It wasn't an average day for Wizard City, but at the same time it wasn't an extraordinary one either. Every day was like this, using the line in between normal and abnormal as a jump rope. But for the people who worked at the Wizard City Detective Agency, every day was extraordinary. Even if it was a simple case like finding a lost pet, the case would always take a unique turn.

For one Marcus Trent, Wizard City was his charge, and he took care of it no matter the cost. He didn't own the city, but it was under the protection of him and the other men and women at the agency. He picked up where his mentor and unofficial step-father left off at: an incident known to him as The Mexican Standoff. There were so many questions about it, but none of them could be answered. For the police, the case went cold and they dropped it entirely. Marcus didn't want to drop the case, but there were other things going on in the city that needed to be taken care of first.

As he walked slowly and calmly down the stairs, Marcus looked around him when the ground floor came into view. The first and underground floors of the building were purposed specifically the detective agency, the the floor above was where he slept and ate, and only the others that worked along side him were allowed up to the second -but technically third- floor. The young man flicked on the lights as he reached the bottom of the stairs, and looked around with a small smile. His mentor had always been a fan of earlier times, and as such, the agency was styled to look like a building from the forties with a bit of a modern touch here and there. Most of the things on the first floor were actually new and fully functional, but designed to appear like they came from the forties. That was how his mentor liked the building, and that was how he was going to keep it.

Marcus walked over to the door and unlocked it before walking to his desk and turning on his computer. The current time was seven o'clock in the morning, and the other detective should be arriving shortly.

The first through the doors was a young woman dressed in dark clothes. Over her right shoulder was a long case which carried her sword.

“Morning boss,” Fae greeted Marcus casually while slipping off her jacket and scarf. She hung it by the coat stand by the door before making her way to her desk. She laid her gloves on the surface and rested the case against the wall. She performed each action with ease and grace that came with practice. This was her morning routine that hadn’t changed in many years since starting at the agency. And like usual she went to the corner where the coffee was kept and poured herself a cup. The coffee machine was relatively knew, before they had been using french presses and Fae was very thankful for it. She was honestly about to buy a cheap coffee maker for the office before this appeared over night.

With her coffee mug gentle cradled in her hands, she was ready for whatever weirdness the day had to offer. “So what’s on the schedule for today?”

James woke up on his paper covered desk as the lights flickered on, That damn kid comes in too early. James looked at his reflection on the computer screen, he looked like shit. He walked into the bathroom, splashed water on his face and straightened up his suit. After using the only magic he knew, breathing into his hand to smell his breath, James smelled whiskey. Oh this is good now they have proof you're an alcoholic.

To combat the problem of the breath James made his way to a strangely new coffee machine, Dammit my mugs back at my desk. After making the quick detour back to his desk and back to the new machine, he pressed the mug button. The coffee quickly shot into the cup. James took a long drink, and meandered towards Marcus' office.

"Hey Marcus where did that coffee machine come from? Oh hey Fae."

Sitting at his desk, Marcus was able to see just about everything on the main floor. He could see Fae walking in and responded to her with a calm smile, a nod of the head, and a simple reply. "Morning Fae, nothing yet." He said back to her as he noticed James walking around and heading to the new coffee machine and now over to Marcus' area. It was about the size as a regular boss' office, but instead of full walls, he only had half walls. He wanted to be able to see what was going on in his building, but still wanted for people to know that it was his area.

He looked at James with a calm smile and wondered when the man had gotten to the office. He didn't remember anyone being there when he locked up the night before, but it was still possible that his memory was false and James had been there the whole time. He was working particularly hard that night, so he could have imagined nobody being there when he locked up.

The ice wizard tapped his chin and hummed in thought. He actually wasn't quite sure where they had gotten the machine, and when he was fairly sure about where it came from, he answered James. "I think that miss O'hare gave it to us as a gift for getting her dog back again... Yeah, she said that she didn't have any money on her, and her husband was able to snag one of them from his workplace." He would have to ask the woman if that was true or not, as he couldn't actually remember if it was how they had gotten the machine or not.

Daniel preferred to come in through a window as a spark, returning to full size right behind Marcus. "Hey boss, what's this I hear about a coffee machine?" Daniel asked. He had a tendency to annoy Marcus quite a bit, seeing as how Daniel had fire and Marcus had ice. Actually, he had a tendency to annoy just about anyone he met, but that was of little concern to him. "I'd get some myself, but you know how I feel about liquids." That being said, Daniel jumped right over the half walls and walked over to the coffee machine. "Never had any myself, although I doubt I need any, if I remember what it does to people," Daniel said, heading over to Fae. "Hey, Sunshine. That sword still sharp?" Daniel asked.

Fae made a noncommittal noise at Marcus’s reply. She sipped her coffee as James poured a cup of his own. Her eyes only landed on James briefly, noting his disheveled appearance and the obvious fact that he was wearing yesterday’s clothes. She made no comment on this however instead she greeted him with a slight nod and a quiet “Morning.”

