The missing Auras

Chapter 2

I decide to ask for Hydra's case.
- There was a criminal in the elevator, Hydra. What did he do, I ask.
- His case came in late last night. Breaking and entering, coupled with robbery. The night shift seemed to have some problems and passed it on. Things are apparently complicated with the suspect, Alex says. Translation, no one else wants the case.
- I'll take it, I say and smile.
- I had a feeling you'd say that, Alex says. If there's one thing my mother taught me, it's that you won't get anywhere by backing down from a challenge. Alex snaps his fingers, and an assistant bounds through the door, carrying a stack of files. The nymph drops the bundle on Alex's desk with a thud.
- Still up for it, Alex asks and I nod.
- I got this, I say. Alex drops a single file on top of the other ones.
- The incident report. Good luck, he says.

I take the stack of papers with me out to my desk, taking a moment to admire the paper downpour that has flooded my workspace.
- What a glamorous life I have, I say in my head. Layla waves at me cheerfully from her desk opposite of mine.
- Looks like you made it up, Layla says. I tug on the rubber bands binding the folders of my new case. Layla hums a melody.
- That's nice. Some new song by Aphrodite, I ask.
- Oh no, it's Bruno's latest masterpiece. He's been playing it on his guitar at home all the time. And when he doesn't do that, he's whistles it, Layla says.
- It's catchy. You sure Musica Records hasn't scouted him yet, I ask.
- Bruno's content to play at festivals and the like. Not in it for the money, he says, Layla says. Satyrs are fun and all, but way too carefree for my taste. No direction in life. Just the thought makes my skin itch.
- You're a saint, Layla, I say. Layla just flashes a smile as she hums her way through the beginning of our work day.
I manage to wrestle the files out of the rubberband mess to find them all out of order. I start rearranging by date as I search for the main profile. A single photo drops on the midst of my organization, floating down to the rest on top of the pile. Cold blue eyes stare up at me, unsettling even on paper. Long dark hair and a very pale, expressionless face.
- Hydra, I mutter.
- At approximately 11:15 pm, the suspect Hydra was arrested onsite. After stealing the artifact of the Crow Aura from Hercules, I say. Cases of stolen Artifacts were not unheard of, but who in their right mind would steal from Zeus's favorite son. Alex strides up to my desk again with a solemn nod.
- According to Hercules, Hydra was found fleeing Hercules's property at night. That was after Hercules discovered the artifact of the Crow Aura was missing. Its whereabouts are still unknown, Alex explains.
- Has anyone talked to Hydra yet, I ask.
- He refused to speak. I'm not sure he will speak to anyone, but I thought maybe, Alex says.
- It doesn't hurt to try, I say. Alex visibly relaxes, beaming back at me with a smile.
- Go down to the cells and see what you can get out of him. We need him to talk. The necessary paperwork can't be processed otherwise, Alex says. Hydra hadn't seemed very imposing that morning, but appearances were deceiving. It's one thing to mess with a demigod. But Hercules is already well on his way to becoming a full-fledged god himself. Alex hands me a set of marble keys.
- You'll need these, Alex says.
- Right, I say and smile. I pack away the necessary files regarding Hydra in my briefcase. Then I drop in the keys as well as I head to the elevators.

For the second time that day, I found myself taking the long trip down to H.E.R.A.'s holding cells. I make it past the hallway this time and check-in with the guard station.
- Hydra will be in the fifth cell down. There's no need to be accompanied by a guard since we placed him in the block with AM bars. Plus he still has his cuffs in, no need to worry, the agent explains. I nod and smile. AM, short for Aura Marble. One of the few materials in existence that can restrict a person's Aura, severely limiting their power.

