Yangni and I

Yangni and I	It's Been A While Previous The Walls Have You Next Time of Farewell
NOTE: This interlude is only available when It's Been A While is live and is not added into the Archives after BW ends.

Characters

Rockrock Ah Gen Beckbeast Trainer L.G.D. Officer Neighbor Shelter Owner Yangni

Backgrounds

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

“

To help the girl find her pet, Ah Gen arrives at an animal shelter for clues, but first, he must help the owner with a small favor.

”

<Background 1>
L.G.D. Headquarters, Upper Factor St., Uptown Lungmen Noon The L.G.D. is a special place. Those who have no business here tend to stay away, while those whom the L.G.D. itself has business with wish they could. That said, there will always be those looking for trouble, with or without business.
L.G.D. Officer	(Stands guard)
[A man in a fedora approaches the L.G.D. officer.]
???	Hey, Ah Sir, have you heard of the Haam Coeng Inn mafia warfare from twelve years ago?
L.G.D. Officer	(Ignores him)
???	Ah Sir, what about the Po Wah Street Robbery on one rainy night ten years ago?
L.G.D. Officer	(Remains silent)
???	Ah Sir, what about the dual murder seven years ago?
L.G.D. Officer	Mister, I know nothing about any of those events you just mentioned, and I've never heard anyone else talk about them either. Please stop disturbing me while I'm on duty.
Ah Gen	(Facepalms and sighs) Ah, never mind.
[Ah Gen approaches the officer himself.]
Ah Gen	Officer, I want to report a crime! I just saw that man in front of you steal someone's bicycle at the plaza!
???	What? Why would I do that?! That's slander, you prick!
L.G.D. Officer	Now, now, sir, there's nothing to worry about. We'll know whether you did it or not just by checking the security footage. Now, please step inside. And you, buddy boy? I'll need you to come in for a written statement, too.
???	Uh... Okay.
Ah Gen	(Blinks) Alright, Officer. (Everything's going according to plan, Rockrock.)
[Rockrock is hiding nearby.]
Rockrock	(Understood. Rock-27, activating stealth mode.)
<Background 2>
The day before...
Ah Gen	If I'm not mistaken, this should be the place.
[Ah Gen knocks the door.]
Ah Gen	Hello, is this the animal rescue shelter?
[No response; Ah Gen knocks the door again.]
Ah Gen	Hello?
???	Scram, I'm busy here!
Ah Gen	I'm just here to ask something, not to start trouble.
???	You think I don't know how you little brats think? You get yourselves all excited to adopt a pet, then the moment you get bored with it the next day, you abandon it out on the street.
Ah Gen	Sir, I'm afraid you're mistaken. I'm here not to adopt. I'm just here to ask about a missing storm cloudbeast.
???	And I told you to scram! So you don't keep a close eye on your pet, and now that you've screwed up, you come crying to me. Scram! I'm not here to wipe you irresponsible punks' asses. You need your ass wiped, wipe it yourself! Get out!
Ah Gen	Can't you at least let me explain?!
???	Get out of my sight!
Ah Gen	Hey! Open up! Just listen to me!
[The man sends Ah Gen off angrily.]
Ah Gen	What the heck's with his temper?
[A woman leaves her home and approaches Ah Gen.]
Neighbor	Stop knocking, kid. He won't open that door. That's just how he is. Grumpy.
Ah Gen	Hello, Miss. Um... Do you know him?
Neighbor	I live next door. I can count on one hand the number of times I've talked to him this year, though. He's got a bad temper, and a pretty sketchy past, too. He used to be in the Siracusan mafia. You'd be out of your mind to get involved with him.
Ah Gen	Doesn't he run an animal rescue shelter? He can't be that bad.
Neighbor	I know you're a kid, but you shouldn't just believe everything people tell you. When he keeps his front door closed all day long, who's to say what he's really up to inside? You can't trust anyone outside your family, much less someone who just slammed a door in your face.
Ah Gen	So did you see anything to make you so suspicious of him, Miss?
Neighbor	The L.G.D. paid him a visit a couple of days ago.
Ah Gen	The L.G... D.?
Neighbor	You're not from around here, are you? The cops, basically. They said he was illegally keeping police beckbeasts.
Ah Gen	Police animals...? Isn't that... illegal?
