringing with it the sickening pull of gravity and freefall. The cloying stench of blood was thick in her nose - was it the city stained with it, or her own self? Above her, the window grew rapidly further away. Her body rotated, instinctively pulling Sara's four paws beneath her, even though the height was far too great to matter. Another shift. Feathers coated her body, an updraft caught her hard enough to wrench the wings she now sported. Though her tail always made avian flight difficult, she banked towards the hospital in a spasmodic flurry of beating wings that threatened not to keep her aloft.
She levelled out, in the end, fixating on one thing through the maelstrom of mania.
She'd promised Koji she'd be there soon.
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Post by Sharei on Nov 16, 2020 11:20:10 GMT -6
Forbidden magic to create perfect alchemical replicas? Koji didn't believe it. There was just no way the Aaron that had cowered from his fire had been anything less than the genuine article.
"No," Koji said, secure in the answer about Zramek's involvement. "They wanted Agent Telmore because he is the only one around who can actually kill the Director."
It was safe to give them that information. It had ceased being classified when Isaac's true nature had been revealed, and Koji was finding it slightly easier to talk about Zramek things since his hospitalization. Perhaps the killswitch had malfunctioned?
"He is too valuable an asset to get rid of. Now, my question is, why do you ask?"
Now Koji's glare returned, although it was slightly less murderous than the intense staredown he'd been giving Lin before.
"You suspect Aaron is a mimic despite nothing in his behavior indicating it, which leads me to believe you have other evidence for the suspicions. You've run tests, which have cleared - so why? What other tests were you talking about? What aren't you telling us?"
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Post by beastly on Nov 16, 2020 13:11:01 GMT -6
Simon listened to the agent walk away, and he leaned against the wall. Relax. People are taking care of it. People a lot more competent than you, right? People who's job it is to sort this shit. Agent Ruiz had a good head on her shoulders, right? He'll be fine. It's just a misunderstanding, right? Sure. Dude gets stressed, acts funny, people think he's some kinda shape shifter. Happens all the time, right?
Simon stared at the ceiling, and let out an uncomfortable chuckle. Nope. He couldn't convince himself once he started thinking about it. Didn't add up. There was more to this. Aaron acting tired wouldn't prompt all this. There must have been something he wasn't told. Something else was going on.
The werewolf rubbed his face under his glasses. Chill out, man. Think clearly. Don't get all in your head. He left the meeting room and stood in the hall. He hadn't seen Aaron all day. His scent wasn't really strong around the place either. Thinking about it, it made sense. If they suspected him of not being him, then he wouldn't be running around the building. He wished he could just talk to him about it. Ha. That'd be funny. 'Hi Aaron, heard you might be a shapeshifter infiltrating the WDSA, catch that new commercial with baby Godzilla eating the Muppets? Anyway no lying now, you really you?' He chuckled again uncomfortably. What could he do?
What are you gonna do, wolf-man? Gonna go sit at your desk and pretend this isn't happening? Gonna abandon your buddy when he could probably really use a friend? Gonna just sit on your hands and- Simon set his jaw. No. No, he was going to do something. Maybe it would be something stupid. Maybe it would be something that helped his buddy. Regardless, he wasn't going to just pretend everything was fine. Sorry, Agent Ruiz.
The werewolf returned to his desk and grabbed his cell phone and bag. Should he... Tell anyone else? He really didn't want to go poking into things alone... Fao had more than two brain cells. The dude was a doctor. He trusted him. He'd text Fao. The werewolf started to follow Aaron's scent, texting Fao as he walked, trying to look casual.
what's up, doc? got time to chat? something smells weird here and i could use ur brain. thanks.
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Post by qhostqrowls on Nov 16, 2020 22:15:01 GMT -6
At the Genasi's question, Lin's beady eyes slid nervously to Faolan. The hulking agent nodded his head at him to leave. Obviously whatever he was about to say wasn't going to be good news, and with a nod of his own the doctor slipped out of the room, his thoughts reeling. None of this made sense.
He felt like he should text someone. They must have told Sara already, but what would he even say to her? Sorry to hear your fiance might be dead? Heard you've been living with an imposter for the past six weeks, is that true? As if on cue his phone buzzed, a text from Simon flashing onto the screen. Golden eyes scanned the message, worry twisting tighter in his chest. Was this also about Aaron?
'sure thing. it's also been a weird morning here' he sent back as he set off towards his office. His fingers hovered above the screen. No, mentioning Aaron could wait. This could be something else entirely. Simon was trustworthy enough to know, but it would be better to talk about it in person anyway. Hopefully the werewolf would have some answers.
'meet me in my office?'
Telmore's electronic records should be accessible from his work computer - maybe they'd reveal something. If not, Records would be their next stop. Simon should be up for a little investigating, he reckoned. He was sure he wasn't supposed to be snooping like this, but he considered Telmore a friend, and it felt wrong to just ignore the situation.
