The Diminisher

++ Recovered Documentation ++
++ Classified Information ++
++ Do not distribute publicly ++


Journal of Senior Detective ++ name withheld ++


         I still remember the day the world changed. None of us expected the news could result in something so disastrous after what it was all meant to be for. I don't understand the science behind it all, the first article said something about quantum entanglement used to displace matter from its current location or something along those lines, but it turned out to have more implications than anyone imagined.
         The first recordings released to the public were astonishing. How this machine worked was beyond understanding to all but the physicist team that developed it, but the footage of a large pile of industrial refuse being reduced to a small clump of matter was astonishing. We all thought the industry of waste management was about to be revolutionised, but then a few days later it all went silent. No more news articles, no more coverage on the evening news, and no more related internet content. We all thought at first maybe it had been a hoax, but then the following week saw leaked internet footage surface on numerous websites. The video was brief, but it looked like a cat. Distressed, mewling, and as the video continued the camera zoomed out, revealing that the cat was being held in the palm of someone's hand.
         The internet was up in arms after that. Many people cried out hoax, others believed the footage and decried it for animal cruelty. The Lab itself said nothing on the matter, but for some generic excuse about the technology not intended for use on living matter. But when authorities and reporters peppered them with questions about whether the device could affect living matter, all they received was a sting of technobabble and excuses trying to deflect from the matter. The longer it went on, the more those of us working the case came to realise the sickening truth. That video was real, and the implications were terrifying. We tried to move quickly. The technology thankfully only existed in this single laboratory and we petitioned the corporate owners to shut it down as quickly as possible, while simultaneously trying to get our superiors in the government and courts to order some sort of legal action. Anything to slow or stop the project from going further. But as officials dragged their feet and red tape formed walls of bureaucracy barring our path, we began to realise that bribery and corruption were halting any chance we had.
         What happened next shook the world. Another video dropped, this time it was silent. A person's hand curled almost int a fist, as if holding something. And then from between two of the fingers, another, much tinier hand. A moment later she lifted herself above his fingers. A woman. Naked, screaming and in extreme distress, she looked from one of the full size people off camera to another, before seeming to realise she was being filmed. Despair crossed her features and the video ended. From this point forward there was no denying what was happening. Someone in that Lab had figured out how to use the device they'd built to shrink living beings by displacing a portion of their physical mass. How the process could be survived was anybody's guess, but it was something that couldn't be allowed to continue.
         The following months were a nightmare for law enforcement agencies on every level, from the federal right down to local sheriffs. Missing person cases skyrocketed and we were faced with the horrifying reality that the technology had made it onto the black market. The dark web became a hive of activity unlike anything we'd monitored before and too many of our attempts to raid criminal headquarters were met with officers disappearing from the face of the earth. It didn't take long for most of those left to lose their nerve, and the people fighting the influence of this thing were down to small pockets per precinct, working in secret to keep out of the line of fire. Most officers stuck to more traditional police work, avoiding missing person cases like the plague.
         The internet became a place of horror, and to my disbelief I found that too many people were enjoying this sort of thing. Videos of shrunken people being tortured or used as toys were common, but the most chilling were the videos of people being eaten. I saw tiny people fed to birds, pet reptiles and most hauntingly of all, swallowed alive by other human beings. I couldn't fathom it. Why would people do this? To my utter confusion, there were even videos of shrunken people willingly subjecting themselves to these and sexual activities with normal sized partners, or even groups. I can't imagine the mentality behind this as it had become common knowledge this process was irreversible. How many people had let themselves be shrunken down like this? For the sake of fulfilling some sexual fantasy, and then what? To be trapped as someone no larger than three inches tall? We found out that these devices were called Diminishers, and that the tech had been perfected to a point it could almost be mass produced.
         It was that revelation that spurred me to renew my efforts. I spent months on the dark web, tracking transactions as best I could and identifying known locations to have replicated the tech for their own use. I passed everything I learned along to the few officers and agents that I still trusted with the information. When enough of us felt the time was right, we began planning a raid on one of the locations, hoping to take at least one of these devices out of commission. All the while, missing person numbers steadily went up, and we did our best not to crack under the pressure.
         It went... mostly to plan. This organisation had gotten cocky and the site we had chosen mostly lacked any real defensive measures. We lost a good man securing the facility, but we had what we wanted. A collection of diminisher devices destroyed, and some human garbage behind bars at last. We left the place in shambles, leaving nothing for any other members of the organisation to salvage. I slept better for a few nights. But then, three days after the raid... my wife, a teacher, didn't come home that afternoon. I spent hours trying to call her, her friends, other places she frequented, but nothing.
         Two days later, a parcel arrived on my doorstep early in the morning. A small box with a tight seal. When I opened it is when I broke. Inside, my wife's body. Not even three inches tall. Unmoving, cold...


         I can't win. And I no longer have a reason to try.


++ So boss, we found this journal in the guy's home after we searched it. Still not sure where the guy himself has disappeared to, but it seems from this that he isn't going to interfere with our operations anymore. I feel pretty confident in saying we can move forward with the one-shot diminishers. I predict a pretty tidy profit even if we are missing out on repeat customers, heh.
He was clever enough not to name any of his buddies, but we have some pretty solid leads on them. They'll be inches tall by the end of the month. ++