Neighbor	That's what I said. And if he's not afraid of keeping L.G.D. beckbeasts in his house, is he afraid of anything?
Ah Gen	Then why does he keep all these rescues...?
Neighbor	Sure, I see him bring back animals sometimes, but he just as often takes them somewhere else. Maybe... he's been selling them to black market butchers or something.
Ah Gen	(That does sound sketchy... If he's actually doing shady business with an animal shelter as a front, I can't let it slide.) Okay, I get it now. Thanks, Miss.
Neighbor	Well, I'm heading back inside then. And you should go on home. Don't hang around too much.
[The woman returns to her home.]
After the woman closes her door, Ah Gen doesn't leave but instead walks up to the shelter door and touches the doorknob with his finger. A small icicle enters the keyhole, and after a little back and forth movement, it lets out a light click. He pushes the door open just a crack and quietly slips in through the narrow gap.
<Background 3>
Ah Gen	No cages, no fences. Only a small feeding bowl with days old water and food. What about the rescues? Where did they go? (Did he really send them all to the butchers like his neighbor said?) But if that's the case, why would there be all this pet food...?
[Ah Gen notices a diagram on the table.]
Ah Gen	What's this on the table...? An architectural diagram? Lungmen... Guard... Department... Headquarters... Hm? There are a few spots marked in red. Detention cell, beckbeast kennels... Only a door separates the two, very close to each other... (What is this guy plotting? Is he doing all this just for that beckbeast?)
[The shelter's owner enters the room.]
Shelter Owner	Hey, punk, who the hell are you? How'd you get in here?! What the hell? I swear I locked the door. How did it break? Urgh... And why is it so cold?! (Turns to stare at Ah Gen)
Ah Gen	My bad, sir.
Shelter Owner	Was it you?! You better pay for this! I just got it replaced last week!
Ah Gen	Huh?!
Shelter Owner	What do you mean, "Huh?"
Ah Gen	(Frowns) Uh... Sorry? Right, mind if I ask what you're planning with this blueprint? (Picks up the diagram on the table)
Shelter Owner	Hey, punk, stop touching my stuff! I'm going to kill–!
[Ah Gen uses his powers to conjure an ice ring around the owner's neck.]
Ah Gen	Careful.
Shelter Owner	Mm... that's–
Ah Gen	Don't move, sir, or this ring of ice around your neck is only going to get tighter.
Shelter Owner	Not bad, kid.
Ah Gen	So, would you mind telling me what you're planning to do at the L.G.D. Headquarters?
Shelter Owner	Those shameless bastards... They made up some kind of excuse to take my beckbeast away! What, you don't think I should be trying to get him back?
Ah Gen	Oh, but I heard it was you who took the cops' animal in the first place.
Shelter Owner	Pfft, the poor thing had one paw in the grave when I found it! Where were the L.G.D. then? We've been getting along just fine for years. What gives them the right to come take him away NOW?!
Ah Gen	So, you're saying you rescued it and kept it around...? But what about the other rescues? How come I don't see any sign of them here?
Shelter Owner	Take a look around. Does this place look like a safe place to keep animals? I bought a patch of land that used to be an abandoned factory. They're over there.
Ah Gen	You think I buy that?
Shelter Owner	Like I care whether you buy it...
[A microwave dings.]
Shelter Owner	Ugh.
Ah Gen	What?! A microwave oven?!
Shelter Owner	What are you looking at?! I was just heating up a mantou!
Ah Gen	That's your dinner?
Shelter Owner	You sure ask a whole lot of questions, kid.
Ah Gen	That's all you're having for dinner?
Shelter Owner	What's that got anything to do with you?!
Ah Gen	You have all this pet food around, but all you're having for dinner is a single mantou?
Shelter Owner	I've got so many mouths to feed, I gotta cut costs somewhere!
Ah Gen	...... Pardon me. (Lowers his casting hand)
Shelter Owner	*cough*– (Nervously strokes his neck) Kid... You know Originium Arts, don't you?
Ah Gen	Haha, let's just say I do.
Shelter Owner	Those lockpicking Arts of yours... Can you use them elsewhere? You were asking about a storm cloudbeast, weren't you?
Ah Gen	Yeah, he's been missing for a year now. Have you seen him, sir?