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Post by jarahamee on Nov 17, 2020 0:22:45 GMT -6
He was admittedly not sure how to answer these questions. This was all new information for him, and indeed, why would they kill or replace him? If they could have made a perfect Agent Telmore, then why had they not used that instead? No, this was not all the story. The timeline was important. He grimaced.
Cassius saw the incline of Agent Lin’s head indicating that they should step out. He briefly locked eyes with Dr. Mura, as if he could find answers there, before understanding dawned. Whatever he was going to say was strictly confidential. Or perhaps it was something that was going to set off Dust. He could not be sure which, but he was not going to stay here and be an unnecessary source of stress. He looked about, and then followed Faolan out of the room.
He watched the surgeon slink away down the hall, but he had decided he would not do the same, at least right now. He leaned against the wall and waited, listening, alert. Was this a greater betrayal of trust? He opened his phone and decided to try texting Sara again.
Texts took forever on his ancient phone, but he started typing with one finger;
SARA
IT IS CASSIUS
I M WITH DUST
U FREE SOON ?
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Post by MP on Nov 17, 2020 20:41:30 GMT -6
[Simon]
The elevator down to the Medical floors was full of lingering scents - people moving along their busy schedules, their scents crossing the tracks to mark where someone had entered or left. Agent Ruiz's scent was absent here. Perhaps she'd ignored the elevators and headed for the stairwell. But there were other scents mixed in - friends, coworkers, unknowns. Civilians possibly. There was another smell too, plain to a sharper nose, and overarching. Something heady and unpleasant. Something that turned the stomach. A wrong smell. It made it hard to focus. But one scent, in light of the interview, was familiar beneath the stench.
Aaron's scent was here. He'd been through the elevator. Some hours ago, judging by its faintness. A trace of his scent hovered around one of the elevator buttons - the floor for Law Enforcement. But when the doors opened to the Medical floor where Faolan waited, Simon detected a second trace, also Aaron, leading out.
[Faolan]
Faolan's computer started up with the usual lag time. It wasn't the fanciest piece of hardware, even after the upgrade from the previous laptop, and the records took a long minute to populate. But at least it filled the time while he waited for Simon.
The doctor's queries returned the usual electronic health records. As the physician who had handled the agent's surgeries on multiple serious occasions, Faolan could access Aaron's file with little trouble, lag time aside. A quick scan of the document showed a long medical history with the WDSA - more bumps, bruises, and more serious issues than a doctor would like - but nothing unusual. Immunizations were up to date. No pre-existing medical conditions, no allergies to foods, environmental factors, medicine, or otherwise. Psych and etheric evaluations were normal. Some of the more recent additions had been written by Faolan himself, detailing treatment plans for physical therapy and recovery following the agent's abduction by Zramek. The very latest changes were from a routine checkup several months ago, and showed nothing out of the ordinary.
However, when Faolan closed the record, another detail caught his eye: a priority email that hadn't been there this morning. Strangely, it lacked the usual information in the title, and a dialog sprung up as he opened it, requesting a read receipt. It was from the coroner and CCed one Special Agent Caruso. Beyond that, there was no further information, and it was only when he looked at the attachment that Faolan could see what had been sent: an autopsy report for Aaron Telmore.
[Cassius, Koji, and Sara]
The shifter's frenzied flight led her past countless windows. The shapes through the spell glass were vague at best, obscured by warding properties and the darkened tint of the glass. But at the sun was at its zenith, and at least the glare was at a minimum. When Sara arrived at Koji's window far below, she could just make out the shapes in the room. Koji's familiar one was confined to the bed as always, little more than a lump against the covers. But there was another too - mountainous and hunching, the curving shapes of horns twisting from its brow.
Lin hesitated where he sat, dull eyes flickering to the doorway. The others had gone, but he couldn't help wondering if that was enough. According to their profile, Koji had snapped after the death of his handler. Would the truth trigger a similar event, and if it did, would the fire ward be enough? It was a risk. But so was gentling the truth, especially with Koji already wary. Lin had once asked his squadmate about the Genasi's rehabilitation, and Telmore had credited honesty. The reptile dipped his head with a faint, animal groan. He just didn't know. He didn't want to have to wrangle Koji if it all went wrong. He made a choice.
I'm not sure how to tell you this. I can't tell you with certainty, because we aren't sure of the facts ourselves. But the evidence found - the double - was human remains. We have evidence that Agent Telmore was killed six weeks ago. We also know he's come into work every day since then, without any break in schedule.
The reptile bowed his head apologetically, though his head was angled so as to keep the Genasi in view.
We're running tests on both. So far, all results have come back positive. I'm sorry. That's all I know.
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