Alex thoroughly cases the joint, to use her words. She pokepokes at the lined up pes, looks at the broken appliances and rubs her chin.
"Hmmmmm~! The kitties and doggies an' stuff are all sleepy and lines up! But everything is brooooken... why? There's no signs of anyone gettin' hurt... En-tree-ging!"
With that, she exits the house and goes to the one across the street to see if it's the same story there!
Exiting the house, Alex may see Yoko and Ookalf conversing with the cops outside--but cops don't stop her from getting to the house across the way, which is largely in the same condition.
So, Alex has found that:
a) The abductors like tearing up houses.
b) Don't like pets.
c) Like doing the same boring thing over and over again!
Ookalf wrote:Ah, so... You haven't figured anything out yet?
We just want to see if can help out. You understand.
The cops frown at the pair. Eventually, one sighs and shakes his head.
"I...don't see how it could hurt, it's bad enough that some of the posted cops have been disappearing too."
The other nods.
"Ya see, the proublem is dat when we post autha caups, dey go missin' too!"
Giving a shrug, the first cop continues.
"Yeah, that's what's got us all nervous about...this. I mean, not to mention how widespread it is."
Jello Shot Mischa wrote:Well! Since just being vague isn't getting the CTC anywhere, they develop a specific plan to implement before the next evening!
With a full model of the city of Muffinville and its population, they identify the neighborhoods in which the disappearances are occurring, and select a few of the families that are predicted to disappear in the next evening! At which point, the CTC begins to move their forces out en masse.
Armored infantry fighting vehicles and HMMWVs with heavy weapon turret mounts begin rolling down the suburban streets of Muffinville, intending to stake out the next familiar that are predicted to disappear. Will the police protest? Oh, quite possibly, but as noted -- the CTC now have PR agents standing by their phones, just waiting to deal with irate administrators who want to play turf wars over things like "jurisdiction" when people's lives are in danger!
As for a certain group of suspicious SUVs... one of the CTC's HMMWV's pulls up nearby, and a woman with long silvery hair in an officer's uniform steps out. Glancing over the sketchy 'agents', she walks over to the nearest one. "Excuse me... I am Special Adjutant Abel, with the CTC. May I ask what you are doing?"
Barring immediate reply from Monocle-Face, the McSketchy Mob of Agents grow slightly uneasy when the HMMWV drives up and offloads the unusual looking lady. Several of the suited agents immediately reach for holsters in their jackets while a woman holds a hand up, stopping Abel from advancing any further.
"Excuse me ma'am, I'm going to need some papers from you. This has become a serious event which I am not permitted to disclose any details about. We're already dealing with one guy right now-- *motions to Monocle Face* --and we'd rather not have any more trouble today."
As the woman does this, a nearby agent starts talking into a microphone--apparently calling for backup. Police sirens can be heard in the distance, drawing closer.
****
Meanwhile, the calls of protest start coming into the CTC PR hotlines, as several government agencies and private groups call with all manner of grievances and injustices due to the military presence of the CTC. Many of them are easy enough to handle, but perhaps the most unusual is the absence of any agency or group relating to the suited agents which Adjutant Abel was sent to investigate. Or the fact that dispatch vehicles that don't seem to be connected to any of the other government systems are storming in her direction...
