There was a brief moment of silence. Perhaps the agents were too busy mentally preparing themselves for this 'Mockingbird Hunt' to talk. Either way, it wasn't until Chanyeol had spoken up that things started moving again.

"Yo, Dongwoo." He looked at the pathologist. "There's just one thing I want to know. What kind of states were the bodies of Taehyun and Minhee found in? I mean, were any of their  organs missing?"

Dongwoo wrinkled his brow. "No. No, they still have all of their body parts, if I remember correctly. I didn't get to start on their autopsies yet, but from reading the reports that were made on scene, Seonwoong was the only victim who'd had something taken. Why?"

Chanyeol shrugged and gave a lopsided grin. "Just a thought I had. It sounded like the killer had a thing for organs. If he had taken some from the other victims, maybe we could have made a connection between the victims and the killer."

"Good deducing," Chen praised as Dongwoo nodded his agreement. "I wish you'd think like that more often."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

Tossing his marker onto the ledge of the whiteboard, Woohyun turned towards his companions. "Alright, alright," he raised his voice over the rabble in the room. "We're almost done. Stay quiet for a few more minutes, guys. Let's assign tasks and get on with the investigation."

As if he were in school, Sungjong tentatively raised his hand up. "Like I said before, I'd like to go back to the church before it closes today. There are still some questions we need to ask the minister."

"I'll be doing the autopsies for the other two victims," Dongwoo piped up. He stood up from his chair and stretched his long arms out. "If I stay overtime, I might be able to finish with Son Taehyun today."

Ten minutes later, the agents left the conference room with different goals than before. They would still investigate each case they'd been respectively assigned, but would hold frequent meetings and share information with one another (but only, Sungjong added, if Sunggyu was there to take the lead. The idea of power  and Woohyun  together was quite a frightening thing, if one really thought about it).

"We need to get our acts together and catch this guy, pronto," Youngjae added seriously as the meeting broke up. "It's already been five days since the first murder, and I very much doubt he'll be stopping anytime soon. Who's to say there won't be another killing?"

Myungsoo was one of the last to leave the room. As he walked out, he turned to Sungyeol, who was quietly trailing him from behind.

"I guess I can finish teaching you our system now," he told the rookie. He now planned on visiting the artillery unit with close-up shots of the victims, which Kris had thoughtfully provided after he'd announced his plan. "Sometimes, it helps to know what kind of weapons were used in the killing. Yongguk and Chaerin are experts at figuring it out- all they usually need is a photo of the wound to tell. I know it'll say in the forensics reports, but it's good for us to physically see and know what the weapons are.

"It helps with finding the killer, too," the ravenet added as he stepped inside the elevator. "Knowing the weapons he used will tell you a lot about the guy. It has something to do with personal preference and cognitive thinking... I don't know; Youngjae or Dongwoo can explain it a lot better than me."

Sungyeol said nothing in response, but Myungsoo didn't really mind. It was okay. He was now- kind of- used to his new partner's impassive, yet intriguing personality.

And, judging by the distinctly more comfortable air between them, he suspected Sungyeol was getting used to him, too.

----------

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gunshots greeted Myungsoo and Sungyeol as they entered Shooting Range #2. A lone figure was standing at the front of the room. Dressed in his typical bullet-proof vest and goggles, the man was taking carefully aimed shots at the targets across the field. Not a single one of them missed its mark.

Myungsoo waited until the shooter had relaxed his aim before speaking. "Hey, Yongguk. Do you never leave this place when you're on duty? I swear you're always here when I come by, shut in your little cave."

Lowering his weapon, the older man let out a bark of laughter and flashed his gummy grin. "I prefer to call it my haven. My safe little hideaway when everyone out there is stressed and freaking out about their cases." Raising his gun to fire one last shot, Yongguk added, "How's it going, Myungsoo? And Sungyeol, too. Good to see you again. How're you liking HQ so far? Everybody treating you okay?"

Sungyeol raised his gaze to meet his, eyes darkening with an unknown emotion. Myungsoo watched him in a rather curious fashion. Seeing Sungyeol so quiet and brooding, it reminded him of the first day he'd brought the rookie here. They'd met with the three artillery agents, left the room... And then what? Hadn't Myungsoo said something about acknowledging the three's rowdiness, and them not actually being bad people?

"I wasn't thinking that,"  was what Sungyeol's cryptic response had been. What did that mean? If he hadn't been thinking about the loud, mischievous air of the weaponry division, what had been going on in his head instead? Maybe Myungsoo felt he was starting to get along with Sungyeol, but that didn't mean he fully understood the guy yet.