Shelter Owner	To tell the truth, I've saved a few of them, but my memory isn't all that great. I don't remember the details, but I do keep files on all of them. So if you're willing to lend me a hand, I'll take a look for you.
Ah Gen	Uh, all you have to do is flip through some files, but you want me to break into the L.G.D. with you. In what universe is that a fair deal?
Shelter Owner	Hmph, suit yourself. I'm not forcing you. But I guess you'll just have to ask somewhere else about your cloudbeast.
Ah Gen	......
<Background 4>
Rhodes Island Lungmen Branch Office Early morning
[Rockrock runs into Ah Gen, waking him up.]
Rockrock	Ah Gen!
Ah Gen	Huh? Morning, Rockrock.
Rockrock	You look terrible. Did I spook you?
Ah Gen	Haha, I've been mulling over some stuff. Didn't even notice you.
Rockrock	Where were you this morning? Xiaobai came back pretty early last night and said you went to the slums by yourself. How was it? Find anything?
Ah Gen	Rockrock...
Rockrock	What's up?
Ah Gen	I think I might've dug myself a huge hole I can't climb out of.
<Background 4>
Rockrock	So... did you say yes?
Ah Gen	I guess? As far as we can tell there's no way we can get the beckbeast out, but I can at least help him get in.
Rockrock	Then why is he going?
Ah Gen	He said he's worried sick and has to see for himself, and that if his beckbeast isn't happy in there, he'll break it out of the building or die trying.
Rockrock	Is he crazy?! If he wants to take that risk, he can do it himself. Why do you have to go with him?
Ah Gen	I don't have a choice if we're going to find that cloudbeast. I've asked everyone else. He's the only one that pays any attention to the strays around here.
Rockrock	And he wants to involve a kid? No, I won't let you. Who knows what that guy'll do?
Ah Gen	Rockrock, you guys have enough on your plate already. I can handle this much myself. And if push comes to shove, I'll just throw him under the bus. I'm pretty sure the L.G.D. will trust me more than a former mafioso.
Rockrock	And what part of that is supposed to ease my nerves? Just give me a chance to help. I can make time to come with you.
Ah Gen	But I heard from the operators here that you guys work closely with the L.G.D. I'm a complete outsider though. Even if something goes wrong, you've got plausible deniability, so don't bother helping me.
Rockrock	You think that's what I'm worried about?!
Ah Gen	Calm down, okay?
Rockrock	Well... You're right. I can't be so reckless.
Ah Gen	Right, so please just calm down and–
Rockrock	But I CAN send one of my drones.
Ah Gen	...Wouldn't that give your identity away anyway?!
Rockrock	Closure gave me an all new optic refraction module that can make them temporarily invisible to the human eye.
Ah Gen	You sound pretty excited...
Rockrock	I can even adjust the propellers' rotation and reduce its noise to a minimum. When it's in super silent mode, nobody will notice it in even the quietest room.
Ah Gen	Um, so you keep all those tools on you...? Wait, are you really going to tear it apart here and now?
Rockrock	Shh, sit down. Don't go anywhere. Just you wait, I'll be finished in no time, and this drone will definitely come in handy. The moment you set foot in that building, it'll find out where everyone is and which way you should go. It can even disrupt surveillance cameras and hide your tracks. Besides, if that guy really bothers you so much, I don't want to give him the upper hand.
Ah Gen	Well... Thanks?
<Background 1>
L.G.D. Headquarters, Upper Factor St., Uptown Lungmen Morning
Ah Gen	Uh, I thought you said you were going to get us some water? Why did you get a pack of chips too?
Shelter Owner	Eat up.
Ah Gen	It's for me?
Shelter Owner	Who else? I don't eat this crap.
Ah Gen	...Thanks.
Shelter Owner	Now eat. We'll start as soon as you're done.
Ah Gen	You told me you knew how to get past the front door. Mind telling me what your plan is now?
Shelter Owner	What, you can't figure it out on your own?
Ah Gen	You really were part of the mafia, huh?
Shelter Owner	Don't look the part?
Ah Gen	No, you look exactly the part... So why did you leave and start an animal rescue?
Shelter Owner	I was on the wrong side of a power struggle within the family. The boss kicked me out, and when I was down on my luck, I met Yangni. I saved him, and he saved me. That was when I figured out that there are things out there that needed me.
Ah Gen	You two were close?
Shelter Owner	Of course. He was trembling when I first took him in, but these days, he's more scared without me around.