I make my way down the row of holding cells, stopping when I see a familiar profile. Hydra is sitting on the one lone bench provided in the cell, his head tipped back and eyes closed.
- Back so soon, he asks. I start, realizing his eyes have opened into little slits. In other circumstances, he might appear well-groomed. But sitting behind the bars, he seems unapproachable and untrustworthy.
- Or did you lose your way again, he asks. Steeling myself, I brush some imaginary dirt off my bag as I pull out his most recent file.
- I'm Kira Chen. I'm here to assist H.E.R.A. investigators with your case, I say.
- They expect a little wisp like you to get something out of me, he asks. I tamp down on my growing irritation.
- Your file indicates that you were caught in the process of stealing Hercules's crow artifact. But it was found nowhere on your person. It says you've refused to speak in regard to charges laid out against you. I advise against this, I explain.
- Then tell me, Miss Chen. What do you advise, Hydra asks.
- Stay calm. He's talking. Don't let him ruffle your feathers, I say in my head.
- Answer my questions and the process will go a lot smoother. Now, where is the crow artifact, I ask.
- You're the one who claims I didn't have it on me. So how should I know, Hydra says.
- If you weren't there to steal the artifact, why were you on Hercules's property, I ask.
- We're old friends, Hydra says. I zero in on the contempt dripping from those three words.
- He must have some grudge against him, I say in my head.
- Was this some kind of attempt to get back at Hercules. Stealing an artifact is a serious offense, I say.
- I'm sure it is, Hydra says. He seems untroubled by the circumstances he's found himself in.
The keys jingle when my briefcase knocks against my leg. Hydra lifts his head. He looks me up and down, gaze lingering yet revealing nothing of what he's thinking. But I see the moment something in his eyes shift.
- Ugh. Creep, I say in my head. I put my hands on the bars.
- You're not making this any easier for yourself by being difficult. Confess and you'll probably be granted some kind of deal, I say. He stands slowly and walks over to me, putting his face right up against the bars. My stubbornness keeps me from taking a step back to reclaim my personal space. Still, I can't help the small flinch when he places his hands over mine. His palms are soft, despite the calluses on his fingertips. Hydra smirks. Annoyed, I glare at him even as my heart picks up ever so slightly at our proximity. The bars are the only thing separating our faces. Without them, I could easily fall onto him.
- I know your type. So focused on your career that everything else takes a backseat. Adequate and eager in your professional life, messy and insecure in your personal one, Hydra says.
- Who does this guy think he is, I ask in my head. Anger wells up inside me, but his eyes hold me captivated. Things start to feel a little hazy around the edges, all my focus pulled in his direction.
- Aiming for the top, willing to go that extra mile to reach your dream, Hydra says and runs his fingers over the back of my hands in slow, circular motions. His voice seems smoother all of a sudden. It caresses my ears even as the words falling from his lips are poison.
- But you're afraid you'll never quite get there. There's always that lingering doubt in the back of your mind, am I right, he asks. The words seep into my skin, twisting inside me. I clench the Aura Marble bars as if they'll give me the strength they're sapping from him.
- You're not going to survive long in our world when everything you feel shows on your face. Some people might take advantage, he says. I try to find something to say, anything, to wipe that irritating smirk off his face. Then Hydra steps back and I blink. The slight fog drifting over my senses lifts ever so slightly. But my body wants to follow him, move forward into the same space. I almost reach out when I catch a movement in the corner of my eye. A small blue snake is quickly pulling back towards Hydra with something silver in its mouth.
- The keys, I yell in my head. My head snaps up, but Hydra has already freed himself, thanks to his little friend. He stands there with his hands up, handcuffs dangling from one finger.
- He's still in the Marble cell. He can't break out, I say in my head. I try to stay calm but one look at that overconfident smirk tells me the opposite. Tendrils of light begin to flicker and curl around him, growing stronger, forming something. I open my mouth to scream for the guards. The striking image of a five-headed serpent is seared forever into my memory. At the same moment my body moves on pure instinct alone. I dive to the side just in time for the terrifying snake heads to flash their fangs. They rip through the bars. The power of their attack sends me tumbling across the floor. I tuck myself into a ball and clutch my briefcase over my head, sliding to a stop a few feet away. The temperature surrounding Hydra drops, his Aura blinding hues of blue. He steps through what remains of his holding cell. Goosebumps scatter over my arms.
- How can it feel warm and cold at the same time, I ask in my head. The commotion sends the guards running over from the main check-in point, weapon raised.
- Hydra. Put your hands up, an agent says. Hydra ducks under one guard that rushes him. He slips behind and knocks him out with a single blow to the neck. The other guards go down just as quickly, as Hydra maneuvers through each of them lightning-fast. A pair of AM cuffs skitters across the ground in my direction when another guard is knocked down. An idea, a crazy, crazy idea races through my head. Hydra is dealing with the last of the guards, having already forgotten about me. I scoop the cuffs off the ground and run at Hydra's back. Just as I reach him, he whips around and grabs me.
- And what do you think you're doing, hydra asks.
- This, I yell and I snap one of the cuffs over his wrist with a resounding click. The other half already fastened around one of mine. Hydra clicks his tongue in annoyance. There's no way he's going anywhere, not with the Aura Marble restraining his powers. I smile in triumph, which quickly drops when Hydra grabs my cuffed hand with his and starts dragging me away.
- Hey, I yell. No matter how much I protest or dig in my heels, it's no use. Hydra is stronger than his lean frame would lead anyone to believe.

