[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/8JSMqvi.png[/img][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/b3RmLjk2LjAwMDAwMC5SM0pwYlEsLC4w/vanemnoncommercial.regular.webp[/img]

[b]Location[/b]: East Chicago Streets[/center]

Investigating the railyard before the approaching sirens arrived had dredged up little else; another cargo container that had telling signs but seemingly hosed down - for what good it would do, a burner phone with only one disconnected number in the history, and a few sets of tire tracks from the meeting area. Considering how many vans were in Chicago, let alone vehicles in general, the tracks would likely do little. Still, Grim had taken the time to snap a few pictures.

Surprisingly, they came in handy.

It was crouching on the roof of a building, taking the time to listen in on the police scanner app on her phone that Zoey found out what had delayed the police to her little performance. Apparently someone else was operating that night - not unusual, except for what was called in. Five different sets of supposedly thwarted kidnapping attempts. Considering that it was rare for that many in a night, and even rarer for the kidnappers to be strangers, it was exceedingly peculiar. Well, until paired with her own information.

The call came in for the sixth one as she was listening, and this one truly caught her interest. A group of men, an attempted kidnapping, a [i]van.[/i] It wasn’t even that far.

With a quick set of commands the Grim-branded drones diverted course to patrol the area the call came from. Considering how close it was, the hero beelined it over as well and ended up there before the sirens were even in hearing range. And what a find it was! Three men, none of which Grim could recognize - and not just because of some damage to the faces. With one of them beginning to stir he took a moment to ziptie the three men’s wrists and ankles, ignoring the weak protests. From there, a quick investigation of the van showed what was almost a classic kidnapping kit stashed in the back. Rope, duct tape, a knife.

More interesting was the tires, due to the fact they had the same tread as those he had taken a picture of at the railyard. Was it a coincidence? Sure, on its own a van with the same set of all purpose tires [i]would’ve[/i] been a coincidence. Paired with the fact these men were reportedly in the middle of an abduction? Well, that’s more than just chance.

Sirens were getting close now. Grim took a moment to sweep the van, finding a bloodied knife on the pavement beneath it. Odd. None of the men he checked over were stabbed, but–

“Grim? Is that you?”

The knife disappeared into the shadows beneath the van as Grim straightened, turning and raising a hand in the face of the glaring lights.

[b]”Chicago’s finest!”[/b] Grim’s voice boomed behind the glowing red mask, deep voice lilting cheerfully.

“Were you the one to call this in?” The officer approached cautiously, but more relaxed than he had previously and holstering his weapon. The hero however just shook his head, raising his hands in a shrugging motion.

“Would that I could take the credit! I’m afraid this one wasn’t my work. I’m [i]in the dark[/i], as it were.”

The officer didn’t laugh. Neither did his approaching partner. Grim laughed enough at his own joke for all of them.

An alert caught the masked man’s attention, diverting him towards his phone. As soon as he realized what his drone had found, Grim raised a hand towards the officers.

“Well, its been a pleasure as always.”

“Wait, aren’t-”

“Sorry, business calls! Don’t look so [i]grim[/i] about it, we’ll meet again!” The hero did a jaunty little salute before pivoting and doing what would equate to a swimmer’s dive towards the nearby alley, disappearing into the coalescing shadows.

Grim reappeared stepping out of the shadows cast by a dumpster three blocks down, then disappeared into the shadow cast on the wall and reappeared on top of the building. Shadow step, shadow step, shadow step - a quick rush to make up ground following the drone’s signal. It wasn’t too far off, at least when you could travel as he did, and when Grim caught up to the drone that was silently following its target he didn’t hesitate to disappear into the shadows once more.

“Well, well! I’ve never seen an arctic fox this far south!” Shadows cast along the wall, the ground, even Kitsune’s very own stretched forward and began to coalesce into a puddle in the alley. As Grim rose from it, the shadows seemed to swirl akin to smoke around him, before he swept into a bow. “Grim, at your service, though I assure you I’m no foxhound.”

A clawed hand made of pure shadow rose up beside Grim, uncurling at chest height to reveal the bloodied knife he had swiped from the crime scene.

“And this, I believe, is yours. At least, the blood is - very valuable thing to leave behind, especially for us upstanding citizens who enjoy masks a little too much.”