Scheming

"Um, if you trust me, I can help you look into it," the girl suggested.

"You? How?" Luo Xia asked.

"I installed a few cameras in these sewers. Since you found your way here, the people who stole it must be nearby. I can check who's been coming and going today," the girl explained.

"There are other people down here? And what do you mean, 'the people who stole it'?" Luo Xia asked.

"Thieves. We call ourselves that because we only take things that are... well, not very valuable. As for these sewers, there are actually quite a few people like me down here," the girl explained.

Luo Xia fell silent for a few seconds.

Just ten meters above them lay the bustling city of New York. Yet this place was even dirtier and more chaotic than a slum like Hell's Kitchen. He couldn't help wondering what heartbreak had driven the people who lived here to lead such wretched lives.

But Luo Xia quickly pushed his sympathy aside. He wasn't strong enough to go around feeling sorry for everyone.

"If you can help, I'd really appreciate it," Luo Xia said.

The girl gave him a tentative, friendly smile, then went over to the generator, grabbed the crank, and started turning it as hard as she could.

She seemed quite practiced at it, so she probably did this often. Still, she was rather frail. Just getting the generator running left her panting.

The current flowed, lighting the lamp and illuminating the gloomy den. Only then did Luo Xia notice the fishbowl on the table. The goldfish inside had already turned belly-up.

Noticing Luo Xia looking, the girl awkwardly tucked the fishbowl into a drawer. "I just forgot to feed him today."

Luo Xia merely smiled and said nothing.

The girl turned on the computer and clattered away at the keyboard for a while before bringing up several live feeds.

"The cameras run on batteries, but to save power, I modified their internal components. The image quality ended up at the lowest setting," she explained as she worked, looking unmistakably proud of herself.

She was just an ordinary girl, unable to resist showing off her skills.

Luo Xia obligingly praised her. "Impressive. You know how to do all this?"

"I downloaded a tutorial from the internet. Oh, I've even got Wi-Fi down here. I got it from... Anyway, back to business. These are today's recordings." The girl pointed at the monitor, which was as bulky as a brick.

Luo Xia took a look. The camera was positioned along the route everyone had to take after climbing down through the manhole. The screen showed him jumping down from above.

"But why does it look so blurry?" Luo Xia asked.

"Didn't I just tell you? I lowered the resolution to save power. You could move closer..." the girl said.

Luo Xia didn't object. He sat down in front of the computer and began adjusting the video's timeline, hoping to find anyone else who had passed through that manhole today.

He had only been watching for a few seconds when he heard hurried footsteps behind him.

Luo Xia didn't even need to turn around to know the girl had run off while his attention was on the computer.

What a schemer! Luo Xia thought. Anyone who could survive in a place like Hell's Kitchen was no fool.

But Luo Xia didn't turn around. He simply reached to his wristwatch and pulled out a USB cable, plugging it into the computer.

"Violet, download all the data," Luo Xia ordered.

"Understood, Commander. Please give me ten seconds."

As Violet's voice rang in Luo Xia's mind, the old computer's hard drive began making an awful noise, as if it were being pushed beyond its limits.

Ten seconds later, Violet automatically withdrew the USB cable. The computer tower, however, began to emit a wisp of smoke and a foul, burnt smell.

Only then did Luo Xia stand up. "Violet, access all the cameras nearby and find her."

Just then, Violet had not only copied the data from the computer, but had also taken control of all the cameras the girl had installed in the sewers.

Violet sent the footage straight to Luo Xia's Tactical Goggles. After processing, the previously blurry images were clear enough to make out people's silhouettes.

The frail girl hadn't made it very far, though she'd been clever enough to take several twists and turns, hoping to use Luo Xia's unfamiliarity with the sewers to her advantage. But with help from the cameras, Luo Xia easily cornered her in another den that was just as dirty and run-down.

Unlike the previous place, this den seemed even more depressing. Luo Xia could even smell marijuana.

When Luo Xia arrived, the frail Asian girl from earlier was arguing loudly with someone else.

"Daisy, I told you a long time ago to return it. Now its owner's come looking for it. I know he's no ordinary guy. If he finds you, you're finished. He's got a gun!"

"Skye, I'm not doing this for myself. This is our best chance to get out of here! If we sell the gem, we'll have enough money to find a place to live aboveground. Did you know another thief disappeared recently? No one's seen him alive or dead. I can't take life in these sewers anymore."

Luo Xia didn't rush inside. He stayed around the corner and activated the X-ray function on his Tactical Goggles. A six-sided crystal sat on the table. It was the Energy Activation Device he'd been searching for.

Having found what he wanted, Luo Xia didn't waste time. He stepped out of the darkness and said to the two girls, "Sorry to interrupt your conversation, but I'm in a hurry."

Only then did Luo Xia get a good look at the other girl. She seemed to be white, and considerably fuller-figured than Skye, the Asian girl.

When Daisy saw Luo Xia reaching for the Energy Activation Device, she quickly grabbed a bottle from nearby and pointed it at him. "Don't move! I'll smash your head in!"

Luo Xia paused. He saw Daisy's hand trembling around the bottle. She wasn't nearly as brave as she was pretending to be.

"I'm sorry for what you've been through, but put that down. Otherwise, I'll consider it a threat," Luo Xia said, drawing the Colt 1911 from behind him.

The moment Daisy saw his gun, she put the bottle down. "All right, take it. I don't mind at all."

Luo Xia put away the Energy Activation Device and was about to leave. But after a moment's thought, he said to the two girls, "No one should have to live in the sewers. If you need help, go to the Nelson & Murdock Law Firm. I'm sure someone there would be happy to help you."

Now that he had the device, Luo Xia had no intention of punishing the two girls for stealing it. It was clear they'd been driven to theft by their circumstances, so he decided to send them to Matt, the champion of justice. He was sure the lawyer and vigilante could help them escape the sewers.

As Luo Xia was about to leave, he heard a series of loud thuds. Then Violet warned him, "Commander, something has destroyed two of the cameras."

A blurry image appeared on Luo Xia's Tactical Goggles. It showed the shadow of a gigantic creature, shaped like some kind of bizarre humanoid monster.

Luo Xia turned to Skye and Daisy. "You said a lot of the people living in these sewers have gone missing?"