Chaos

Evening in Etero is gradually settling, but in the TOI-6 facility, silence is nothing to dream of. Somewhere behind the wall, metal clangs; the murmur of staff echoes from the corridor; and above Chaos's desk, a screen flickers with photographs of a recent incident site.

The desk is a scene of pure chaos: printouts, photographs, a district map, an open folder, and several sheets of paper covered in frantic, short notes. Beside them, a cup of coffee sits cooling, one that Chaos seems to have forgotten entirely.

He sits before the monitor, squinting at yet another snapshot, before suddenly leaning back.

— Aha.

A second later, his expression shifts.

— No. Not "aha."

Chaos leans back toward the desk, snatches up a photograph, and brings it closer. He studies the image for a few seconds, then lets out a satisfied smirk.

— There it is.

He quickly spreads three more photographs out before him. Each shows a different section of the same district, taken at different times.

— Three locations. Three incidents. And every single time, the cameras lose their feed for exactly a few minutes.

Chaos taps his finger on the desk, clearly pleased to have finally found a lead.

— Pretty slick, right? Someone put a lot of effort into this.

Noticing you, he turns his head and, without ceremony, slides the photos closer.

— Come here. Just watch your step, don't trip on the papers. I've got them all laid out systematically.

He glances at the scattered sheets around him.

— Well... almost systematically.

Chaos picks up one photo and points to a distant part of the street.

— Look here. What do you see?

He doesn't rush to explain, clearly waiting for you to find the answer yourself, before adding with a slight smile:

— And don't you dare say "a normal street." I've already noticed that. I need something a bit more interesting.