Myungsoo was shaken out of his thoughts when Sungyeol finally decided to give an answer back.

"... it's fine," he said in a low voice. "Everybody's... fine."

The weapons specialist nodded. "Good, good," he smiled again. He looked at the expressionless Sungyeol for a moment longer (this time, Myungsoo sensed, with something close to sympathy  in his eyes), but changed the topic before anything could be said of it.

"So, what's going on? Am I right to assume you're not just here for a friendly chat?"

"Assumption correct." Myungsoo saw Yongguk's eyes travel down to the folder in his hand. He brought it up and offered it for closer inspection, as if to give proof of the reason for his unannounced visit. "I've brought photos of our cases' victims. All three were killed using different weapons and methods, and I thought it'd be useful for us to get a visual idea of the weapons."

"And you decided to interrupt my practice time for me to do the job?" Yongguk grinned and led them to the east wall of the room. There was a table there, along with a few chairs and metal drawers. Hanging on the wall were different models of guns and shooters which Yongguk liked to practice with: a Mauser Model 98, a Daewoo DP51 pistol, and a bunch of others Myungsoo was completely clueless about. "You should know I don't work for free, Kim Myungsoo. I accept compensation of all kinds, including brand new Glock-17 bullets or free food."

Myungsoo rolled his eyes, but handed him the folder anyways. "Don't listen to him," he told Sungyeol. It wasn't like the rookie was going to ask, but Myungsoo gave a little explanation anyways. "He's only kidding. But I should warn you that sometimes, Yongguk's jokes can be worse than Woohyun's."

"... hn."

Yongguk set the folder down on the table and opened the cover. "Hmm." All jokes now aside, he took on the task with a noticeably more serious expression. "These are all the pictures of your victims? Lee Seonwoong... Son Taehyun... Lee Minhee..." He took a moment longer to study the snapshots. "Ouch. Poor girl. This is not  a nice guy you're after, Myungsoo..."

Suddenly, the blonde man's head snapped up. He said, "Wait, you said these were for your cases. Cases  as in plural, meaning more than one. Shouldn't you only be on a single investigation? Or is Sunggyu being a bastard and giving you more than you can handle?"

Frowning, Myungsoo shook his head. "No, that's not it. You're right; I should only be on one  case right now. Originally, I was meant to work on just the murder of Lee Minhee. Yeah, those pictures are of her. The other two victims are being taken care of by different agents. But the thing is, we made a pretty big discovery today..." With a solemn tone, he told Yongguk all about the Mockingbird case and what had been discussed during their meeting. 

Sungyeol stood silently beside him and fixed his stare on the folder of pictures.

"," the weaponry agent swore when Myungsoo finished talking. He had taken off his protective eyewear, making the grimness on his face even more evident. "That was an understatement, what I said about him not being a nice guy. You're after a freakin' psychopath  here, you know."

"Yeah. That's why we need your help." Myungsoo glanced down at the pictures. Having been rifled through by Yongguk, a close-up of Lee Minhee's face now stared back at him. It was covered in cuts and dried blood. The only thing recognisable of her were her green eyes, which the pastor had mentioned in his description of the girl. Help me, they seemed to plead. Save me.

Myungsoo tore his gaze away. "How long will it take for you to know?" he asked. He noticed Sungyeol, too, had looked up from the photos and was glancing at the artillery expert.

Already recovered from his shock, Yongguk snorted and gave Myungsoo a self-satisfied grin. "What do you mean, how long will it take? I've already figured it out for two of them."

"An iron rod, a cleaver, a .17 HMR revolver, and a Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife."

Both Myungsoo and Yongguk were startled.

"You talk?" Yongguk half-joked while Myungsoo looked on, bemused.

Sungyeol ignored them. "It's obvious what types  of weapons were used," he said, jerking his head towards the photos, "But what I listed were just examples of what could  have been used. I can only guess from the severity and shape of their wounds."

"Huh." Yongguk began to shuffle through the snapshots again. While he was doing that, Myungsoo stared from the pictures in his hand to the apathetic Sungyeol.

"How'd you know?" the agent asked, feeling quite impressed. That might have been the fastest he'd ever seen anyone complete this task.

Indifferent to Myungsoo's admiration, the newcomer lifted his gaze from the folder. "I knew someone who taught me much about weaponry," was his short reply.

