Liang Yue's Father: Get up.
Liang Yue's Father: Get up!
Liang Yue's Father: Get … up …!
Liang Yue: Sorry, please continue. You were saying the appliances stopped working?
The Victim: Yes, it was just like you said. Right before the collapse began, all the appliances started failing one by one.
The Victim: First, the lights went out. Then, the entire house lost power, and everything started trembling. We thought it was an earthquake.
The Victim: Then, everything went completely silent, and the power came back just like that.
The Victim: That's when the house started collapsing. By the time we got outside, we could see the cracks in the earth.
The Victim: There was something under our house, some kind of giant beast. I could really only make out its tail in the darkness.
Liang Yue: Electrical failures … beastlike appearance …
Liang Yue: The witness's statement lines up with what we should expect. Still, we can't rush to assumptions.
Her pen sputters, leaving blotches of ink on the paper as she records her thoughts.
Poitier: So, what's next? Do we comb through our Arcane Creatures Database for a match?
Liang Yue: No need. I already checked our current evidence against the last ten years of case records. There's been nothing like this in the city before.
Poitier: Holy! The past ten years?! When did you even have time to do all that?
Liang Yue: I thought it might come up, so I took the initiative to check.
Poitier: Hold up! You really went through the whole damn database yourself?
The Victim: Errr, officers, have you figured anything out yet? We just want to put this whole thing behind us before our daughter's birthday.
Liang Yue: I understand. We're doing everything we can to narrow down what caused this. It seems to be an entirely new sort of critter. So, it may take some time to identify the culprit.
…
Liang Yue: By the way, Poitier.
Liang Yue: I was thinking there is another place that might have information on our "suspect."
Though she maintains her professional decorum in front of the victim, Poitier can read the excitement in her eyes.
Poitier: The library—I should've figured. But I'm afraid we don't have time to wander around such a big library.
Poitier: Before I let you go bookworm wild, I need to remind you, Elden's got us booked in for the exam today.
Liang Yue: I already took that into consideration. As long as we finish up by 5 PM, there'll still be plenty of time.
Her partner remains unmoved.
Poitier: Sure. You do you, princess.
Poitier: But I'm not sure why we're starting here. This is all just human fiction, oversized fonts, picture books—kiddie stuff.
Poitier: Why not go to the Foundation's archives? You aren't going to find anything here besides Little Lucy Puts on Her Socks and Red Beans and Spam.
Liang Yue: Because I'm looking for exactly that kind of book.
Liang Yue: Look, here it is.
Poitier: Legends of Ancient China?
Poitier: Looks like an ordinary kid's book to me, besides all the Chinese.
Liang Yue: Yes. "Fāngxiàngshì"—that's the name.
Liang Yue: "Qiángliáng expels plagues and drives away evil spirits. It devours all that is ominous and inauspicious." It's a common story about Qiángliáng consuming anything it deems evil.
Liang Yue: And …
Liang Yue: That's it.
Poitier: That's it?
Liang Yue: …
Poitier: So, what was the point? That's even less info than what you told me about Qiángliáng the first time.
Liang Yue: Yes, it's more or less the same story I was told as a child.
Poitier responds with a hard stare.
Chameleon Comms: Incident reported at 12 Blue Jacaranda Road. Suspected critter activity resembling yesterday's collapse. Immediate assistance required.
The two leap to attention.
Liang Yue: The time is 4:20 PM now.
Liáng Yuè frowns imperceptibly at the clock.
Poitier: You really wanna take the call? Your exam is in three hours, kiddo.
Liang Yue: …
Her gaze sharpens, and she hesitates for only a moment.
Liang Yue: The case takes priority.
Part 2 Commencement of Winter
Deputy Chief Elden: So, you two just decided that taking this call was more important than your exam. Have I got that right?
Poitier: Sorry, Chief. The time got away from us. We wanted to follow up to see if this could be the same creature that caused the previous collapse.
Poitier looks over to her trainee. Her mouth opens to continue, but she lets the words trail off.
Deputy Chief Elden: So? Was it?
Poitier flusters at the Deputy Chief's piercing question.
Poitier: The damage was less severe this time—a bit of shaking, some power loss. But we're reasonably certain it's the same creature. Cadet Liáng believes the critter's form is unstable, somewhere between material and ethereal.
Liang Yue: But it got away, sir.
The young cadet lowers her head, mulling over whether to explain her theory.
Liang Yue: It disappeared before we could encounter it.
Deputy Chief Elden: …
The Deputy Chief's brow deepens, a long silence passing between them in the small office.
Deputy Chief Elden: First, I told you this exam was mandatory and that it cannot be rescheduled. I thought I made myself clear, did I?
