Dwindling Flowers

[Fel of the Eternal Forest]

Spoiler

@Celest @Bob Ross

The Dwindling Flowers chronicles the lives of several young women that work for the Organization. They are magical soldiers called the Flowers to trained to fight evil born from curses of mankind. These girls no longer exist to the world. Their memories are wiped clean and their family never knew they ever existed. These girls live solely to protect the balance of the worlds. Why they were chosen to become Flowers, is for the Organization's ears only.

The difference between our world and the world of Dwindling Flowers' Organization primarily comes from magic. As such, the 'timeline,' as it were, has diverged in several places. For starters, Nicola Tesla was a celebrated scientist until his death in 1945 of natural causes. His wireless telegraphy system expanded into cordless and cellular phones by 1960, though it was deadened by 1969 after consumers lost confidence in American industry.

This brings us to the present day. The cold war instead ended in 1998 with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, after which they lost a special little girl to the Organization. The cellphone industry boomed as well. And Provere, France? Well, things are getting a little strange.



Provere City, France
04:50 A.M.
21 Nov. 2013

Judith pushed her hat down over her eyes. The men and women of the Provere police force all knew her, but she was still trying to at least be a little inconspicuous. She walked over the Jeanne d'Arc bridge with purpose, though, as the latest victim of the 'Morpheus' murders still hung below. Her report was that he was hung by a rope of braided human hair.

The victim himself, one Ansolom Broussard, was a simple taxi driver from the eastern district. The slums. He was a heavy-set man, with a family to feed. Someone was going to have to tell them. It wasn't Judith though. She just wanted the details, like the answer why to the fact that his cab was found three miles away abandoned, the ticket still marked.

It was warm but dark and humid. A light rain coming down, as typically happened on the nights of these murders. She watched the cops pull the body up, and watched as the coroner and the CSI closed up the scene and sampled the follicles from the noose. The only reason they could tell it was hair in the first place was that whoever did this left some at the top of the bridge.

As the CSI worked on the hair samples, she was busy taking pictures of the body. The first picture was the face and neck, showing lacerations and bruising from the noose, as well as an obvious change of angle in the windpipe. Next was the torso, which showed almost no damage except perhaps where it hit the abutment below. A close-up of each hand seemed to show no resistance. Curious. Hardly any scuffing on his shoes either.

She went about her business and took pictures of the noose after the CSI had finished sampling. "Thanks, Dion," she said, smiling wanly. The rain picked up a little bit, a constant drizzle now.

She turned to her phone, compiling the messages into a mass text.

Constant; Camille; Piper
CC: Crime Scene #6

Attached are seven pictures of the victim and the apparent murder weapon. It's definitely connected. Meet me on the Jeanne d'Arc in twenty minutes. That should give us enough time.
-J

Also, Constant – Leave Katyusha out of this.

She didn't have time for petty politics, so she just nipped that in the bud.

 

[Blind Hemingway]

"Oo ye yi!" Screamed a young woman with raven hair.

This was the Flower named Camille. She was a girl of Cajun ancestry that had been selected by the Organization due to her efficiency with ancient tomes and spells upon joining. Normally, she would be kept within the North American side of affairs but due to recent lack of manpower in Europe, off to France she was sent.

Camille had been drinking some warm coffee that just been brewed on the small stove top in her shared apartment with Constant. She nearly jumped out of her clothing when her phone's buzzer went off, causing her fumble around the cramped kitchen to reach for the device. Upon pulling the phone out, it appeared to be rather large and clunky.

"Oh god...." She muttered. Her eyes looked drained as she began to study the photographs closely. She always had to deal with the pictures of corpses first since Constantina conventionally seemed to always misplace her phone.


"CONTAST!" Camille yelled as she walked out of the kitchen sideways just to get out of that room and into the shared main common area where both of their beds were.

"The boss w-wants to be get ready for something...." She then tossed the phone at her partner. "Just look at those p-photos. They are some of the worst in recent memory..."

"S-She also said not to get your girlfriend involved." Camille said this to annoy Constant for not having her phone again.