Ah Gen	What a story. A mafioso becoming best buddies with a police beckbeast.
Shelter Owner	FORMER mafioso! Hmph, when I first came to Lungmen, never thought I'd be sitting on the L.G.D.'s front doorstep with a kid while he scarfs down potato chips either.
Ah Gen	Want any? I can't finish all this.
Shelter Owner	Give me one. Time can leave the nastiest scars...
Ah Gen	......
Shelter Owner	I must've lost it. Why am I even talking to a punk like you about all this? Not like you'd understand.
Ah Gen	That's all the chips. Okay, sir, let's go.
Shelter Owner	Alright.
<Background 5>
L.G.D. Detention Cell, Upper Factor St., Uptown Lungmen Afternoon
Shelter Owner	You serious? Jacking a bicycle?
Ah Gen	What's wrong with that? At the very least, we made it into the building.
Shelter Owner	I thought you were writing a statement. How'd you get here?
Ah Gen	I pulled a trick while I was writing it, and snuck out when the officer went to check things out.
Shelter Owner	Did you follow the route I drew to avoid all the cameras?
Ah Gen	Don't worry, I have a much safer way. You could even say I was completely invisible to the cameras on my way here. Oh right, remember what I told you? Don't put your hand on the doorknob. You could get frostbite.
Shelter Owner	Yeah, I got it. Now hurry up!
<Background 6>
[Ah Gen freezes the doorknob and the shelter owner breaks it, allowing them to escape the cell.]
Shelter Owner	The beckbeast kennels aren't too far from here. If we're quick, we can get back to the detention cell before they're back.
Ah Gen	We're only going for a quick look, right?
Shelter Owner	Shut up, I know that. Now hurry.
[Ah Gen and the owner searches for the kennels.]
<Background fades out and in>
Ah Gen	I see it. It's right over there.
Shelter Owner	Yangni!
[Yangni the beckbeast recognized the owner.]
Yangni	(Runs in circle excitedly) Wrr. Wrrwwrr.
Shelter Owner	Yangni, let me look at you. Did you miss me when I was gone? I've been thinking about you every day.
Yangni	Wrwwrrwr–
Shelter Owner	Okay, okay. I'm happy to see you doing so well here. Look at this room. It's bigger than my bedroom! Hahaha.
Yangni	Wrwwrr?
Shelter Owner	I was thinking I'd bring you home no matter what, but look at you. They're taking such good care of you that you've gotten fat. Sorry you had to suffer with me for so long.
Yangni	(Squeezes nose into a gap in the fencing to try to get out)
Shelter Owner	Heh, you're so fat now, you can't even squeeze through the fence.
Yangni	Wrwwrrwrwwrr...
Shelter Owner	I know you miss me, but there's nothing we can do.
???	Ah Gen, it's time to go. The drone's detected a cop heading this way from the other side.
Shelter Owner	Who's talking?
Ah Gen	...An invisible drone.
Shelter Owner	Why'd you bring something like that?!
Ah Gen	I'll explain later, but we've got to go, now. Someone's coming.
Shelter Owner	Give me a little more time. Let me talk to him just a little more!
[Rockrock tells Ah Gen and the owner through her Rock-27 drone:]
Rock-27	Shut up and get going! I don't care if you're caught or not, but if you think I'll let you take Ah Gen down with you, you've got another think coming!
Shelter Owner	What's wrong with you, trying to give me a scare?!
Rock-27	Get going if you don't want to be caught! Do you really wanna get thrown in jail?
Shelter Owner	If anyone finds us, it's gonna be 'cause of how loud you are! Yangni, I need to go now. We... We probably won't see each other again. You be good here. Eat well. Don't think about me anymore.
Yangni	Wrrrr! Aoww! (Keeps slamming the fence with its nose) *Whine*...
Shelter Owner	(Wipes tears) Yangni, stop it!
Ah Gen	Rockrock...
Rock-27	Hm?
Ah Gen	Why don't you send your drone away first? I'll stay here and buy him some time.
Rock-27	What are you planning? What if you get caught?
Ah Gen	Don't worry. I won't bring you guys any trouble.
Ah Gen	(Rips shirt)
Rock-27	What are you doing?
Ah Gen	Masking up.
Rock-27	You sure you need to with me around?