When Marcus replied that the coffee machine might have been a gift from Miss O’hara, Fae looked over the machine again. There wasn’t an attached Thank You card or any note. It might’ve been a bad idea drinking coffee from an unknown source, god knows they have made enough enemies for someone to poison them like this, but Fae sipped at her hot coffee defiantely. No one will get between her and her first cup of the day, not even a certain chipper fire sprite.

"Hey, Sunshine. That sword still sharp?" Daniel asked.

There wasn’t even a pause before Fae said “Still sharper than you,” in a deadpan manner before going back to her desk.

Newton strolled into the building, a cheerfully whistled tune on his lips. His face, as usual, held traces of a confident smirk and there was a cheerful pep in his step. Despite that, his eyes were weighed with heavy dark bags, a clear result of last night's full moon.

"G'morning, guys!" he cheerfully called out. He glanced over at Fae, giving her a little wink and coy grin. "And an especially good morning to you, Miss Fae. You're looking as pretty as ever."

With a laugh, Newton headed to the coffee machine. He fixed himself a caffeinated brew before chugging down half of it. The taste was bitter, with it just being plain black, and the heat burned his tongue, but it definitely got the job done. He choked down the rest before heading away.

Newton headed towards Marcus' office, his maw stretched in a wide yawn. "Eh...hey Boss, hey James." He paused for a moment, sniffing the air. The faint but sharp scent of alcohol lingered about. He turned to James, who seemed to be the source. Newton cast him a questioning look before turning to Marcus and asking, "Anything new?"

Marcus couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable around Daniel as he appeared through the window behind the Cryomancer. He didn't have anything against the younger man, but they had control over opposite elements and being uncomfortable around one another just seemed natural. However, he kept his feelings and emotions in check. He responded with a nod and kept his eyes on Daniel. "Yeah. We can't have any coffee addicts in here. If the coffee situation gets out of hand, I'll return the machine to Mrs. O'hare." He told them all, only to hear Fae's response to the fire elemental. He couldn't help but to smile at it, and turned his head to Newton as he strolled in.

"Morning Newton." He said simply as he got back to his task at hand, seeing if anyone had delivered mail to him overnight. It was highly unlikely, but will possible. After seeing that he hadn't gotten and E-mails, Marcus shook his head and sighed slightly. "Nothing, and you know the rule about flirting at work. If you want to do that, then flirt after you clock out for the day."

Ebony felt like throwing up. Compared to her fellow detectives who had strong physical abilities, she easily got tired after running a few miles, especially if she had a nightmare and almost fell off her window, and is late for work.

"Damn... Headphones.."

Last night, as usual, Ebony was listening to birds and moths, sometimes, even cockroaches to hear the news about Wizard City. As the informant and the desk worker, it was her job to collect informations on current case and possible case for the agency. And unfortunately, she fell asleep while doing the work.
For her convenience, Ebnoy was sitting near window, and when she woke up from nightmare of thousand people screaming after her (mostly due to the headphone which made her listen to all those chatty birds and insects), she almost fell out of the building. Then she realized it was 7am.

"Sorry.. Am, I.. late?"

Huffing and puffing, Ebony opened the door and leaned on it to calm down her breath.

"Touche," Daniel said in response to Fae's retort. He took no offense to it, as it was probably true. As he walked to his "office" he came across Ebony at the doorway, panting like crazy. Daniel smiled and extended a hand to help lift her back up. He asked, "Hey there, you feeling ok?" He gestured toward the direction the coffee machine was at and said, "You should go and get some coffee. That might perk you right back up." He then looked at his non-existent watch and said, "Also, I highly doubt you're late, but what do I know? I don't keep track of time."

Fae was waiting for her computer to boot when Ebony arrived. She looked exhausted. Daniel invited Ebony to get some coffee and Fae noded in agreement.

“You’re not late and do you know where the coffee machine came from? Marcus said it might’ve been from Miss O’hara, but we’re not sure.” Fae asked. She finished her cup and went to get a second. She fiddled with some of the buttons of the coffee machine until she found the espresso option. Who cares if the coffee was poisoned, she could now finally start her day and finish those reports before lunch.

With the 'almost-but-but-not-really' late arrival of Ebony, Marcus shook his head and was about to stand up and help be before Daniel did just that. The cyromancer sat back down and shook his head once more just in case she didn't see him the last time. "No, you aren't late." He paused a moment to take in what Fae had just said to the only other woman at the agency. She very well could use her powers to see where it came from, but he wouldn't ask her of that now. She was tired and she needed the coffee badly from what he saw.

Softly pushing Daniel's hand away, Ebony straightened her back. Her mouth felt bitter and she neede something to drink badly.
After a few big breathes, Ebony nodded to Marcus in greetings.

"Hi Marcus. Hello Daniel and Fae. I think we received it from the woman who lost her dog.. If my memory is correct."

Was it Ohara? Ohayo? Oh, whatever. People's names are so hard to memorize.
Walking toward coffee machine, Ebony hung the headphone around her neck, and reached out for a cup.
It was strange that she realized this machine now. She was quite nonchalant to things around her, but it felt as if this was the first tim seeing this machine.
And the design was quite different from the normal ones she sees around the city. Ebony wondered who the manufacturer was.