 

[Fel of the Eternal Forest]

Constantina

Constantina, the Greek operative of the Organization, blinked sleepily. She heard her American sidekick distantly yell her name. "conSTANT!" I told you to stop calling me that... She thought in her haze.

"The boss w-wants to be get ready for something...." Huh? Yeah, she usually did... "Just look at those p-photos. They are some of the worst in recent memory..." Consti felt the phone hit her smack in the stomach, and she opened her eyes. Seriously. What now? Their cramped barrack room was stuffy with the odd heat.

Yawning, she sat up, phone still on her stomach. "S-She also said not to get your girlfriend involved." Damn it! Stop calling her that!

"Shut up about Katyusha! She's not my girlfriend!" Of course, that got Constantina fired up. It always did. The absolute loathing she had for that woman... But in the end, didn't she want to be just like her?

Eyes still half glazed with sleep, she picked up the phone and scrolled through the pictures. "Huh. This is bad. Not the worst I've ever seen, but pretty terrible." She rolled out of bed, grabbing yesterday's gear to slip it back on. It wasn't dirty, she had only worn it for a meeting with Judith. Of course, she mimicked Katyusha's deadpan. It really wasn't THAT bad, and even though you never really get used to seeing a corpse, she had to seem strong for her partner. And that girl across the hall, Piper.

After she got dressed, she stole a cup of Camille's coffee. She didn't even like the stuff, but she needed caffeine desperately. "Hey, Cami, can you help me find my phone?" She tripped over it the next moment. "Never mind..."

Katyusha will not be involved. Ever. Thanks.

She shot Judith a text; then stumbled across the hallway, banging on Piper's door. "HEY, YOU UP? We got a case!"

 

[Celest]

Piper was knocked out, mouth open, and drool oozing out. One leg hung off the bed with her blanket hanging off with it. She was vaguely aware of the sound of her phone going off, in the sense that her dream incorporated the mechanical sounding music into the scene playing through her mind. The next sound she heard was the banging along with the shouting of one of the girls across the hall.

"5 more minutes, Mom!" Piper shouted at the door, opening one eye while wiping the drool with the back of her hand. "Kidding!" She shouted again. "I'm getting up."

That's what her words said, but her body said otherwise. Then her eyes get heavy again, and she felt her consciousness waning. Maybe, 5 more minutes wouldn't be so bad? No! She couldn't. Reluctantly, she pushed herself up from the mattress, caressing her pillow in a mournful way. Her gaze moved from the pillow to her room. Luckily, she didn't have a roommate, but the apartment she was given was still rather small. It made her feel safe, though.

Piper quickly got dressed in a light wash skinny jeans, dancing around the room trying to squeeze them over her thighs. She beamed with success when she buttoned her jeans, patting her thighs almost proudly. The next thing she picked up was a black hoodie that said "Got Music?" across the chest. It made her giggle that it said "music" instead of "milk" even though milk was incredibly delicious. Finally, she picked up her head phones of her small night stand, letting them rest around her neck while connecting it to her phone and shoving the phone in her back pocket.

"Waaaaaiiittt." She pulled her phone back out, reading the text then scrolling through the pictures. With each picture, her nose scrunched up even further until nearly her whole face looked like a raisin. "Creepy." Piper purposely shivered, replacing her phone in her pocket before sliding on black vans that were sitting by the door and heading out into the hall.

 

[Blind Hemingway]

Camille cocked an eyebrow at the half awake Constantina.

"R-Really? With how much you complain about that redhead, I would think you secretly harbor a deep caring for her." Once again she continued to egg Constant on. Camille understood why Constantina wished to be well respect like that Russian. Katyusha was a force to be reckoned with. Whenever Camille came across her, she kept her distance.

"O-Okay, maybe they aren't the worst photographs ever." Camille sighed. "I just don't like always having to be the first ones that see them. You're the scout, I'm the back up...What happens if I am not there to do the research for you?"

"Hey!!! My coffee..." Camille sighed. Once again, her small pot was swiped. It seemed that after this meeting, she would have to go to the cafe for tea.

