In a dark alley, a lone child runs away from an unknown assailant, screaming wildly, incoherently. He suddenly trips, cowering in fear.

"No ... please!"

A blur speeds past him, knocking him for a loop. The source of the blur screams at him.

"That's what you get for leaving the Circle! You'll be hunted down like a dog!"

Two feminine hands pick the victim up and send him through the air. "You'll see the wisdom in this eventually. Don't leave us, we need you."

"No! You're evil! NOOO!"

A pair of large arms catch the victim, throwing him down to the ground. When the victim raises his head, he is suddenly speechless, his visage that of pure unadulterated fear.

"You've been a naughty boy, haven't you, Nicholas? Very very naughty."

A man's hand rises high in the air, holding an antique cat o' nine tails. It flows down quickly to strike against the back of Nicholas.

"Paragon, I'm sure you and Creature know what to do."

A woman with cat eyes slithers toward Nicholas. "With pleasure, Fagin." A wide grin crosses Paragon's face, as her snakelike forked tongue quickly flicks out and in her mouth.

A scream is all that remains of Nicholas, as Paragon strikes ...

At the 7th precinct, Cutup and Ramm are listening to the radio while sipping coffee when the Burke sisters, Flea and Sonic Boom, walk in. Sonic Boom is in the middle of eating her breakfast; she's carrying a half-eaten banana.

"All right, what's the big deal with getting us up at 7 AM on our day off?" Flea angrily asks.

"We received a call about a missing runaway having been spotted on Ten Mile near Schoenherr. The local press just got wind of the discovery." Ramm turns up the radio.

" ... and a sad ending to what has become a six month ordeal for one local family, as the search for young Nicholas Sachs ends in tragedy. Early this morning, police discovered Sachs' body in an alley just off of Schoenherr near the Ten Mile intersection. No word has come on the cause of death, but early indications are that Sachs died of massive blood loss, although there is only one visible wound on the body. Police are currently investigating."

Flea clicks off the radio. "What does this have to do with us?"

"We're investigating it. The type of foul play suspected is of a supernatural variety, and we're the only cops who could possibly stand up to it."

"Besides that," Cutup intones, "I volunteered us for this."

Flea is about to explode. "You WHAT?!?!"

"I was a runaway just like Nicholas. I could have ended up just like he did, and where would we be? Listen, all those runaways out on the street could end up exactly like Nicholas, so we have a moral obligation to investigate!" (Ed Note: For more information on Cutup's life as a runaway, see last issue.)

Sonic Boom signs toward Flea.

"Oh, all right, Meredith. I'm an insensitive boob, I'll admit, but I can't turn you down."

"Good. Let's head out to the scene, see what we can find."

"I've got a better idea, Jack. You and Meredith go to the crime scene, and me and Jasmine will go to the morgue and observe the autopsy."

The team splits up in the office.

Ramm and Sonic Boom arrive at the crime scene amidst a maze of zebras (squad cars). A plainclothes homicide detective approaches.

"What are you ..." When Ramm exits the car, the detective nods. "Detective Ramm, Officer Sonic Boom."

Ramm and Sonic Boom approach a chalk outline on the street of the alley.

"Detective ..."

"Jaden, sir."

"Detective Jaden, when was the body found?"

"About four this morning. Some hooker tripped over it when she was headed for the next street over."

"Did the victim have any personal effects?"

"One. I've got it here." Detective Jaden pulls out a plastic freezer bag containing a dirty brass necklace with a small ring hanging from it. Ramm closely examines the necklace.

"Where was this?"

"Still in the victim's grip. It looked like he was trying to get rid of it when he was killed."

Sonic Boom points at the ring. "Loog ad this. Sobe kide uv seal."

Ramm and Jaden look at the ring. It has a small crest engraved in the surface, a shield with a left to right sash. Over the pattern is an elegantly carved letter F.

"This probably means something. God alone knows what."

