Waste no Time (I)

Inside a multi-level condo, there was the thick scent of iron. The clean-cut and well known Major General and Deputy Commanding General for Military and International Operations lay clutching at his throat. Thick layers of blood spurted through his neck unimpeded by his futile attempts.

The Major General knew that his chances of survival were slim. His hazy and unfocused gaze turned to the man who would take his life. He found himself staring at the blood dripping down the combat dagger. His combat dagger. The weapon who slaughtered lives of many in his deployments ended up being the one that slaughtered his. The irony wasn't lost on him.

The general attempted to take a breath but only gargled and choked. The blood already entered his lungs. He was going to suffocate. He, one of the most powerful people in the United States of America, would take his last breath today.

'No!'

A jolt of energy stunned through his body. He recognized the feeling. The same fight or flight response that carried him through many wars. The feeling that left him hollow when he wasn't waging wars.

'My final hoora!'

The memories of his life flashed through his eyes. The image of 'Semper vigilans' visualized itself in his mind. The men who fought by his side stood behind him. The men who traded their lives for his stood beside him. The men who he would give his life for stood in front of him.

"F*ck you cocksu-!" The Major General yelled as he charged at his assaulter only to be met with a .45 to the head.

_

[Sam K. Lucas has been assassinated | +250¤]

[After Services: MPDC has been dispatched - ETA 4:13]

[Disposable Evidence: Blink Mini 1 Footage, Ka-Bar Fixed Blade Knife 7'']

[Witnesses: None]

[Body Condition: Extremely Healthy]

[Mental Condition: Stable]

_

Price looked at the man he killed. The clean-cut - no, his head is too mangled up for that description. The Major General he hunted. The easiest yet most important person he killed.

'When did this even start?'

Price had been doing this for so long. Ever since he gained consciousness he saw floating words. This constant state of conflict had left him with a traumatic childhood. The constant killing left him desensitized to the bloodshed. The smell of blood felt more normal than fresh air.

He didn't know whether to be disappointing or happy that he'd make it in time to finish his homework. The most important person he killed didn't even have meta-humans protecting him. Price expected to take a while slowly dealing with all the obstacles before making the hit only to find that his target was alone.

For the first time since he snuck into the condo, his expression turned sour. He killed people for a living, what's the point of pursuing a higher education? Price didn't see the point of pursuing knowledge. He wasn't exactly a super genius or a hard worker. The only benefit of going to school was having the role of a student guard his bounty hunting activities.

Feeling bummed out by the sight of homework in his future, Price chose to spend credits to handle the camera footage instead of manually handling it. He had credits to spare so why couldn't he spend it?

Before leaving, Price saw a note on the table that read 'all the groceries have been restocked'. Feeling a bit hungry, Price made a detour to the food cabinet. He was met with an array of colorful snacks. The packaging was decorated with Japanese letters.

After taking a few snacks that looked good, he found himself near the front door. There was a single family portrait. The middle-aged smiling general next to an considerably younger Asian lady.

'The rich white military man fetishizing a young Asian woman. Stereotypical much?'

The Major General was exactly what you would expect from someone with his qualifications. There was no flavor to his life. Alternatively, he was the war-hero Hollywood loved to paint in movies. The stereotypical 'love for my country is what kept me alive for so long' propaganda.

It wasn't much of a stretch to say that Price respected the man. No matter how flawed the general was, his love for the country carried him this far. Price wondered what would happen if he too had love for his country.

『Initializing Invisibility - You're invisible. Stains, casting spells, kicking and taking damage removes the effect temporarily』

Without any commotion, he turned on his invisibility and slipped through the door. By the time the forensic team gets to the condo, Price was already out of the city. Since there was no other profitable targets in D.C., Price decided to go back home to Gotham. He already resigned himself to his education.

.

.

.

[Burlack Condo | Washington D.C. | One Hour Later]

"Dr. Daniels, found something?" A scruffy cop asked the head of the leading forensic team in the MPDC.

The entire condo was cornered off and its residents were asked to vacate the premise for an indefinite amount of time. Normally, this was an over-reaction on the part of the MPDC but this was the death of one of the most powerful men in America. Not only that but those who could afford to buy a residence in this area of D.C. had housing else where. All of this to maximize the chances of apprehending the villain.

Dr. Daniels had proven himself time and time again solving dead cases with barely little evidence. This should have been an easy cake walk for a man of his caliber. However, the criminal who killed today was not one a normal human could defeat. It was as if a ghost committed the crime.

The only piece of evidence that showed a person was here was the dead corpse in front of him. Yes the corpse.

A flair of anger rose in Dr. Daniel's heart. A man who had given so much to the country was butchered like an animal in the country he should have been safe in. Dr. Daniels swore that he would catch the murderer and make him pay for his crimes.

"Nothing yet." Dr. Daniels said calming himself. "But everything was done professionally. No finger prints, no signs of breaking in, and no disturbance caused until they fired the gun."

Dr. Daniels slowly walked in front of the corpse. He walked backwards until he was standing at the exact position Price stood at. "From here. The shot was taken here."

Although the scruffy cop was confused, he wasn't paid enough to do any more than nod his head.

"Look at how the blood spread. The body wasn't moved. The killer wanted or didn't care us seeing it. Ah-" Dr. Daniels was imagining the scenario and caught something. "Look at the scuffles on the floor."

The marble flooring showed marks of a charge attack from the general.

"Even at his final moments, he was brave. If we don't catch this criminal, we can't answer to his family!" Dr. Daniels firmly said. "I'll take the bullet out and try to see if we can see what type of gun shot it and who shot it."

Although Dr. Daniels said that, he wasn't confident in tracking the serial number. The amount of professionalism shown in this murder made it unlikely to find the criminal that easily. However, he was optimistic enough due to the fact that Washington D.C. requires all firearms to be registered.

Unlike the other times, Dr. Daniels hoped this case would be as easy as that. The thrill of beating a hard case wasn't enough for Dr. Daniels to hope this mystery was a challenge. He owed it to the fine man to do this as professionally as possible.

"Alright then Dr. Daniels." The scruffy cop said before taking out a notepad to ask the maid what the last thing she remembered was.