Before Myungsoo could ask any more questions, Yongguk let out a low whistle. "You're right, Sungyeol. I see how you figured it out. Maybe Sunggyu should have put you in our  unit, instead of sticking you with Myungsoo." The older man spread out the various photos on the table before turning to his friends.

"Look here," he said, pointing to the ones of Lee Seonwoong. "This victim was killed with an iron rod. The only sign of injury on his body is this crack on his head, which was made by a blunt, yet powerful weapon of some sort (that being the rod). From the size and shape of his wound, I'd say that this rod is thin, yet strong enough to break the back of someone's skull. Might be industrialized steel.

"With the second victim," he now gestured towards the photos of Park Taehyun's body, "Things are a bit more complicated. He was killed using two weapons, you see."

"What?" Myungsoo furrowed his brows. He leaned forwards to take a closer look, wincing a little at the image of the separated body parts. "Did you just say two  weapons? How? I can only see the marks of a knife on him."

Yongguk tsked. "That's why you're not a weaponry agent," he smirked. Then he became business-like again. "Look closer. Do you see this? That tiny little gape on his temple?"

Myungsoo carefully examined the picture. It was hard to tell, because Taehyun's hair had been long and rather shaggy. But if he looked hard enough...

"Ahh, I see." Through messy strands of hair, Myungsoo could spot the gape which Yongguk had pointed out. "I didn't even notice that bullet mark... So he was shot first and then  maimed with the knife? Or do you think it could have been the other way around?"

"Cleaver," Sungyeol corrected him tonelessly.

Yongguk sent him a quick grin. "What I think," he said to Myungsoo, "Is that he was shot first. Shot, and then maimed. After he'd died, subdued by the bullet, the killer set to work dismembering the body. I'm fairly certain he used something close to a cleaver- those knives are known for their ease of cutting through flesh and bone. And from what I can gather from these pictures, he likes to be neat. See how carefully the limbs were positioned? Maybe he decided it'd be easier to work with someone who's dead than a dying, but still struggling, victim.

"I'm not sure why he chose a .17 HMR revolver," Yongguk added, anticipating the next question. "Or rather, a gun of the same build. If you can retrieve the bullet from the autopsy, I can tell you if it was from a .17 HMR. Those models have small calibers, but are actually powerful when used for short-distance shooting. My best guess is that the killer didn't want a gun wound diverting attention away from the dismemberment. That was the main 'style' of this murder. He's a smart person, whoever this killer is."

"That's what I'm afraid of." Myungsoo nodded towards the last set of photos. "What about her? Lee Minhee?"

"Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife," Sungyeol murmured.

The blonde confirmed his words. "Yeah, something of the sort. These wounds aren't wide enough to have been inflicted by a bigger blade, but the Fairbairn-Sykes is long enough to do the damage."

"What?" Once again, Myungsoo felt lost with the weaponry terminology.

Sungyeol glanced over at him. "The Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife," he repeated. "Long. Thin. Dangerous enough to kill."

Yongguk voiced his own thoughts. "All of the puncture wounds on her body are short, but deep." He outlined them on a full-body picture with his finger. "The Fairbairn-Sykes is a double-edged fighting knife bearing a resemblance to a long-bladed dagger. It's very capable of slashing and ing inside the body, which you can see is what's happened to this girl here. A knife like the Fairbairn-Sykes would have been the perfect weapon to use- big enough to slice into her abdomen, but not so heavy that it left wide slashes." 

"Okay." For a minute, Myungsoo just stood there, trying to absorb all of this information. He would bring Yongguk along to the next meeting to inform the others, but he didn't want to forget it himself. Methodically, he started placing the pictures back inside the folder. The agent looked at each one individually as he did, particularly struck by the vast differences in the murders.

'Who  is this guy? How can he commit such cruel acts to other human beings?' A small shiver ran throughout Myungsoo's body. For the first time since their investigation, he felt a prickle of fear and apprehension at the powers of this murderer.

"Well, Myungsoo!" Yongguk clapped his hands. His eyes twinkled. The sombre air that had been surrounding him was gone- it was as if it had disappeared along with the snapshots of the victims. "I told you I wouldn't work for free. Now that I've done my bit, you can go ahead and do yours."

Myungsoo groaned. "Are you serious? I thought you were kidding. You know, I have important things to do now. We already wasted so much time on the cases as it is."

