Analyses of Inspector Thauvin chapter 1: Harsh Glances, Proof of Worth
Noxus. A mighty and fearsome expanding Empire that is never satisfied of its hunger for more power and lands. This desire can be extinguished by the great Trifarian Legion, an unstoppable and dedicated army that spreads rampage on its path.
But, like every regime, Noxus has its weaknesses. There are threats from the inside that can ruin everything in a heartbeat with any tragic mistake the Grand General can make. And because he has foreseen it β like everything after all β he has taken his very drastic measures to combat the possible treason from faces that wear invisible masksβ¦
βItβs him, step aside!β One of the guards whispered nervously to his companion to the sight of the new superweapon Swain hired for his mysterious plans and military success.
The soldiers stared with faces that betrayed their fear for the unknown, their teeth were almost showing in fear and instinct to put the tail between the legs.
A quiet, almost unnoticed scoff could be heard. It couldnβt remain hidden. It shouldnβt. They are Noxian soldiers that have seen so many battlefields that something like that shouldnβt bother their eyes so muchβ¦
βG- Grand General! Your weapon is hereβ¦β
βExcellent. Bring him in.β
βMove it!β The guard yelled with the most nervous voice he had ever heard, as he shoved his axe threateningly at his direction. The uniquely for the Noxian standards armed man tried to hold his mocking smile. The bloke was too desperate to show his rank superiority, and it was something utterly futile.
He held his smile for the very special moment of standing in front of the Grand General himself, in his own noble mansion.
βYou must be Inspector Beau Thauvin.β Swain sounded very sophisticated as he asked.
βIn flesh and bone, your weapon is here. At your mighty will, Grand General.β Inspector Thauvin is rarely the one that will talk big and fanfaring Β words, its other people that will usually flatter him unnecessarily. But, this time he decided to allow a change.
βI cannot hide my enthusiasm that you honour us with your services, Inspector.β Indeed, Swainβs boring, merry impatience couldnβt hide deep behind his aged and refined facial features.
βI can see itβ¦β Thauvin didnβt hesitate to intensify his remarkable unimpression in his aristocratic leader face. Risky, but thatβs him, either you like it or not.
Swain shook his head and raised his brows in neutral shock the Inspectorβs behaviour caused, but soon his expression changed dramatically to being more interested. He stroked his chin with a stoic face. βYou have the privilege to determine when do you wish to start your work, since it is youββ
βRight now.β The robotic determination of his clear and silvery voice cut Swainβs easiness in pieces, along with his intendedly causal phrase.
Donβt try to be at ease with me, General!β¦
Jerichoβs breathe was cut and hitched to the sharp suggestion, if you want, that the man voiced. He froze for several second clusters, but it was enough to get noticed by the sly agentβs eye.
He cleared his throat. βVery well,β He drowned his uneasiness. βYou have to know, however, that my bidding is never built on a silky, straight road, Inspectorβ¦β
βIf this really was a threat, mβ Lord, then Iβm deeply sorry, because, for your information, I never apply for a task that is easy. I donβt play the dolls, and I seek to be effective to the common cause I eventually share with my employer.β His eyes were shining threatening bravery and fatal truth. His arms audaciously folded close to his chest, after his rudely bold words towards the very first man of Noxusβ¦
Well, this wasnβt really wise of him to do. But he knows. He never lets uncalculated actions pass, and knowing his necessity and utility to Noxus, Swain would never had the guts to risk the Inspectorβs safety for his pride.
βWhatever, Thauvinβ¦β His sharp tone indicated his very restrained attempt to hide his lost patience. βShall we move to the main reason you are here then?β Thauvin laughed so hard in his head with how hurt Swains good intention to be polite was, but outside he looked stern and imperious to the simplest and humblest way.
βThatβs why Iβm here, Grand General. Move on, then.β
Swain calmed his tension down with a deep breath before moving on to explaining his first mission as an agent of Noxus.
βSince you have lived by us for quite a while, you have probably heard of or seen with your eyes the occupied by deviant protesters north-eastern suburban territory.β Swain explained.