Ah Gen	(Opens mouth)
Rock-27	Stop being so courteous with me, or I'm leaving right now.
Ah Gen	(Closes mouth)
Rock-27	Hey, we'll buy you ten minutes. If you have anything to say to your beckbeast, you better get on with it!
Shelter Owner	Why are you two going so far to help me?
Rock-27	Because I know that there are some things you'll never get a chance say again if you don't get it off your chest now. Let's go.
Ah Gen	Yeah.
<Background fades out and in>
???	It's gotten colder here... The wall's freezing up...? Shit, it's Originium Arts! Requesting backup–
Before he is able to reach the comms button on his helmet, a rigid chunk of ice locks the L.G.D. officer's arms in place. Seeing that he can't break free, he grits his teeth and tries to dash toward the wall, but before his feet even leave the ground, he feels a chill climb his legs. He looks down to find ice reaching all the way up to his waist.
Ah Gen	Sorry, Officer, I'm not trying to hurt you. I just want to borrow something. First, I want to borrow this place. Next, I also want to borrow a few minutes.
???	You aren't even showing your face. Shouldn't you be showing your sincerity when asking a favor?
Ah Gen	Haha, sorry about that.
???	And when you're borrowing something, you might want to explain what you need it for.
Ah Gen	Would you believe me if I told you someone's catching up with an old friend?
???	If they have any catching up to do, take it to a cafe. Why do it in a beckbeast enclosure? *exhales*... You bastards, you're here to see Meituan, aren't you?! You sure got balls. Show yourself!
Ah Gen	Crap... Shouldn't have said that!
Rock-27	(I didn't expect this guy to be such a quick thinker... What do we do, Ah Gen?)
Ah Gen	(It's okay. That ice isn't going to melt any time soon. And once we're gone, there'll be no evidence left.)
Rock-27	(Hurry, then. There'll be more of them here in just a moment.)
???	Get out here! Stop sneaking around! So Meituan's been staying with a spineless man like you all those years, huh?!
[The owner looks angered.]
Shelter Owner	You asshole–
Ah Gen	(Crap, this guy really can't take an insult.)
Shelter Owner	Let him go, kid. I'm not leaving today without beating the shit out of this guy.
???	And you got a kid to do your dirty work for you?!
Ah Gen	Um... Officer, you have the wrong idea.
Rock-27	(Ah Gen, I think we should probably stay quiet in front of him.)
Shelter Owner	Let him go, punk!
Ah Gen	But...
Shelter Owner	Let him go!
Ah Gen	(Uh... this is bad...) Sorry about this, Officer.
[Ah Gen frees the officer from his ice bindings...]
Shelter Owner	Asshole!
[...allowing the officer, who turned out to be an L.G.D. beckbeast trainer, to seize the shelter owner.]
Beckbeast Trainer	This is the L.G.D. HQ. You must really have brass ones to sneak in here to see Meituan.
Shelter Owner	He's not Meituan! He's Yangni, and he's my pet!
Beckbeast Trainer	You're wrong. His name is Meituan, and he's a beckbeast with first class honors. During the Chernobog Incident, he conducted countless search and rescue, bomb defusal, and tracking missions. There's no way you're his owner!
Shelter Owner	The hell are you on about? If not me, then who? You? Does he look like he thinks of you as his owner?
Beckbeast Trainer	Alright, I'll tell you! Meituan's owner is the L.G.D. Senior Superintendent Tse Ming! I won't let ex-con scum like you fool around with his former partner!
Shelter Owner	Like I give a musbeast's ass about his "former" partner!
Beckbeast Trainer	Stop resisting!
[The owner struggles with the trainer that they grabbed hold of each other...]
Shelter Owner	Take your goddamn hands off me!
Beckbeast Trainer	You let go of my leg first.
Shelter Owner	Why don't you take your arm off my neck first?!
[...while Ah Gen and Rockrock (through Rock-27) watches.]
Ah Gen	Do you think they're fighting?
Rock-27	No, more like bickering. They aren't going to hurt themselves, are they? Rolling on the ground like that?
Ah Gen	No, the only thing that's hurting here is the definition of the word "fight."
*Thump*–*Thump*– Ah Gen turns around to find the beckbeast naively slamming into the fence. It seems to be very agitated by the sight of the two men tussling with each other and is trying to break itself free from the cage. It slams into the cage harder and harder each time, bloodying its soft nose.