"I can look into this if you want. Anyway, there aren't any special things going in the city." At least for now.

From her informants, the winged creatures, the city was eerily silent. As the calmness before strom, not even one strange thing happened. And 'normality' in the Wizard City was a strange thing. Ebony frowned. This feels bad.

"Yes. Nothing is going on now. Not a thing."

Ebony sipped the coffee and sighed happily. It tasted a bit too sweet, but was perfect to refresh her traumatic morning.

James took his time back to his desk, enough time in fact to see that Ebony girl come in half asleep. She didn't seem to be a bad girl, definitely strange due to her strange powers of communication and those damned head phones. After his moment of quick contemplation he went back to his desk in the bull pen and looked at the case he was working on. It originated in Pixie gang territory, a concerned citizen called in the shooting. The John Doe turned out to be a 3' tall average pixie name Dan Brennan, not a magical name. The hardest part so far had been making connections. Dan worked in the Wizard City DMV and he seemed to be allowing immigrating Pixies to grab a license almost automatically. The worst part is that the immigrating Pixies were really being used to traffic Pixie Dust, the elusive drug, then ending up left in the Magic River. Today James was going to investigate the office of Dan Brennan.

Marcus smiled at Ebony's offer to take a look at the coffee machine. He was preparing on heading out to talk to mrs. O'hare, but her well was welcomed with open arms. Her unique powers were a big part of the reason as to why he hired her, but not completely why.

He offered Ebony a curious look as she said that absolutely nothing was going on. That was a bad sign, not only because there weren't any cases for them to take, but this was usually the calm before a magnificent storm, and they could only brace themselves for the impact. He changed back to a neutral face and nodded to her. "Your help is appreciated Ebony, go ahead and take a look if you'd please."

Fae looked up from her work when Marcus spoke. He asked Ebony to look at the coffee machine. Fae cradled her mug protectively, like shielding it would somehow keep the coffee machine safe. She took a sip and set the cup down again. This was ridiculous. Even if that coffee machine was the best thing the office got in a long while, there was no reason to be so protective over it. Besides she could always bug Marcus to get a new machine to replace this one. Fae glanced at the coffee maker again. She definitely did not want to be served coffee by a possessed metal box, no matter how perfect it made the drink of gods.

She turned her attention back to her reports, keeping her ears open to every action Ebony made.

"Got it."

Walking over to the table, Ebony opened the window. Her table was placed near the biggest window due to her ability. In any case, she didn't want the room to be filled with feathers and insects. She put on her headphone and sat on the window seal.

Feeling the slight breeze ruffling her hair, she carefully listened to the chirping of birds. Birds had quite different formation of brain, and almost absurd way of communication. So translating their languages to that of humans' was quite a work. Ebony concentrated on the sparse words of the birds. They were telling her the route of the machine, moving from the West Avenue to the South...

"Found it. The foremost and initial place this coffee machine was located is a deserted building in the outskirt of the city,"

Ebony abruptly stopped at a small cockroach tapping her feet. Her face soon crumpled. Not from coackroach, but from what it said.

"There are bunch of kids in rags and dirt in the sawer under the building. I don't know if they are imprisoned or not, but one thing is sure. They need help. Marcus, I think we have a job."

Taking off the headphone, Ebony turned to the rest of them.

"Well damn I guess I don't get to go to the office." James muttered. He went to the desk and grabbed his 12 Chambered Elven Revolver and his "Contingency Plan" which was a very undersized experimental dwarven pistol. James returned to the rest of the department who similarly got ready and yelled at a fairy to bring him the coffee machine. After placing it down James thought aloud "Intial and foremost place, that obviously has to be a factory, we need to narrow down," he checked the label, "old Monti Factories." Soon a fairy brought back the only know location of the Monti Factory in the whole of Orgeon. James booked it to the car and started the car.

With a small smile, Marcus let out a small "Hm." as he got up out of his chair. He looked around to the men and women in the building, and slowly began to head to the front door. "So, who is going with me to get this all sorted out? If you're already working on a case, I suggest you stay here." He was curious to know where this case would lead them, and the only thing he could do at the moment was follow the clues.

The young detective pushed open the door and shot one last glance at his employees before heading out. If they decided to follow him, then that was great, but if not, then it wasn't anything to cry about. He could handle heading to an abandoned house. If anything happened, he could simply use his cryomancy to get him out of just about any situation that he could get himself into. As he walked onward, he began to hum to himself some random tune. He wasn't sure where it had come from, but he just felt like humming it.

The group arrived to the building. Fae readied her sword and patted her coat pockets. The spell tags were safely inside and within easy reach. When the boss gave them the nod, Fae took point and entered first, hand on the sword's hilt. Weak light illuminated the inside from dirty windows. The place was mostly empty except for dust and abandoned spider webs. In a far off corner was a hole, upon closer inspection a ladder lead down. A string of lights hung on the side of the tunnel showing a fairly large tunnel and decent sized walkway next to the wall. The stench of sewage wafted up. Fae nearly gagged from the smell and covered her nose and mouth.

"Do we really need to go down there?" she asked, giving Marcus a clearly displeased look.