βItβs a pain in the arse the recent weeks!β Swainβs voice cracked with laughter. βCounsellor Dariusβ Trifarian Legion is off to occupation missions, and my capital patrols are pretty inefficient against the savage brutes.β Noble opponents of the Trifarix are a bit more easily controlled in the Empire than openly protesting savage brutes.
βI understand.β That is all he had to say.
βDonβt you have anything to add?β
βNot really. Can I have some of your inefficient patrols?β
βWhat is the plan, Inspector?β The patrolβs commander asked. These soldiers where more civilized than the guards of Swainβs mansion. Beau liked that.
He didnβt answer him immediately. He had to first spectate the situation by himself. That was exactly what he expected: an angered handful of folks gathered in a group, united like a fist and overly concentrated to their pitiful riot.
βInspector?β¦β The soldier repeated, this time seemingly hesitating to do so, but impatient for an answer as well. Weak mindsβ¦
βThe plan is the following: you go and trap them into a circle made of your unitβs men.β
βB- but, Inspector? Our unit can easily be decimated by these angry people! I- I mean, these treacherous dogs!!β His voice was so nervous in fear of having sounded more compassionate than he should be, he almost bit his tongue. Thauvin really has his time in that city, very fun idiots to work with. A shame he canβt show it, sacrificing his urge to laugh on their faces to professionalism.
βYou didnβt let me finish.β The rudeness in his phrase didnβt drown in his sternnessβ deep bottom. Instead, it floated on its surface, seemingly shaming the commander.
Beau broke the silence again, with his more defined explanations of his plan. βYour circle is going to both trap them and bamboozle them. Here I have a paralyzing detonator that will make them have some sweet dreams for a good while, allowing us to disarm them and send them to the justice they deserve without killing them. This is for the Grand General to decide. They are simple citizens after all. But: be careful not to stand too close to the area the detonator will affect, otherwise youβll get electrocuted as well. Five feet are a good distance to keep from my target. Was I well understood?β
He always uses his charisma in leadership in his tone, combining it with his influencing and confident body language, while at the same time being extremely simple and direct, so he is easily understood. Perfect, as he always aims to achieve by practicing his profession.
And as he predicted, everyone said no more. A positive nod was enough to pass into action.
However, predictions always have their holesβ¦
βI donβt think it will work.β A young man, at least in his early twenties, voiced with pure audacity and steadiness in his voice.
Thauvin looked at him with serious, half β closed eyes of caustic humiliation.
Silence. Many of the soldiers turned to each other with confusion and a chilling but suppressed fear.
βAnd who are you to determine it, o genius from nowhere?β He asked, faking suspicion in his tone.
βIβm Tommy Brant, sir! Co β commander of the Capital Patrol!β The boy stood straight with too much pride filling his lungsβ¦
βInterestingβ¦ And how someone as young as you gained such a high rank in this armed force?β
βHe has just returned from the Tokogol fort, sir, one of the best soldiers that got this promotion as a reward!β A woman answered nervously instead of Brant. Her name was Myriam Cole, Captain of the Patrol.
βHmmβ¦ Weird reward. Oh, and I was asking him not you.β His harsh glance made her look down to her feet in shame.
βWhat was I saying? Oh, yeah. You shouldnβt question me, Co β commander Brant. And you really canβt, since Commander Achim here takes my orders today.β
The young soldier prepared himself to talk back, but Thauvinβs collected voice was faster than his.
βWith my signal! Ready!β¦β
The anticipation and worry about failure had filled their hearts. This was probably the riskiest strategy they had ever faced in their lives. Some even though that the Grand General was very desperate to hire such a mad guy to lead them, but obviously kept them for themselves, a thought that should never be revealed for their sakeβ¦
Nevertheless, they tried their best to have bodies and minds alarmed for the signal and therefore the action.
Foreheads wet in sweat, breathes hitched, weapons grasped in fistsβ¦
And the mission started. The soldiers ran as fast as possible, choosing paths behind buildings to go unnoticed by the crowd in the square of the northβeastern suburbs.
Thauvin used his long-range binoculars to spectate. He let a small, crooked smirk on his lips, in approval of their clever action. At this rate, no one would get fatally hurt. They werenβt that stupid thenβ¦
Enough about the police though. He had to think about his own part as well. The easy stuff. He used his Hextech jet boots to reach the target faster. He jumped on a balcony with the boost of his jets, so he could have a better view of the situation.