At the morgue, Flea and Cutup, both with a streak of Vaporub or a similar substance which hides odor smeared on their upper lip, enter the operating arena with surgical smocks covering their costumes. The coroner looks up at them.

"Detectives, this'll probably get a bit messy, so keep back, folks."

Flea nods. "Proceed."

The coroner signals toward an assistant, who pushes the "record" button on a small tape recorder.

"Subject is a white Caucasian, roughly ten to twelve years of age. Exterior analysis shows sunken appearance, only one visible wound on the left forearm, approximately sixteen centimeters from the elbow. Exploratory examination is commencing."

The coroner reaches for a small circular saw, cutting into the body. A small stream of blood shoots up from the point of the saw's entry, hitting Cutup square in the chest. She wavers, but remains on her feet.

"This is odd ..."

Flea looks up at the coroner. "What?"

"It's like most of the water was deliberately drained from this boy's body. There's also discoloration in some of the vitals, which suggests to me some kind of toxin."

The coroner pulls out a small scalpel and cuts a piece of tissue out of the body. Cutup's stomach has been doing the lambada since he cut into the body, and this is more than she can take. She runs out of the operating theater, presumably hunting for the restroom.

"We'll run a toxin analysis on this, but it looks like whoever killed this kid wanted to make damn sure he was dead."

"I see."

Another M.E. walks in. "Excuse me, Detective Flea? There's a call for you on Line 2."

"There's a phone on the back wall, you can take it from there."

"All right." Flea walks away from the coroner, picking up the phone.

"Burke."

"Jill, this place looks worse than L.A. with all the zebras here."

"What've you found, Ramm?"

"The victim had a small brass necklace he was trying to get rid of. It was in his hand when the body was found." "Who did Homicide send?"

"Jaden."

"What did Jaden say about the necklace?"

"Not much. He gave it to us to examine. It's got a small gold ring hanging from it, with some kind of crest engraved in it. It's a shield with a left-hand sash and a capital F."

"I see."

"Well?"

"Get back to the office. When I've fished Jasmine out of the john, we'll be back and compare our notes."

"Got ya. Later." Ramm hangs up.

"Detective! Look at this!"

Returning to the side of the body, Flea looks at the coroner expectantly.

"There was a microscopic tattoo on the inside of the wound, kind of like a calling card. I just inputted the image into the video console and magnified it."

Flea looks toward the video screen. A rather grisly display shows an extreme closeup of the wound, where the same seal that was on the ring is burned into the flesh.

"That's odd. Ramm just said he found a necklace with a ring engraved with this seal. There has to be a connection."

In the restroom of the morgue, Cutup is still kneeling on the ground in a stall, worshipping the porcelain god and watching her breakfast make a return appearance. Another woman walks into the bathroom and observes the prone figure on the floor. Cutup hears the door close.

"Go away!"

The other woman chuckles. "I remember you having the worst nightmares after we sat through a couple of slasher movies on video. I tried to warn you, but you insisted you were able to handle it."

Cutup recognizes the voice. Pulling off a small piece of toilet paper to wipe out her mouth, she has a revelation.

"That voice. I haven't heard that voice in nearly nine years!"

Somewhat recovered, she walks out of the stall to face the mystery woman. Recognition flashes across her face.

"Rocky?"

Rocky's actual age is belied by her appearance: other than her silver hair, she doesn't look a day older than 25. She's wearing a set of sweats. (Ed Note: For more info on Rocky's relationship with Cutup, see last issue)

"Jasmine. I thought I recognized you."

A smile crosses Cutup's face as she runs to Rocky and tightly embraces her. Rocky returns the embrace.

"It's been what, nine years? I kind of lost track of you when you went into prison."

"You missed a lot then, Rocky. I'm a cop now. A detective, too."

"That explains you being here." Rocky turns away from Cutup. "Jasmine, there's something you have to know about that boy they're autopsying in there. I know who killed him."

Cutup's face drops. "Who?"

