Destiny No More

Chapter 36

The Doctor had been a remarkably paranoid man, Pyrrha quickly realized. Not only had he hidden cameras through his clinic and built a hidden compartment beneath the floor to store the central computer, he had stashed a journal detailing everything he had given out to patients in said compartment. Any screens that had once sat on top of his desk had been thrown aside during his interrogation however, making the matter of actually watching the recordings difficult, and the rest of the building had been equally destroyed. That was what led them to their current predicament.

Disconnecting the computer's hard drive had been easy enough and, though it was too large to be easily concealed, Taiyang had no issue carrying it. Pyrrha wasn't sure how she felt about stealing from a dead man, let alone from a murder scene, but she doubted any law enforcement would be chasing after them for it. If what everyone said about the lower levels was true, she doubted they would even bother looking into the man's death. The fact that he operated illegally made that fact all the more likely.

Pyrrha's own moral reluctance aside, she wasn't sure what their next step was. They couldn't just plug their scrolls into the hard drive, nor could they simply go to the CTT and use one of their terminals. The danger of the information on the hard drive would mean that they would be putting innocent people at risk, not only from Salem but the criminal underworld of Mistral as well. Anyone that had visited that clinic would likely wish for that to remain a secret.

If Qrow had gone to the clinic then they needed to know and it was the only lead they had, if they could figure out who the other men after them were then it would be even better; in order to do that they had to get access to a screen. There weren't many options for shopping on the lower levels though, aside from the occasional pawn shop and they had already checked those to see if they could find a screen to use to no avail. Taiyang was reluctant to go up in case they attracted unwanted attention, but it quickly seemed like they would have no option.

Getting the screen wouldn't even be the end to their problems however, they would still need someplace to hook it all up. Some place with power and safe from prying eyes. Pyrrha was quickly learning that those spots were few and far between in Mistral, especially on the lower levels. The fact that they couldn't go to the academy was quickly proving to be an issue, but considering what Qrow had been investigating when he disappeared, they wouldn't dare try it.

They needed someplace safe, someone they could trust not to say anything or ask too many questions. Huntsmen affiliated were the obvious bet, but Taiyang was having trouble reaching any of the people he knew he could trust in Mistral. If they couldn't get in touch with any of Taiyang's contacts then... they would have to use Pyrrha's.

Yatsuhashi and Fox weren't too difficult to get a hold of, though they had been quite surprised to find out that she was also in Mistral. Pyrrha made a mental note to thank Coco and Velvet for their secrecy. Finding their way towards Yatsuhashi's house had taken longer however. Thankfully he didn't live too far up the mountain, meaning they were able to avoid most of the crowds. By the time they arrived at his house it was already midday.

Pyrrha knocked hesitantly on the door, Taiyang standing a few steps behind her. She despised the idea of putting Yatuhashi's family at risk, but so long as they didn't know anything specific they would be fine. She would make sure of it.

Yatsuhashi opened the door with a subtle smile, though it was replaced by a neutral look when he saw the man standing behind her.

"He's a friend of mine, he's helping me on a mission."

"Name's Tai." He offered out his hand for Yatsuhashi to shake.

Yatsuhashi leaned back slightly, looking surprised for a moment but quickly recovering and taking the man's hand. "My name is Yatsuhashi." He shifted his eyes towards Pyrrha. "You didn't mention that you were on a mission."