SSS-Class Profession: The Path to Mastery

After Ms. Patterson disappeared around the corner, Anthony and I waited several long minutes to ensure she wouldn't double back unexpectedly. The hallway remained empty except for the distant sounds of federal investigators working in other sections of the building. When we were confident that we had privacy, we returned to the maintenance closet with the grim determination of people who needed answers despite the horrific circumstances.

Opening the door again brought back the overwhelming smell of decomposition, but this time I forced myself to focus past the physical revulsion and activate my skills.

The small closet space told a story of violence that became clearer as my Observation started processing the evidence. Cleaning supplies had been scattered and knocked over during what was obviously a significant struggle. Several containers of industrial chemicals had been punctured or cracked, their contents mixing with blood to create stained patterns on the floor and walls.

"This wasn't a quick assassination," I said, examining the distribution of damage throughout the cramped space. "A fight took place here, and it was prolonged enough to cause this level of destruction."

Anthony was conducting his own examination of the scene with professional detachment, though I could see the tension in his jaw as he looked at his murdered operative. "Damon was an expert in close-quarters combat. If someone managed to kill him, they either had overwhelming numerical superiority or exceptional skills."

I activated Deduction to supplement my observations, allowing my mind to process the evidence and construct probable scenarios for what had occurred. The patterns of blood spatter, the positioning of the overturned supplies, and the defensive wounds visible on Damon's body all contributed to a clearer picture of his final moments.

"He was massively outmatched," I concluded, piecing together the tactical situation. "The damage patterns suggest he was fighting multiple opponents simultaneously, and they had him cornered in this confined space where his mobility was severely restricted."

As I continued my examination, something on the wall caught my attention. Near the floor, partially hidden behind one of the storage containers, there appeared to be markings that were different from the random blood spatter caused by the violence.

I knelt down to get a better view, and what I saw made my blood run cold. Someone had used their finger to write on the wall, and the dark reddish-brown color of the letters made it clear that the writing had been done in blood.

"Anthony," I called, keeping my voice low, "look at this."

He crouched beside me and followed my gaze to the wall markings. The letters were crude and uneven, clearly written by someone who was severely injured and probably dying, but they were legible enough to make out the message.

"4 Su"

The writing trailed off after those characters, suggesting that whoever had written it – almost certainly Damon – had lost consciousness or died before completing the message.

I stared at the blood message, Deduction working harder than ever before to interpret the meaning behind Damon's final communication. The "4" was clear enough in its implications, but the incomplete second word required more analysis.

"Four assassins," I said, the first part of the message being obvious. "He was telling us that there are four members of the assassination team, not just the three we identified."

"And 'Su'?" Anthony asked, though I could see from his expression that he was already working through the same logical possibilities.

"He was trying to write 'surprised,'" I replied with growing certainty. "Given the context and the way the letters are formed, that's the most likely word he was attempting to complete."

Anthony nodded grimly. "Which could mean either that he was surprised by the existence of a fourth assassin, or that the fourth assassin was someone he didn't initially suspect of being involved in the conspiracy."

"Or both," I added, considering the tactical implications. "If the fourth assassin is someone who appears completely innocent – maybe even someone we've been treating as a potential ally – that would explain why Damon was caught off guard."

The more I thought about it, the more disturbing the possibilities became. We had been operating under the assumption that we could identify the assassins based on suspicious behavior, overheard conversations, and tactical positioning. But if one of them was skilled enough to maintain perfect cover while still being an active part of the conspiracy, our entire approach to the investigation might have been compromised from the beginning.

I continued examining the scene, looking for additional clues that might help us identify this mysterious fourth assassin. The confined space of the maintenance closet had preserved more evidence than would normally survive in an open area, and my Observation was picking up details that painted a clearer picture of the final confrontation.

"Look at the defensive wounds on his hands and arms," I said, pointing to the visible injuries on Damon's body. "These aren't just the result of being overpowered quickly. He fought back for an extended period, and he managed to inflict damage on his attackers."

Anthony was examining the dry blood patterns with the systematic approach of someone trained in forensic analysis. "You're right. There's too much blood here for it all to have come from Damon. Some of this belongs to his attackers."

"Which means that whoever killed him didn't walk away unharmed," I continued, following the logical chain of evidence. "If there was a prolonged fight with an operative of Damon's caliber, the assassins would have sustained injuries."

As if to confirm this theory, my vision caught glimpse of something metallic partially hidden beneath one of the overturned chemical containers. I carefully moved the container aside and found a tactical knife with a blade that was covered in blood.

The knife was clearly military or law enforcement issue – the kind of weapon that someone like Damon would carry for close-quarters combat situations. The blood on the blade was dark and congealed, indicating that it had been there for the same two or three days as the body.

"This is Damon's knife," I said, showing the weapon to Anthony. "And it's covered in blood that likely isn't his."

Anthony examined the knife with professional interest, noting the quality of the weapon and the amount of blood evidence it contained. "He got at least one good strike in, maybe more. Depending on where he managed to hit his attackers, some of them could be carrying significant injuries."

I felt a grim satisfaction knowing that our murdered colleague had managed to fight back effectively against his killers. But more importantly, the evidence provided us with a crucial tactical advantage in identifying the remaining assassins.

"Anthony," I said, setting the knife carefully aside, "if Damon managed to inflict knife wounds on his attackers during a prolonged fight, what are the chances that they came out of this confrontation completely unharmed?"

His expression became thoughtful as he considered the tactical realities of close-quarters combat. "Slim to none. Fighting someone with Damon's training in a confined space like this... even if they eventually overpowered him through numerical superiority, they would have sustained injuries. Probably visible ones."

The implications of this realization were significant for our investigation. We had been looking for behavioral signs of guilt or suspicious activity to identify the remaining assassins. But now we had physical evidence that should make them much easier to spot.

"So all we need to do is look for people with recent knife wounds," I said, the tactical advantage becoming clear. "Anyone involved in killing Damon would be carrying visible injuries that they would have had to explain or conceal."

"Exactly. And given the timing – two or three days ago – the wounds would still be fresh enough to be obvious to anyone looking for them."

Anthony paused in his analysis, his expression becoming more focused as he worked through additional implications. "But we need to be careful about how we use this information. If we start obviously checking people for injuries, the fourth assassin might realize we've discovered Damon's body and the evidence he left behind."

I understood his concern, but I also felt the urgency of the Event Quest time limit pressing against our investigation. "We have limited time to identify all the assassins before whatever the System is warning us about comes to pass. This physical evidence might be our best chance to find the fourth one."

We both looked at the knife, then at Damon's body, then at each other. The same unspoken conclusion was forming in both our minds, based on the evidence we had uncovered and the tactical realities of the situation.

All the assassins, including the mysterious fourth one we hadn't yet identified, would be carrying knife injuries from their confrontation with Damon Trev.

The blood on the weapon confirmed that our colleague had fought back effectively against his killers, and the nature of close-quarters combat in such a confined space meant that his attackers could not have emerged unscathed.

We now had a clear physical marker to look for, something that would allow us to identify the remaining members of the assassination team with much greater certainty than behavioral analysis alone.

Anthony and I stood in the small, blood-stained closet, surrounded by the evidence of our colleague's final battle, both of us understanding that the next phase of our investigation would require us to carefully examine everyone we encountered for signs of recent knife wounds.

The fourth assassin was out there, probably convinced that Damon's death had eliminated the threat to their operation. But they had underestimated both Damon's determination to leave behind evidence and our ability to interpret the clues he had provided with his dying message.

Now we just had to find them before they realized how much we knew.