Title: CSI Denuo AU, snippet
By: Macx
Pairing: gen
Fandom: CSI: Las Vegas
Rating: PG
Summary: Anyone remember the incredibly long Denuo AU that started with Magnificent Seven and got CSI, CSI: New York, House and then some series involved? Well, this is a long scene concerning Warrick, what had been planned for him. For anyone who has no clue at all what Denuo is: paranormal AU! Go read it if you're interested. It has a ton of stories and spans fandoms! More Denuo snippets to come! The rest of the Denuo stories can be found on the Gil/Nick - M authors page.

***

It wasn't a pretty sight and it wasn't only the garbage lying everywhere. It wasn't even the stench. It was the body, half-covered but clearly visible between the garbage. Nick tried not to breathe too deeply as he waded over the garbage bags to where some uniformed police officers stood. The alley was a dead end, with high brick walls full of old posters, and it stank of excrement and rotting biologicals.

"Hey, Nick," he was greeted by Captain Jim Brass. "You alone on this?"

"Nope. Warrick's parking the car." Nick flashed him a smile, stepping through some squishy stuff, which he didn't want to know of what it was, especially since some of it stubbornly clung to his foot. "What do we have?" he asked.

"Male body," Brass said. "Died somewhere around last night by the looks of it, or a bit earlier. One of the employees of the supermarket this dump belongs to found it."

Nick looked at the body, keeping his expression neutral, sharp eyes taking in details. The man was partially naked, as far as he could see, and lying on his chest. The lower part of the body was covered by a large, empty plastic bag. There were some bruises on his arms and back.

"Is the coroner on the way?" he asked, batting at the flies.

"Yes. Called a few minutes ago."

Nick started the preliminary, looking, not touching, and Warrick joined him a few minutes later. There was something visible beneath the bruise, something like a tattoo...? Pictures were taken, evidence collected, until the coroner arrived.

"Hey, David," Nick greeted the man.

David Philipps gave him a brief smile and a nod, then started his examination of the body, taking body temperature and going through the pockets. He handed Nick a wallet.

"Nothing else on him," he said. "As far as I can tell."

Nick flipped through the wallet. "Martin Landers, thirty-eight, from Arizona. No family photos." He counted the green bills in the back of the wallet. "And fifty bucks." He dropped it into an evidence bag. "So, what's your take on how our vic died?"

Philipps poked and prodded at the body, ignoring the stench and the state of decay the body was in.

"There's a gun shot wound to the upper chest," he then said, pointing at a darkish bruise that surrounded a jagged hole, which in turn had been covered by lots of garbage. "I can't tell you if it's the cause of death before I do a complete autopsy."

Warrick nodded. "I'll go back to the morgue to collect evidence," he volunteered.

Nick grimaced. That left him at the crime scene, a real shit hole of a place. "Thanks, man," he groaned.

Warrick clapped his shoulder. "Suck it up."

Stokes chuckled. "Not in this life."

He got to work as two assistants wheeled off the body. Brass left him with a uniform, who had his car parked at the entrance of the alley. Nick set to work.

 

* * *

 

"You... you know?" Warrick blurted. "Both of you know? And you tried to... conceal it!"

Hodges glanced at Nick, face a mask. His eyes were hard, all teasing and mockery gone. The ally was thinking hard and fast.

"He's a vampire!" Warrick went on. "Damnit! I never knew... and you did... and... how?" Suddenly his eyes narrowed. "You're allies?"

"Warrick, listen, calm down. No one did anything to that blood sample," Nick tried.

Warrick rounded on him, eyes flashing. "Don't, Nick! Don't try to patronize me, tell me what I see doesn't exist. I know it does!"

"How?" Hodges only asked quietly.

Warrick's hands clenched and unclenched. "You're allies?" he countered.

"I am," Hodges confirmed with a nod.

"And Nick?"

"I'm paranormal," Nick said, taking his lead from Hodges.

If David trusted Warrick to reveal their other identity, Nick would follow.

"W-what?"

"Maybe we should take this somewhere less public," Hodges interrupted quietly, voice firm. He wouldn't accept a 'no'.

"Grissom's office," Nick decided.

It got him a nod from his ally and a frown from Warrick, but he didn't object.

Fifteen minutes later the three men were inside the crammed office. Hodges locked the door and closed all blinds.

"How do you know about the paranormal, Warrick?" he asked as he turned away from the last window.

"First I want to know about Nick;" Warrick evaded. "What are you?"

"I'm a Mimic."

Another frown. "Never heard of it."

"What did you hear of?" Hodges again took the lead.

"Vampires, werewolves, all the magic users..." Warrick trailed off.