She then crossed both of her arms as Constant went across the hall. Piper was still a newer figure around the base, so Camille hadn't had a lot of interaction with her just yet. Having another American agent around was a major change of pace. Normally, she had been the odd one out amongst the Europeans. Thus, Camille kept her distant behind Constant. She'd let the more proactive persona interact with Piper first. Though, not to be rude she gave the other Flower a simple wave. That should be sufficient enough, she thought.

 

[Fel of the Eternal Forest]

Ten minutes later, Constantina, Piper and Camille stepped out into the street. The weather was unnaturally warm for November. It was 21 degrees Celsius, rainy and humid as hell. This is going to do wonders to my hair, Consti thought almost absentmindedly. She pushed her hood over her head, both to protect her hair and to attempt to hide her sword. Her favorite camera was tucked safely in its waterproof bag, so she didn't have to worry about that.

But... this case. Why were the Flowers being put on it? She had to admit that the bit about the hair was weird - and awful. But, really? Most of their cases were much more... odd. Much more bloody, too, like the case of the bull spirit. It gored seventeen people in one night before it was put down. That was a Katyusha case though. She helped, what little she could, but... damn it. She really had to stop thinking about that Russian reject.

"Hey, you think we should hail a cab? Or just take the truck?" That was always the difficult part. Sometimes a cab was helpful because they never, ever listened to traffic laws, but at the same time, hiding a sword on her back was way harder. Stupid time of year for her to be taking lead on a case. Was she ready?

---

The girls were late, again. Judith realized they were just waking up, most of them anyway. This scene was getting colder, however, and Constantina knew better. The coroner was packing the body away, taking it to the morgue for the autopsy. If this was anything like the last murder, they'd find his stomach filled with hair as well.

She fired off another text to the girls.

You're late. Again.

She didn't really think she needed to expound on that, Constantina knew it was for her. You're supposed to be leading these girls, Constant, not teaching them how to be lazy. Oh, well, she would give her a new ass later.

 

[Celest]

Piper gave an awkward little wave back to the other Flower, a half smirk on her face. This would have been so exciting if she didn't feel like a zombie. Her eyes felt like they'd shrivel up and tumble like little raisins from their sockets. To remedy this, she walked down the hall with her head tilted back and eyes closed. It wasn't the most efficient way to follow the other girls, but she found it kind of fun, almost like a challenge! Though, she decided she wouldn't be able to survive if she were to become blind because of the never ending worry of bumping into something. So, she gave up on her 'blind game' and settled herself with the fact her eyes would turn to raisins.

"Whhaaatttt," she mumbled more to herself the moment she stepped outside. "Brilliant idea to wear a hoodie. I mean, good gracious." Piper was never one for heat and sweating was absolutely disgusting! With a sour expression, she pushed her sweatshirt sleeves up. "I should have worn a shirt under this," she griped to herself again, tugging at the front of her sweatshirt to create some kind of airflow. "How are you guys not withering away already?" Her mouth was dropped slightly open in unneeded surprise, wide eyes adding to the shock. "I mean, come on! I'm gonna have to peel my clothes off like it's plastic wrap."

Now, she truly was mourning the absence of her bed. Her room was so cool and comfortable. Her bed was so welcoming. Her bed loved her. It was a pure and unconditional love.

"Anything with AC, please," she grinned at Constant. "Or, anything we can put the windows down in and drive insanely fast to create some sort of draft."

Just as she was about to open her mouth to make some other comment about the heat, her phone went off again. Pulling it from her back pocket, she glanced over the text. Late? Her lips puckered while she gave Constant and Camille a sidelong glance. She felt briefly guilty since she'd taken so long to get ready. I'll get ready in a flash next time, she told herself with a determined nod.

 

[Blind Hemingway]

"Do you have enough money to take a cab?" Camille asked Constant.

If there was a constant theme for Constantina and Camille was that money between them was always short. Camille was constantly buying random old objects and texts to add to her collection. The older an item was, the more likely that it could have hidden potential magic. She rarely went for things younger than one hundred, since the more modern an object was the less useful it was to her tomes.

"Then again...I am not sure if I trust Constant with driving the unit's truck...Ever since the Cheval Mallet incident, I-I still have flashbacks to when she used it to ram that otherworldly horse into the depths of the sea." Camille spoke.