He reactivated his binoculars, this time on sniper mode. With the help of his precise rifle, designed by himself to be foolproof like a preying vulture, he would shoot his detonator at the protesters.
Meanwhile, down there the nervous Patrol Unit soldiers were ponting their axes and swords at the people they had trapped β that seemed to be the case. The angry citizens yelled at them, cursed Noxus, demanded more rights and freedom, threatened to attack them and even spat on their faces.
Brant wiped spit from his eye and yelled for order nervously. Some others, more brutal and experienced went farther than just a harmless threat, even on unarmed protesters.
βI should make this quick or it will turn to be a tragedy. I wonβt tolerate Β making a bad name of myselfβ¦β Beauβs voice sounded quite at ease, despite the pressuring time that threatened his plan tremendouslyβ¦
He just stood there, placing his feet steadily on the narrow surface of the balconyβs railing, and aimed with concentration at the riotersβ¦
The situation was about to worsen at the square. Someone could be heard warning that heβd light a fire to burn the statue of some forgotten warlord very few speak of nowadays. This wasnβt good, Thauvin thought. He had to act quickly, so that he wouldnβt lose his unit to a bunch of random people that disliked their countryβ¦
His earpiece was unfortunately connected to the commanders, to be able to have control of the situation in all the possible senses. βWhat takes you so long, Inspector!?!β
βShut the hell up and let me concentrate, do your job, Commander!β
βWhatever, be quick, they are trying to-β
βMuch better.β He smiled at himself for deactivating the earpiece and turned to his target with the greatest focus possible. Letβs end this quickβ¦
It all depended on a press of his trigger, lucky for them, it had to be his.
One last deep breath and the missile went to find its target on the ground. The force that was created by the shot threw Thauvin inside the balcony, causing him to reflexively backflip and accidentally break the window with his heavy equipment.
He swore under his breath as he shook his head to ease the bodily shock. As he turned his head to witness the damage he caused, he faced a scared woman in her nightdress and facemask. Β
βMβ lady? Donβt worry about this mess, Iβm paying for it. Oh, almost forgot this.β He pressed a button on his modified ATLAS glove and a bright blue light could be seen from the square, accompanied by a considerably loud noise.
He smirked. βFinally, I started getting bored of this.β
βH- heβ¦ Actually did thisβ¦β The Commander said in his relieved breath, and almost passed out of shock.
The other soldiers cheered and thanked the gods for surviving this craze. But the three in command still quietly questioned Thauvinβs method, even after observing the paralysing detonator electrocute the protesters that fainted right away in front of their eyes.
However, some reckless and ignorant soldiers were affected as well, as a result of not keeping the right distance like the Inspector warnedβ¦ βHis crazy plans will kill us all! Imagine going on the first mission with someone so popular of his kind and getting blasted men in the process!β Commander Achim exclaimed at Cole and Brant.
βI honestly donβt understand what the Grand General had in his mind when he hired that madmanβ¦β Brant touched his chin. His gaze on the ground betrayed his insecurities.
βWhatever he is up to, we must
βWhatever he is up to, we must remain quiet. Any reckless move and we lose our power. Both of you, remember that you are not on top of this anymore.β Coleβs voice sounded sharp and plain, indicating that she was completely serious and plain, indicating that she was very serious.
The two men nodded with clear dysphoria, but as much as they hated to admit it, she was rightβ¦
Swain was more than pleased to observe on his balcony all of the protesterβs hands bound with cuffs behind their backs and lead in a line to jail by the Patrol Unit. He lowered his telescope and smiled at Thauvin that stood at attention behind him. βCongratulations, Inspector!
βYou promised difficulty.β He faked serious disappointment to bluff, once again interrupting his sentence.
The Grand General almost held his breath. Then a sigh followed. βNot your level, I supposeβ¦β His husky voice was quiet. βNever mind, you wonβt get away with so relaxing missions, I assure youβ¦ Dismissedβ¦β
Thauvin nodded and left his quarters with his hands clasped behind his back. He surely expected something actually difficult, but kept that dayβs event in the back of his head nonethelessβ¦