"Mimics are rare," Stokes said calmly. "Sidhe descendents."

Hodges still eyed him. "You're not a vampire, nor are you a were," he contemplated. "Magic user?"

Warrick shook his head, looking like he couldn't believe what was happening. He ran a shaky hand through his hair. "I can't believe this," he said, almost to himself. "I never even thought there would be others in here. I didn't really think about it."

"How much do you know?"

Hodges again. Nick watched the man, watched him watching Warrick. Like a criminalist looking at a piece of evidence.

"I never got involved. Hell, I'm not even able to do anything! I'm..." He exhaled sharply. "Grandpa was a werewolf."

Hodges brows rose and Nick knew he was gaping.

"My mom was born nine months after he was bitten," Warrick went on, voice bitter. "Fertilization was before his first transformation and after he had been bitten by what he had believed was a mangy old dog."

Hodges blinked. "I've never heard of that before. Were are sterile after their first transformation, unable to father children or be fertilized, even by other were."

Warrick gave a hollow laugh. "It's what I was told by my grandmother. I never met my grandfather. He left when Mom was still a kid."

"Did he lose himself to the wolf?" Hodges wanted to know.

"Hell if I know. Grandma never talked about it. I know it hurt her. She keeps hoping, though. Mom never showed anything of the wolf she inherited."

"And you?" Nick asked softly.

Another sharp exhalation, almost a hard sigh. "Aside from the eyes? Sometimes. I feel the moon, Nick. I know the cycles. It freaked me out at first, but it came in handy. I get my 'days', too. But it's not painful, just... my senses are sharper. I can see perfectly at night. It's why I chose the graveyard shift. Being a quarter wolf helps." He smiled wryly.

Nick mirrored the smile. "Hey, man, you're not alone," he then said.

"So what's a Mimic doing?" Warrick wanted to know.

"For real? Nothing much..."

And Nick launched into his own story. When he mentioned Grissom, Warrick looked shocked again. He actually sat down.

"How many are there? I mea, in here?"

Hodges pushed away from the wall where he had kept watching them. "Many. Some you won't expect. I'd say we take this to the Walkabout." He looked at Nick, who nodded. "After the end of your shifts. This will take a while to explain and there are others who'd be interested to meet you, Warrick."

Wariness returned to Warrick's features. Nick gave him what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

 

 

 

Warrick knew that his brain was close to exploding. Or imploding. He hadn't made up his mind yet. He had always believed that while, yes, there was a world of the paranormal, there weren't too many of them out there. He had never heard of vampire communities or the Nexus. He hadn't kept in touch with anything. Werewolves were along in their condition. Sometimes they ran across another one, but mostly years after their transformation. Very few seemed to stay with their families. There was hardly anything known about them and his mother had only mentioned a few things here or there.

Now he had discovered a whole network, the Nexus, and Nick and Hodges had told him about their allies and fellow paranormals. It was... mind-blowing.

Greg Sanders, an ally. It was almost fitting. And Grissom was a Phoenix. There were even shamans. And a vampire community. Franklin was a vampire! The man who was involved with Ecklie, the open secret relationship.

"What's Ecklie?" he asked tiredly.

"Until four years ago, he was just human. Then a shaman died in his arms and transferred his power into him," Nick explained readily.

"So he's the AD, a shaman and your friend?"

The last bit was even more fantastic than the shaman part.

"Hell, Nick, I feel like I just woke out of a coma and don't understand the world any more."

Stokes smiled sympathetically. "Hey, been there, felt it. I flipped, I screamed, I cried, I had a breakdown myself. Too much happened. But it's real, Warrick. And you're part of it."

He snorted. "I'm a quarter wolf, with no abilities."

"You're also a friend."

He met the dark eyes, read the truth in there. He and Nick had been really good friends right from the start. He liked the other man, had confided in him, had listened to Nick's sorrows, they had supported each other, and aside from this little fact about the paranormal, there had been no lies.

"What now?" he asked.

"It's up to you," Hodges answered.

The man had stumped Warrick the most. The snarky lab tech had turned out to be an ally. Would wonders never cease?

So it was up to him. Knowing about the paranormal meant he was considered an ally. He knew he would help his friends, but first he had to cope with it all. Especially Ecklie and Grissom.

"There are people who you might want to talk to," Hodges went on.

"Who?"

"Vin Tanner and Buck Wilmington. Tanner worked for the Salt Lake crime lab, his partner Wilmington still does."

"And?"

"Both of them are werewolves."

Warrick stared at him. "What?"

Hodges smiled, eyes glinting with a familiar light. He was by now enjoying this. Warrick scowled at him.

"Let me get in touch with them. They'll get in touch with you."

***