Ah Gen	...And maybe this impatient little beckbeast.
Rock-27	I think our first order of business is to stop it, rather than our tussling hooligans.
[Ah Gen approaches the caged Yangni.]
Ah Gen	Hey, little fella, do you want out?
Yangni	(Rubs Ah Gen's hand)
Ah Gen	You want the two of them to stop fighting, right? Don't worry. Neither of them are any good at it. They won't hurt each other.
Yangni	Ao...?
Ah Gen	Though we really can't let them keep this up... (Kneels and puts hand on the door handle) You've decided who to go with long ago, right?
Yangni	Wrwwrr!
Ah Gen	It's just that they never asked you. Well, now's the time to tell them. Go.
Yangni	(Wags tail)
Before the cage's door is even fully open, Yangni has squeezed itself out and started yelping at the tussling shelter owner and trainer. Seeing that the two aren't paying it any attention, Yangni desperately bites the trainer's ankle. The pain immediately stops him, and he turns to look at the barking beckbeast.
Beckbeast Trainer	Meituan, what's this about...?
Shelter Owner	Yangni...
Ah Gen	Can you two stop already?
Beckbeast Trainer	Ah, you're finally showing yourself, boy. You're still a kid. Don't believe whatever lies he's feeding you. Go home. This isn't your fault. This is between us, so you stay out of it.
Shelter Owner	That's right, scram already. Go look up those files you want at the abandoned factory at No. 4, 9th Street, Downtown. I knew this was gonna happen, I had one of my lackeys show you the way.
Ah Gen	You know, I can totally separate you two by force if it comes down to it.
[Ah Gen conjures icicles aimed at the trainer and the owner.]
Beckbeast Trainer	Hey, what are you doing, kid?!
Shelter Owner	Yeah, what's with those icicles?!
Beckbeast Trainer	...We let go on the count of three.
Shelter Owner	Fine. 1, 2, 3.
[The trainer and the owner releases each other and fall to the floor.]
<Background fades out and in>
Shelter Owner & Beckbeast Trainer	Phew–
Shelter Owner	*Cough*... How come everyone's trying to strangle me these days?
Ah Gen	Haha... What a coincidence.
Beckbeast Trainer	Heh... I thought you were mafia. How the hell'd you survive till now with moves like that?
Shelter Owner	You're in the L.G.D., and you've got the nerve to say that to me?
Beckbeast Trainer	I used to work a desk job.
Shelter Owner	We... have desk jobs in the mafia too.
Beckbeast Trainer	(Rolls eyes)
Ah Gen	Mind standing a little further apart? Give me some room.
Shelter Owner	Do you have to squeeze between us?
[The trainer leans toward the owner.]
Beckbeast Trainer	(Scoots over reluctantly) *Sigh*...
Yangni	Wrwwrr!
Shelter Owner	Hehe, you want to sit next to me too.
Beckbeast Trainer	You really want to follow him, Meituan? What's so good about that guy? He kept you in that dingy place and fed you cheap pet food.
Shelter Owner	...I can't offer him nearly as much as you guys can, but I... I've been feeding him and keeping him warm the best I can. All these years, if I was only 70% full, Yangni got to be 80%. If I was only 70% warm, he got to be 80%. I can't offer him the best of the best, just better than myself.
Beckbeast Trainer	When Ah Ming was still around, he'd start taking care of Meituan before sunrise. He spared no expense and gave him the finest the markets had to offer. Do you remember him, Meituan?
Yangni	Aoww...
Beckbeast Trainer	He loved you, and always did absolutely everything he could for you, ever since you were still a pup. When Chernobog came crashing, he took you on that mission... And you went missing, and he gave his life. We couldn't even recover his full remains. You haven't forgotten him just because he's gone, have you?
Shelter Owner	Was this in Waang Saan Plaza?
Beckbeast Trainer	That's right... I'll always remember that place.
Shelter Owner	He remembers, too. Every now and then, he drags me to the place I found him, only to howl.
Beckbeast Trainer	Is that so? If he remembers him so well, then how is he able to keep facing forward?
Yangni	*Whine*...
Shelter Owner	(Strokes the nose wound of the beckbeast in his arms) Kid, why are you being all quiet...?
Ah Gen	I'm just tired.