Liang Yue: Yes, Chief.
Deputy Chief Elden: Second, I am beginning to see a pattern with the two of you. You think the whole weight of every case has to be on your shoulders. Whether that's hubris or a lack of faith in your fellow officers, I won't tolerate it. Understood?
Liang Yue: Yes, Chief.
Deputy Chief Elden: Is that all you can say? "Yes, Chief"? I thought we already established that I expect more of you.
Deputy Chief Elden: Think it through. Maybe you'll gain a little appreciation for your team after sorting through our archives. You're not going back on duty until you're done.
Deputy Chief Elden: Now, off you go.
Deputy Chief Elden: Don't think I've forgotten about you, Poitier. Letting your trainee miss a mandatory evaluation? Yeah, you can forget about getting that corner desk.
Poitier: Here.
Poitier pokes her trainee with a small cookie.
Poitier: Take it. A bit of sugar will ease the pain of the hiding we just got. Should look familiar—Another gift from our friends in Chinatown School Council.
Poitier: I don't know what you call'em, but they're not half-bad.
Liáng Yuè raises her head up from the desk, hesitating a moment before accepting it into her hand.
The white sugar melts on her tongue, the familiar flavor bringing a touch of comfort.
Liang Yue: They're called Bèngshā.
She sniffles as she takes another bite.
Liang Yue: Kind of reminds me of that first lunch we had.
Poitier: Yeah, back at the diner. Who would have thought we'd end up eating cookies in a dingier place?
Poitier: And staring at a pile of moldy files that even bookworms wouldn't touch.
She picks up a dusty tennis ball nearby, baffling at its random presence.
Liang Yue: I heard from Chief Elden that you wanted to move to the corner desk?
Poitier casually tosses the tennis ball against the wall.
Poitier: He was putting it mildly. It was about my promotion.
Poitier: An Officer Grade III can have a corner desk.
The ball bounces back, and Liáng Yuè barely catches it.
Though they couldn't know it, outside crickets are chirping in the night, and the scent of lotus hangs on the wind.
Poitier: So, what's on your mind, kid? You finally gonna tell me?
Liang Yue: What?
Poitier: You know you're as stubborn as the mules on my granny's farm.
Liang Yue: Pfft ...
Liang Yue: Sorry, I just never imagined you would have grown up on a farm.
Poitier: Why do you think I'm so strong? You don't get a physique like mine without tossing a few hay bales.
Poitier: Now, stop evading my questions.
Poitier: You're acting odd, cadet. Don't try denying it. You know I can read people.
Liang Yue: I was only trying to follow the evidence.
Her voice is clear and resolute.
Liang Yue: I need to know, I have to know—
Liang Yue: Whether this means Qiángliáng isn't really gone.
Liang Yue: After the Chinatown case, I was afraid ... But maybe it was just healing, like it had been the last time it disappeared.
Liang Yue: Maybe it's not gone. It's just hiding, waiting for its wounds to recover.
Poitier: …
Poitier: I hope you're right. It does fit the profile.
Poitier: The size of the tunnels, the conductive fur samples, the eyewitness accounts—it's a distinct possibility.
Poitier: But that's not what I want to know.
Liang Yue: What?
Poitier: I'm not following—Why do you gotta get Qiángliáng back?
Poitier: You grew up thinking your whole life was going to be about taking care of this ancient beast to continue your "family legacy."
Poitier: But now you don't have to. You can do whatever you want. It doesn't have to be your burden anymore.
Liang Yue: …
Poitier: You thought I wouldn't figure it out? I know where those mysterious injuries of yours come from. You told me once: "Every blessing has a price." That's the price, ain't it?
Liang Yue: I guess I forget sometimes that you're not just my instructor. You're a skilled investigator, too.
Poitier: Aww, but I can't take all the credit. Elden caught on first.
Poitier: He saw what you looked like after summoning Qiángliáng back in Chinatown. Typical Elden, all he said was "rough."
Poitier: So, I told him I'd keep an eye on you.
Liang Yue: …
Poitier: Whoever came up with the idea of shaming kids into following their "family legacies" is a goddamn criminal.
Poitier: I'm just worried about you.
Poitier: Because whatever this is, a blessing or a curse, it isn't worth your life. You're so much more than just a vessel for that monster.
Poitier: I know you don't want to disappoint your family.
Poitier: But you're just a kid. You shouldn't have had this put on you. You should've had a choice.
Silence follows her words.
The air feels as thick as glue between them, smelling like a dull mix of old paper and sugar cookies.
Liang Yue: I think you're making a mistake.
Liang Yue: I'm just doing my duty as an officer of the law.