"Relax, this'll take only five minutes. Ten minutes, tops." The artillery expert loped past the table and went over to the wall. He examined the different weapons which were on display. With obvious deliberation, he plucked a fairly large revolver near the middle off its hook. After rummaging through one of the drawers for additional items, he strode back to where his friends were waiting.

"Come on," he grinned. Yongguk led the two to the front of the shooting range, where he'd been when they'd first entered. He handed them each a pair of goggles and earplugs, saying, "You'd better put these on. This model isn't very loud, but the noise is still enough to screw up your hearing for a good hour."

Suspiciously, Myungsoo accepted the objects. "What's this for?" Yongguk impatiently motioned for him to put them on, so he did. "What do you want us to do, Yongguk?" His voice sounded muffled to his ears.

"It's nothing dangerous, don't worry," Yongguk replied as Sungyeol slowly copied the ravenet's actions. "All I want you do to is shoot that target over there."

Myungsoo looked. From where he was standing, the target had to be about 250 feet away. "Are you serious," he said, feeling a mix of dread and exasperation. "You know that I'm horrible with shooting."

"All the more reason to practice now," Yongguk rebutted. "Listen punk, it can't hurt to try. And I need you two to test this model for me. It's a new revolver version of a G3A3 rifle. I already had Sungjong try it out- he came in a week ago, and he was pretty damn good at it. I never would've have thought anyone besides us in the weaponry unit could have hit such accurate marks. But he's just one person. I want to see how other people handle this gun."

He promptly handed it to Myungsoo, who just looked at it for a couple of seconds. Finally, the dark-haired man let out a sigh and took the revolver. "Okay, okay. Just one shot. Only because you were so useful today." He heard Yongguk chuckle, but kept his eyes trained on the gun. Maybe this one wouldn't be so bad. Myungsoo tried to be optimistic as he took the safety lock off. Maybe he would actually hit the centre this time.

"These G3A3 revolvers have been specially designed. They can only use a certain formatted bullet which, after hitting the target, leaves a very unique mark behind..." Yongguk was enthusiastically explaining the various features of this new and improved revolver. Myungsoo blocked his voice out, though. He also tried to ignore the way Sungyeol was watching him, slight interest and amusement taking over his boredom.

Focusing his attention on the targets, Myungsoo raised the gun to eye-level. He carefully took aim at the red circle in the centre, took a deep breath, then.... Bang! He'd squeezed the trigger and shot at the target.

"Huh." Yongguk peered at the other side of the range. "Tough luck, punk. You missed the centre by two- no, three  rings."

"I told you." Myungsoo gave him a rueful look. "I'm terrible with guns."

"Maybe I should try you out for hand-to-hand combat, instead," Yongguk said thoughtfully. Oblivious to the mild horror on Myungsoo's face, he took the revolver from the former and handed it to Sungyeol. "Here, you give it a try. Do your best. I'm sure you can't be as bad as this guy here."

Without any words, Sungyeol accepted the weapon. He stepped forwards and positioned himself in front of the targets.

"I don't know how much experience you have with this kind of thing," Yongguk began talking again. For a big guy, he sure liked to chat a lot. "But it helps to steady the gun with both hands. Sometimes if you hold it with just one, like you're doing now, the impact from pulling the trigger can propel your hand backwards, putting your bullet off course-"

Bang!

Sungyeol had shot. After hearing the gun noise, Yongguk stopped talking and stared with a surprised expression.

Myungsoo followed his eyes and saw what he was so stunned about.

There, in the dead centre of the target, was the clean, crisp hole of a gunshot.

"You're a natural!" Yongguk broke the silence. He laughed and gave Sungyeol a friendly slap on the back. "You and Sungjong are definitely the only ones who can handle this model with such skill. Now I really do  want you in our division!"

Once again feeling impressed, Myungsoo pulled his earplugs out of his ears. "How'd you learn to handle guns so well?" he asked with a grudging respect. Seriously, this newcomer was just filled to the brim with surprises.

Sungyeol took his goggles off. There was was a smirk playing at his lips, but for some reason, it didn't quite match the expression in his dark eyes (and what expression that  was, Myungsoo didn't even know).

"The person who taught me about weapons also taught me how to shoot."

[A/n]   Sorry guys, if it seems boring now. I'm trying to get to more action/ suspense scenes, but it's crucial that I get this information out.

Also, to those who are experts in criminology/ weaponry/ the overall process of investigating: Bear with me. I'm completely making everything up as I go along, but I hope nothing seems to strange and out-of-the-ordinary.