Beckbeast Trainer	...You're really not a cute one, are you? So you're Yangni now, Meituan?
Yangni	Aoww...
Beckbeast Trainer	You like him, don't you? Go with him, then. I won't keep you.
Shelter Owner	What's this about?
Beckbeast Trainer	I'm tired. Some burdens are too heavy to carry for so many years.
Shelter Owner	You're just going to give up?
Beckbeast Trainer	Listen. If he's made up his mind to go with you, then I'm behind him all the way. I'll keep visiting that stinking hole in the wall of yours. And if I ever find you neglecting him, I'll show you what for.
Shelter Owner	What a load of shit. Me? Neglect him?!
Beckbeast Trainer	Shut up. I need to make a call.
[The trainer contacts the other L.G.D. officers...]
Shelter Owner	(Stop him!)
Ah Gen	Shh–
[...and informs them that...]
Beckbeast Trainer	Fu-zai, head to the third floor and get me some documents, will you? Ah Tung, the air conditioning in the beckbeast kennels seems to be acting up. Could you send in a request to get it repaired for me?
......
Rock-27	(Ah Gen, my surveillance shows that everyone who was heading this way is turning around.)
Ah Gen	Let's get out of here, then.
[Ah Gen leaves.]
Shelter Owner	Yangni, let's go. We're going home! Hey, why are you going back inside the cage?
Beckbeast Trainer	Meituan...? Are you... Are you staying? *Sigh*... Look at you, you chowhound. Never gonna change, huh?
Yangni lifts its round, circular rear off the ground and shakes it a little. Then, it picks up a bag of pet food with its mouth and leaves the cage, shaking its rear as it trots to the shelter owner.
<Background 1>
L.G.D. Headquarters Front Door
Beckbeast Trainer	This is as far as I can take you.
Shelter Owner	Good man... There are way too many turns inside this building, though. My head's still spinning.
Beckbeast Trainer	I only took you down that route to dodge my coworkers. Be grateful.
Shelter Owner	Haha, thanks, Ah Sir.
Beckbeast Trainer	Hmph, I didn't do it for you. See you, Meituan... No, Yangni.
Shelter Owner	Be sure to come see him when you have time.
[The owner leaves with Yangni.]
Beckbeast Trainer	(Lets out a long sigh) Ah Ming, don't worry... I'll go check on him often.
<Background 7>
4 9th Street, Downtown
Shelter Owner	Come in. I've got files on every animal I took care of.
Ah Gen	That's a lot... It's piled up to the ceiling.
Shelter Owner	A storm cloudbeast... Let's see. I specifically remember sorting these into categories. (Rummages through files)
Ah Gen	Watch out, sir!
Shelter Owner	There we go. Fetch.
Ah Gen	You got it.
[The owner climbs a wooden ladder to reach a file.]
Shelter Owner	It's all in here. Let's see... Records from last year. I had a total of four storm cloudbeasts here over that time... Is it this one? An old woman nearby adopted it not long after I found it. It's not far from here.
Ah Gen	No, that one's got a damaged ear. The one I'm looking for doesn't.
[The owner continues searching.]
Shelter Owner	This one, then? No, its owner came to get him back...
Ah Gen	The age isn't right either. That one's muzzle is turning gray.
[The owner continues searching.]
Shelter Owner	Eh, it's got be this one then. It's got to be. Look. Exactly the same.
Ah Gen	You mean other than the big brown spot on its chest?
Shelter Owner	Eh, sorry. My eyes aren't what they used to be.
[The owner continues searching and a metal collar falls off the files.]
Shelter Owner	Eh, what was that? Where did it go? I can't see anything under the table.
Ah Gen	Just keep reading. I'll climb down to take a look.
[Ah Gen climbs down while the owner keeps searching.]
Shelter Owner	Alright. Storm cloudbeast. Completely black coat. Unhurt. Escaped through the window on the morning of July 28. In the end...
Ah Gen	Keep reading. I think I found it. It's a collar with a nameplate.
Shelter Owner	...All that was found was a snapped collar... and a large amount of blood on the ground. Judging from the amount of blood, it was... unlikely to have... survived.
Ah Gen	...... (Holds the collar up to examine under the light)
Shelter Owner	Is anything written on the nameplate?
Ah Gen	It says...
Shelter Owner	Says what?
Ah Gen	Sixty-Seven...