Before I know it, we're out in broad daylight. How he knew which emergency staircase would lead out here, I have no idea. I wheeze, trying to gulp mouthfuls of air. It's not like I'm out of shape. It's just not every day that one is forced up several, several, flights of stairs by an escaping suspect. The fact that Hydra hardly seems winded does not make me want to kick him in the shins. Not at all. Hydra tows me along as I struggle to go in the other direction, back to headquarters.
- Stop. Don't do anything that will draw attention, Hydra says. I want to pull away, but his grip around my hand is solid and warm, like nothing would ever make him let go. The haze from earlier, which I thought was already fading away, prods at me to listen. I eye his shin and take aim. But when I lift my leg, it stops mid-motion. I stagger forward clumsily.
- What are you doing, Hydra asks. He doesn't even turn around. I hang my head and sigh.
- All the cards are stacked against me right now. I'll just need to bide my time until I get my chance, I say in my head. Learning a few things along the way for the case certainly wouldn't hurt.
Hydra walks briskly, pulling me along like I'm not even cuffed to him. I stumble trying to keep up. There's a brief pause in his stride before Hydra adjusts his grip, fingers interlacing with mine. The warmth from his palm becomes that much harder to ignore. He tugs me forward, closer to him, and I realize it's to hide our cuffed hands from prying eyes. Still doesn't help my heart rate.
- Where are we going, I ask. Hydra keeps walking.
- I said, where are we, I ask.
- I heard you. I'm getting evidence to prove my innocence. Clearly no one else is going to do it, Hydra says as he cuts me off. He hails a taxi and one pulls up right away.
- It always takes forever for me to get a taxi in the city, but he gets one in one go. Figures, I say in my head. Hydra gets inside right away, so much for ladies first and I reluctantly follow.

- Where to, buddy, the driver asks. Hydra meets the driver's gaze in the mirror. He holds it for a moment as he speaks.
- My apartment. Quickly, Hydra says. Even with only those few words, I recognize what Hydra is doing. The driver's expression mists over. Hydra gives his address and the taxi peels away from the curb, speeding towards our next destination. My fingers dig into the seat cushion.
- What's the rush, I ask. Hydra ignores the dig, instead, he falls silent, drawing the quiet in around him like a cloak.
- Oh no, you don't, I say in my head.
- You know how reckless this is, right. You're as good as guilty now in the eyes of H.E.R.A., I say.
- Like I wasn't before, he asks.
- Was it part of your plan to get caught. You obviously knew the building layout. It was too easy for you to escape, I say.
- Take it up with the architect, he answers as he smirks.
- Where is the crow artifact, I ask. I don't even waste the energy on a sigh. I turn my attention to the scenery of the city as it zips by. The touch on my cheek startles me out of any growing concern. Hydra turns my face towards him. My instinctive protest dies in my throat at the look in his eyes.
- Is he putting me under another spell, I ask in my head. No. No, there's no haziness to cloud the edges of my vision, no sense of being pulled in. His touch merely lingers on my skin, a cool caress.
- There's more to this than you realize, he says. I hold my breath.
- Hercules is plotting something big. Something beyond what H.E.R.A. is even aware of, he explains. That breath comes whooshing back out in disbelief.
- Hercules, as in the person you stole from. As a son of Zeus, I say.
- The world isn't so black and white. And this isn't some open and shut case you can add under your belt and then forget about, he says.
- Hello, fugitive. Your credibility isn't exactly on the level, I say.
- Hercules is leading all of you around by the nose and you don't even see it, he says and scoffs in disgust. I brush off the hand on my cheek.
- You're wrong. There is something going on here, but you're at the heart of it. You stole the artifact, and I'll prove it, I say.
- I'll solve this case, I say. I meet his cold eyes dead on, more determined than ever. But my declaration does nothing to move him. He smirks that infuriating smirk at me. Which fades when he glances out the front window.
I follow his gaze to see a familiar logo emblazoned on the side of several SUVs forming a blockade. The taxi, however, shows no signs of stopping. There's no time to scream as the taxi collides with the barricaded head-on. I shut my eyes and brace myself as I'm flung forward.
When suddenly. I'm enveloped by indescribable warmth.
- Aura, I say in my head. My fear dissolves under the reassuring power, my fatigue blooming into renewed energy. I'm so amazed that it takes me a second to realize, Hydra has wrapped his free arm around me, pulling my head down as he covers me with his body. His serpent Aura coils around us protectively. I clutch at his clothes as the impact jerks us forward. The sound of steel crashing with steel rips through the air.
- This is as far as you go, Hydra. Surrender peacefully. Let Chen go and come out with your hands up, Alex yells. I can hear Alex's voice through a loudspeaker, accompanying the ringing in my ears. I've squeezed my eyes shut so tight that when I open them, at first all I see are stars. Through the smoke rising out of the wrecked engines, I can vaguely make out more than a dozen figures moving around the vehicles, closing in. The H.E.R.A. logo on their uniforms slowly comes into focus. We're surrounded.