"Someone more powerful and more evil than anyone you or your team has ever faced. I had hoped he would never return, but now he's back."

At the 7th precinct, the team has reassembled, and Cutup has introduced Rocky to the rest of the team. Rocky is sitting on Cutup's desk, drinking a cup of water.

"So tell us. What are we facing?"

Rocky takes a deep breath, then begins. "The man who you are facing calls himself Fagin. He is an immortal, who's been active for about one hundred and fifty years. He first appeared on the streets of London, circa 1852."

"I recall a character in a Dickens book ..."

"Oliver Twist. Dickens was a close personal friend of Fagin's, but even Dickens could see the evil dripping from him. He had hoped to warn the world about him when he wrote Fagin into the book, but the rest of the world all thought Fagin was a purely fictional character. On top of that, the Fagin in the book is nowhere near as deadly as the real thing."

Ramm interjects. "As I remember, the Fagin in Twist was a small-time sneak-thief who took in runaways and trained them to be pickpockets."

"He does that in real life. However, the Fagin in the book was a normal man, while the real Fagin is a superhuman. While he has no powers of his own other than his immortality, he can grant powers to others at will."

Flea nods. Sonic Boom signs toward her sister, and after she finishes, Flea translates. "My sister wants to know if any of his pickpockets were the killers."

"No, they weren't. None of them are that destructive yet. The most they could have done is sent him down the garden path."

"Where would Fagin's gang be hiding out?"

"It's hard to say. They operate all over the city, which implies that they are probably in the sewers."

"We'll start our search there. If you'd like to come along, Rocky, you're more than welcome."

"Sure. I know Fagin better than anyone."

Cutup gives a sideways glance at Rocky. Having lived with her for three years, she never did quite ferret out all of her secrets, and her knowledge of this immortal is getting to her.

Underground, far below the sewers, a small living space has been set up for extremely small people. A single man sits in a throne made of aluminum cans, with two large people in the shadows behind him. Three kids soon come in from different directions: one jumps down from the ceiling, one glides in from a left-hand passageway, and the third speeds in from a right-hand passageway. They all come before the man in the throne.

"Report. Dodge?"

"I got about a hundred fifty bucks, Fagin. Most of it's in cash, but there's a couple credit cards in that, too." Dodge, the speedster, drops his pouch in front of Fagin.

"Kind of an off night for you, hm Dodge?"

"I'll make it up tomorrow night."

"All right. How about you, Aeriel?"

Aeriel, the winged girl, drops her pouch before Fagin. "Slow night. Only ninety bucks and a coupla Red Wings tickets you might wanna scalp."

"Don't even suggest that, girl. Don't you know scalping tickets is illegal?" A small chuckle emanates from Fagin, then he regains his composure. "Lastly, the youngest. What about you, Bulk?"

"Good night, Fagin. I scared some guys out of six hundred bucks." He drops a very full pouch before Fagin.

"Good work, folks. So what if it's a slow night, we'll make it up tomorrow. Now, we have another matter to discuss."

The three kids approach Fagin.

"Since we had to put away poor Ant last night, the threat remains that we may be besieged by the authorities. It may be necessary to move our base of operations, in the event we are found. That's highly unlikely, but we should be prepared."

"Are we moving, Fagin?" Aeriel pines sorrowfully.

"Noooo. Now, let's be merry! Tonight's haul was good, if not slow. Music, please!"

Dodge picks up a harmonica and starts a jig. Bulk and Aeriel start dancing, as Fagin sits back in his throne, tapping his foot to the beat. A scaly hand from his right side comes down on his shoulder.

"Are you telling them everything?"

"Nonsense, Creature. The authorities are closer than I would ever let them know. But don't worry. You too, Paragon."

The figure on Fagin's left side places a hand on his shoulder, a feminine hand with clawlike fingernails.

"No matter what happens, we will remain in Detroit."

Decked out in their costumes, covered in riot gear, Rocky and the team are standing in the office waiting for approval for their search of the city's sewers. In the meantime, Cutup is talking to Rocky.