She then hugged her book bag that contained her spell book. Sometimes it was hard to tell if she was actually friends with Constantina or one of her biggest critics.

Camille adjusted her hat when Piper asked about the humidity of this time of year. "I'm from the bayous. This is mild to me. Ah...Right mission...I suppose we should just take the truck. But I'm driving this time! D-Don't you dare say I drive like a turtle, though! I'm just cautious for our own good."

 

[Fel of the Eternal Forest]

"That horse was kidnapping people, so I hit it with the truck. Sue me," was Consti's retort. "Anyway, I suppose you can drive - if you get the lead out." Cheval Mallet was supposedly folklore, but with the history of the Flowers, and even what each girl could do... Not everything is as fake as people think.

They hit the road a few minutes later, air conditioning blaring to accommodate Piper's sweater usage. Constantina was extremely tempted to kick Camille out of the driver's seat. People were passing them as though they were standing still. Cautious was understandable, especially after the Cheval Mallet incident—the horse didn't even die, apparently—but this was ridiculous. "Hey, Camille, I thought we agreed for you to step on it!" she repeated often.

An orange horizon greeted them by the time they actually reached the Jeanne d'Arc. Twenty minutes their collective asses, it was now 6:10, and Judith was clearly heated. Consti swallowed the lump in her throat. Damn...

"Constantina," boss lady really didn't waste time on ripping her a new one. "Do you have ANY idea what twenty minutes mean?"

Again, she swallowed. One of the few things she truly hated—other than Katyusha—was getting in trouble with Judith. It always started with the dress-down, but her disapproval lasted so much longer. "Yes, Judith, I know what twenty minutes meant."

"I suppose you have an excuse?"

How about I don't know how you're going to make a forty minute drive in twenty, including dress time? "No. I don't." Even with her Mediterranean heritage, she suddenly felt like it was 130 degrees with enough humidity you couldn't towel dry. Judith at least seemed satisfied with her answer because she immediately wheeled on Piper.

"You do realize we have a dress code?"

 

[Celest]

Piper was admittedly in her own world. Her hands were shoved down into her pockets, music playing in her own head as she rocked back and forth on her heels. They were late, and there wasn't much else to be done about. So, she didn't waste any more energy than needed being upset. Maybe it was her newness that caused this aloofness. She could admit that she might not quite understand the weight of the situation at hand, but she would probably soon learn.

During Constant's questioning, Piper's attention was still elsewhere. First her focus was on the beauty of the sunrise before it flitted to the ground, looking at her vans. Her thoughts were then consumed with how warm she began to feel again; it was miserable. The ride in the truck was lovely with the AC blasting. Though, she didn't quite listen to the conversation the two girls were having. It didn't have anything to do with her so she spent the whole ride watching the scenery creep by. They probably wouldn't have made it there so late if Camille hadn't been driving. A fact she'd keep to herself.

About this time was when she realized she was being talked to. Judith's voice had just been a wah wah wah. It was her face as Piper's eyes glanced around that made her realize she was being addressed. Piper wore a stupidly stunned face, eyes blinking quickly while she tried to recall what she was being talked to about. Dress code!

"I- uh." She looked over herself, noting her sweatshirts and jeans while wiggling her toes slightly in her shoes. "I forgot?" Her answer definitely sounded more like a question than a true statement. "I forgot," Piper said more sternly with a serious face and a quick nod. "It will not happen again!" Another nod followed that statement. "Cross my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eyes." With each word she did a motion, starting with crossing her heart, squeezing her eyes tightly shut to mimic death, then opening just one and pointing at it fiercely. "But, f'real. I won't forget again." This was when bashfulness set in, her head hanging just slightly, and an embarrassed flush coloring her cheeks.

 

[Blind Hemingway]

Camille was a cautious driver, as both Piper and Constant both got annoyed with. "I am doing the speed limit. If we go over it, we'll get noticed." She stated.

As the girls finally reached their boss, it was day break. As she parked the car, finally Camille slowly got herself ready. Judith seemed to know that this bookworm took her time, it was just a part of her duty as the magus of the group. Camille then adjusted her cap, so that it was squared more on her head. She then got out of the truck and slung her heavy side bag over her body.

