31 CHAPTER 31
It was winter and the streets of Central City are so cold that everyone has fully kitted up for the season, I found myself drinking hot chocolate a lot these days. This time of year used to be my favorite. My website had started to gain recognition by the masses and was growing in popularity way faster than I had imagined, since the festive season was fast approaching people had been making requests to inquire for the best Christmas gift they could give their loved one.
They asked me for jobs that they could actually do if only they took time out of their day to ponder on it, but they saw my site as a quick fix to whatever issue that troubled their thoughts and asked for my help instead.
The way I had been handling the requests so far had made me seem like a therapist, an engineer, a chemist, a detective, a mastermind, and a councilor all at once. So each day It seemed like I was switching careers and taking up the one I saw fit for a particular job. It also helped that it made me focus on different subjects all at once.
Most people just needed someone to confide in before making a decision that could change their life as they saw it, since there wasn't any familiarity between I and the clients. They believed whatever might be my response must be the logical one since there was not a slightest hint of emotions behind it, all of which were thanks to reviews and professionality I managed to show in my replies.
…
Wally and Barry stood over some case files on a desk as they examined the recent reports from both the hospital and police station.
"It seems there's a vigilante currently operating in Central City." Wally looked at the report as he stated the obvious.
"This city does not have a vigilante, only heroes who watch over it and protect them from harm. This assumed vigilante is no hero but a menace to this city." Barry said to Wally as he handed him pictures of the victims currently laying in hospital beds.
"Wow! Are you saying one person did all this to these people?" With eyes wide open Wally glanced through the pictures one after the other as the details seemed to have caught his undivided attention.
"Yes, although they were thugs but this brute method of dealing with them is very much uncalled for." Barry crossed his arms as leaned on a wall near his desk.
"Does he have a grudge or something against these thugs? Because this is messed up." Wally remarked while flipping through the pictures one after the other.
"Some of them have a broken elbow, a concussion, a broken kneel, a broken pelvis, dislocated shoulder, bullet wounds, one had his earring ripped from his ear and it led to a torn earlobe which was really messy, most of them sustained internal injuries. The list goes on and on, honestly I don't get what he is driving at with this violent nature." Barry mused as he seemed to be deep in thought trying to figure out what this new vigilante must be thinking or what fueled his motivation to do these things.
"Is this some kind of revenge scheme or a vendetta?" Wally was confused and could not see any logical explanation to those attacks.
"We've studied the thugs who were hospitalized and the only connection they had with each other was that they were thugs and nothing else. Not even a single link between them, unless you count getting beat up in the same neighborhood as a connection." It was clear this case was giving Barry a tough time but he had so much on his plate already and this would only add up to the pile.
"They all said it was done by a male metahuman in a balaclava mask but a few identified him as some young dude. I think that is kind of absurd for this vigilante because a young guy wouldn't cause these kind of damages."
"Maybe there are two vigilantes, one in a mask and the other might be the kid." He tried making sense of the testimonies.
"I've ran over to that neighborhood several times but still I have not seen him but only saw the victims as they lay on the pavements unconscious."
"I don't think so, the damage caused to these men have similar patterns.The violence behind them can't be mirrored by different people." Barry turned the photos to show Wally the x-rays done on each victim and they all had cracks like they had collided into a wall.
"It says here that one showed symptoms of being strangled by a hand till he passed out but there wasn't any DNA or prints on the skin, it was like there was almost no contact between the hand and the skin."
"Maybe he wore gloves." Wally remarked.
"A glove would leave a mark behind, Wally. there wasn't any trace of any physical contact." He pointed out.
"What worries me is that this so-called vigilante has the power to subdue these men with ease according to how powerful they described him to be. I don't see the need for him to use such violent means to surmount criminals." Barry stroked his chin while pondering on why the vigilante would prefer the violent route and not even bother to hand them over to the police himself.
"Maybe he enjoys torturing his victims before letting them go, could be a hobby of his." Wally seemed tired of wanting to understand the vigilante and just wanted to bring him in.
"We can't keep guessing Wally, we need to get a concrete reason as to why he does this." He tried to get into the head of the oppressor.
"From the reports not a single finger was laid on them, and they each confirmed that he never got close to them but they were tossed around like rag dolls."
"Is it possible he's a meta who can move people with his mind?" Wally could only assume it was telekinetic.
"Maybe but with these results there has to be something more to it, maybe he uses some kind of device to aid him without coming in contact with the assaulted." It was far-fetched at most but he felt like this was something because they were always bound and the neighbors around themat area or the assaulted victims were the ones who phoned the police. It was different from what he usually deals with with the metas in Central City.
"I have a lot on my plate right now and I can't add this to them." Barry lamented aloud as he pinned the pictures and reports regarding the case to his crime board then took a few steps back to look upon it again, just in case there was a piece missing.
"Since you have a lot on your plate between Central City and also with the League, why don't you let me handle this one?" He suggested it to Barry as he hoped for an approving response.
"Wally…" He said in an exasperated tone before being cut off by Wally.
"I know, I know but I promise to be extra careful and not let my judgment cloud my mind which might lead to irrational decisions." He looked at him as he spoke in a very convincing manner.
"Are you sure you can handle this?" He asked Wally as he hoped for reassurance while he tried to clear whatever doubt he had in mind.
"Of course I can, he's just one metahuman and I'm a speedster. Soon to be the fastest man alive as I recall." He sounded confident as he sounded like he had everything under control.
"Keep dreaming about that title Wally. But promise me you won't do anything impulsive."
"I promise I won't, let me help you solve this case and bring justice to that criminal who roams freely under the disguise of a vigilante. Please Barry, trust me and let me take care of this. After all that's what sidekicks are for, we take some load off the shoulders of our mentors while learning and gaining experience from them." Wally placed a solid and persuasive argument on the table and it had Barry fully convinced that he could take control of the situation and bring in the vigilante without getting hurt or needing any help from him.
"Okay Wally, I'll leave this case to you." He smiled as he felt a sense of pride knowing the kid was ready to take on more responsibilities.
"Yes! I won't let you down, I promise." A smile grew across his lips, the thought of him being trusted to handle such duty made him excited to get to work and also not let his mentor down.
"I know you won't." He patted his back in a vote of confidence before moving on to gather the files scattered across the table.
"But if you need my assistance with anything, I mean anything at all, do not hesitate to inform me. Remember, I'm just a call away." He looked at him before finishing up with gathering the files.
"I will, thanks Barry."
"Here are the case files and everything we have gathered so far concerning it, go through it and it might give you a lead we might have missed." He walked out of the office, leaving Wally behind to get started on his case.