"I don't understand, Rocky. How could you know so much about Fagin?"

Rocky drops her eyes to the floor. "Because we are the same."

Cutup is taken aback at this. "You mean ..."

"I am an immortal, yes. Jasmine, I didn't ever want for you to ever need to know that, but now with Fagin appearing in Detroit, it would seem I have no choice. To be quite honest, Fagin is my twin brother."

Cutup nods. She isn't taking the revelation very well, but is trying to keep her composure. "So tell me, exactly how old are you two?"

"We are exactly the same age. We both came out of our mother's womb on August 9th, 1297." "Yes. We only became known at the time of the Dickens book because Fagin became evil at that time."

The phone rings, distracting everyone. Flea picks up, and after listening to the speaker on the other end, hangs up.

"Listen up, folks. That Sachs kid, he was one of Fagin's superhumans. Tissue analysis confirmed that."

"Anything else we need to know?"

"Be very careful in that sewer, folks. That kid was pumped up with the toxin found in rattlesnake venom. It was enough to kill a hundred full grown men. If you encounter anything even remotely snakelike, haul ass outta there pronto. Got it?"

Everyone nods. The phone rings again, and after Flea replies, she almost immediately hangs up.

"That's our approval. Let's move!"

In the sewers, Fagin is preparing his kids for action. He seems to know what the team is planning, and has had them collect their personal belongings.

"Are we ready?"

"Why do we have to move, Fagin?" Bulk whines.

"Because, my dear Bulk, there's no way we can stand up to an all out attack by the police."

"Aw, give us a chance, Fagin! We can lick 'em good, can't we, Aeriel?"

"You can say that again, Dodge. Let's make a stand, Fagin. Please!"

Fagin seems to be seriously considering the idea, then finally nods. "All right. Set down your bags and prepare for battle."

Dodge smiles, as Bulk and Aeriel exchange winks ...

Just at that moment, the passageways are filled with activity, as the team busts in on the living space.

"FREEZE! POLICE! You're finished, Fagin!"

The charismatic man turns slowly toward the attackers, and seeing Rocky and Cutup in the group, he smiles.

"Ah yes. Finally, my dear sister Rocky, you have caught up to me."

"The gig's up, Fagin! You'll never stain another young one again!"

Lost in the exchange between Fagin, Cutup, and Rocky, is the three kids: Bulk has begun rampaging toward Ramm, Sonic Boom is trying to keep up with Dodge, who's circling her, and Flea has followed Aeriel out of the chamber.

"Oh I don't think so, sister." Fagin's attention turns toward Cutup. "You were a mistake on my part, dear Jasmine. Rocky wasn't supposed to get you ... I was"

Cutup sets her jaw and flings three knives at Fagin, just as Rocky does the same. They seemingly hit Fagin, but he absorbs them into his body and throws them back, as they seem to grow out of the palms of his hands. Cutup and Rocky are only able to avoid five of them: the sixth catches Cutup in the left arm. She starts bleeding quickly.

"You bastard!" Rocky lunges toward Fagin, but he ducks under Rocky's lunge and reaches for Cutup, placing his hands on her heart.

"You were a mistake, Jasmine Chin. A mistake I am going to rectify ... right NOW!!!"

Fagin's hands start to glow ...

An agonized scream is heard through all the chambers, bringing Flea and Aeriel back into the main chamber. Everyone else has turned their attention toward Fagin and Cutup.

Cutup is slumped back against the side of the chamber. Rocky runs to her, shakes her frantically, then looks up at the rest of the team. Tears fall down her cheeks.

"She's ... dead."

Fagin's face has become almost maniacal. "Yes, sister. I have rectified my mistake, and now, the rest of you shall die!"

Paragon and Creature emerge from the shadows.

"Now I shall prove once and for all ... Fagin rules the underworld!"

Back to 7th Precinct
Go to Part 2