"I apologize, Commissar." Camille said. "I'll make sure to go a bit faster with the truck. I don't trust it that much. A-Anyways, outside of lax uniform wear...What would like to discuss with us?"

 

[Fel of the Eternal Forest]

Judith paused her tirade for a moment, studying the girls. Camille was attentive, always listening and taking criticism with the astute purpose of bettering herself, other than when it came to her driving. She was like that to a fault, often backing down when she should be getting angry and stepping up to the plate.

Constantina wanted so badly to be like Katyusha, going so far as to hate her. But in reality, she might be strong – and decent with her sword – but it was her words that made her useful. A real crowd pleaser, easily placating the masses in a situation like this.

Piper, on the other hand... she was a wildcard. Judith wasn't even sure why she was in France, other than they were short-handed. In reality she should have gone to the American branch, but if they saw something of value to give to Provere, which was the main office of both the Organization and the Flowers, she would take the risk.

"Constantina. Lead these girls like you're supposed to. If you can drive faster than Camille, do so. Get here when you're supposed to. Learn to sleep lightly, as you should have been the first one awake.

"Piper... Learn proper attire. Your street clothes will come in handy, but this is not that mission. Unless a message says otherwise I expect you to dress identical to your peers. And Camille, step up. I expect you to be respectful, but sometimes you're too passive. Learn when to attempt stealth and when not to. This morning was not a silent mission."

Pacing across from them, she considered what was actually important. The body, the man hung up by ropes made of human hair. And hair that defied science.

"Anyways, here's the situation. This is the sixth such murder in the last three months, spaced exactly two weeks apart. Positive ID on all of the victims. The first four were Jack the Ripper style murders, all of them prostitutes out of the red light district. The last two, a business man and this cab driver, while a-typical, mimic murders that happened over a hundred years ago, and a hundred more than that. Pattern also stands that there are four more victims. One an officer of justice, so keep an eye out for that. Do you three have any real questions about this?"

 

[Celest]

Now that Piper was no longer under Judith's scrutiny; her mind began to wander once more. It was foggy. Straight out of a horror movie. She sort of nodded to herself while continuing the heel rocking that Judith had interrupted. Which, yet again, was put to a stop when her name slapped her ears.

"Yes!" She snapped out, eyes focusing on Judith. "Proper attire. Got it!"

Oooohh, Jack the Ripper. A crooked smirk appeared on Piper's face. There was a since of uncertainty in her eyes. #2spooky4me, she thought. Her mind quickly jumped from the eeriness of it all to trying to think up 'real' questions. What is a fake question? Piper bit her bottom lip to stop from chuckling. Aren't all questions real? Isn't asking if potatoes can fall from the sky still a real question? The struggle to not giggle got harder.

Finally, she calmed herself down, changing 'real questions' to 'serious questions'.

"No questions," Piper said seriously, as straight faced as she could be.

 

[Blind Hemingway]

Camille nodded. "I apologize ma'am. Being late was my fault." Once again, she was already starting to be passive and willing to get on the good side of the commander.

"Is it possible for me to get a piece of the hair?" Camille asked quickly. "I-I mean, before the Category researchers get their hands on it. My tomes might be able to sense something about what we're dealing with. If what you are saying is fact...That there have been historical accounts going back several hundred years...We can pinpoint a common thread. Maybe...Constantina and the new girl can work together on some scouting out clues once I connect the dots?"

She knew it was going to be a long shot. The Category always got its hands on the supernatural before the local cops or civilians could make answers out of it. The simple answer was that it never happened or it was mass hysteria.

 

[Fel of the Eternal Forest]

For once, Judith lacked the forethought to utilize a Flower's magic. It wasn't that it never happened, but it wasn't often, for sure. Quickly, she scanned the bridge, looking to see if anything had been untouched. She sighed. "I'm sure we'll find something for you to use." Clearly, Judith was having an off day.

Jack the Ripper... Still alive after a century and a half. Why was the Category so sure it was him? It could be any number of monstrous people. This wasn't even his modus operandi.

The braid! She'd kept the braid the killer had used as a noose. She'd hid that from the Category Forensic Team to show the girls just what kind of monster they were up against. "We do have the noose that was used."