“I see,” I said after waiting five whole minutes, contemplating on what to do by this new revelation.

“Look, Cypher, there’s bad blood between you and Eclain already. But ya see Eclain lost a partner in one of the sting operations over at Major Crimes Unit a few years back. he requested a transfer to EXiCON Department because he probably didn’t want that life anymore…cut him a little slack.”

“a little slack, you just said Two EXiCONS died under him!”

“I didn’t say that. I said, he was their Case Officer.” Zade said firmly, correcting me.

I howled a sigh, then shook my head then turned to Zade. “You’re right…but I’ll be honest. I don’t give a shit about Eclain or his problems. The bastard tried to intimidate me. I’m not the one you try that shit with.”

“I hear you, Cypher,” Zade said, tone lackadaisical. “But I’m just letting you know that he’s valued here.”

“Meaning…”

“When he transferred from MCU, the EXiCON numbers were in the toilet…He changed that. EXiCON’s start hitting targets like there was no tomorrow.”

“I know he’s good at what he does, but I don’t care.”

“Alright,.” Zade said sighing.

“Just be careful is all I’m saying.”

“I will.”

“Good.”

I turned and began to make my way towards the Commissioner’s office, but stopped mid-air on the first step. I had an itch on my mind and I know I wouldn’t be able to function if I didn’t scratch it now.

“Zade…can yo--“

“Don’t say anything else, Cypher. I know what you’re thinking. Let it go, or it’ll come back to not just bite you in the ass. My ass is on the line as well. I literally got back on duty this week.

“This week? I’m hurt, Zade…you could’ve at least told me you were a whole Five days.”

“Like you really care, Cypher.”

“Double wounded!” I said, grasping my heart. “You know I do.”

“Whatever…if you do care, let me finish my burger and smoothie in peace.”

“Aye aye.”

◆

I made my way up to Commissioner’s office through the main elevator. The soothing music playing in the elevator made the journey up smooth and pleasant.

As the door for the elevator opened, a cold wind gust forced itself through, stiffening my fingertips. The corridor also gave a tranquil feeling. It was well lit, with matte stained tiles reflecting the light somberly. The walls had photos of abstract art, of varying shapes and sizes.

As I grew closer to the office, the sound of hands clicking against a keyboard became ever-present. A sweet aromatic scent fluttered down the corridor flooding into my nose, almost making me queasy. It smelled as if ice had been soaked in cherry, making it sharp but mellow.

I banked the corner, a small palm tree sat in the corner of the lobby with a coffee table in the middle. To my immediate right, was where the secretary sat at her desk. To her right, were eight chairs stapled against the wall in an L-like shape, along the wall.

The young secretary was blonde with black streaks and a dash of pink woven into the tip of her hair. She wore a dark purple skirt suit, her shoulders seemed broader than most, as if she lived for chest and shoulders. However, after a quick inspection, I deciphered she was wearing shoulder pads.

I tried to approach her desk, but she raised her hand halting me mid-step, then she pointed to the chair without breaking her concentration as she typed away at the keyboard.

I would’ve liked to say that her typing had slowed, but for the two minutes I sat there, it was a combination of quick burst typing and long-winded strokes.

After fifteen minutes, I eventually tuned out the typing, closed my eyes and tried to decipher why the hell Commissioner wanted to see me.

Nothing came. So I pursed my lips and began wondering about other things, like how in the hell did Zade find himself working in dispatch for the EXiCON department.

Gonzada Florence, formerly of the Major Crimes Unit specialises in investigating organised crime. Anyone who knew Bridge City knew how steep it was in crime. The Silent-Dragons, Teflon Mafia and Yardies.

He was working on a slew of robberies, vending machines. At the same time, I was tasked with finding some kids who were into heavy looting and vandalism throughout the Dumping District.

You figured that one trash was another man’s treasure. Well, All trash is deemed treasure, by who owns and ventures into the Dumping District.

Zade’s case was simple, catch who were stealing the vending machines. The only problem was, there was no pattern to follow. They boosted random convenience stores across the city.

For me though, I had caught a few kids stealing circuit boards from old vending machines and Zade caught wind of it. He interviewed the kids I caught and found out the kids were selling the circuit boards to some low-level criminals working for the Yardies.

The next step was catching them in the act, which he did. Zade staked out their base of operations, performed the sting perfectly and caught some of the Yardies in the act of changing out the new circuit boards for old ones, practically making them new with a moded firmware patch.

It was quite ingenious actually. They sold these rebranded vending machines for half the price of a new one and made a killing.

After a good prattling on the keyboard for an entire half an hour, the secretary finally stopped and released a sigh. She didn’t eye me. She got up from her desk, knocked on the commissioner’s door and entered after typing in the passcode. She returned in two seconds with a smile on her face. “The commissioner will see you now, Mr Cypher,” the girl said.

I pushed myself up and headed into the office. The door clicked behind me and another door appeared in front of me. A flash of yellow light pulsed, blinding me momentarily in my natural eye.

As the haze in my gaze finally dissipated, a mechanical hiss roared in front of me, then a slashing sound followed, making the secondary door open with omnibus vigour.

As I stood there, looking in front of me, traces of wood began to trickle into my nose. It was dainty and strong. Mahogany. The whole office was littered with mahogany, the desk, chairs, coffee table, everything. It was hypnotic to see the brown hidden away in a metal city such as this. I felt jealous for a second, then remembered where I stood. The office of the most powerful law enforcement woman in the world, the commissioner of the Bridge City Law Enforcement Department.

The commissioner’s office wasn’t just one large room, but three floors connected by metal struts burrowing through each one of them. They were connected by a spiralling staircase that was painted silver, making it the ugliest thing amongst all the beautifully varnished wood.

The commissioner wasn’t here, though. Her desk was empty except for small stacks of paper lying in rows of three. She had a cricket ball encased in a transparent cube with a signature written in white.

The two chairs in front of her desk were cushioned in maroon tapestry with gold thread sown in intricately making it seem textile-like.

On the far right of the room was a sofa with a coffee table attached at the end. If there were anything that looked out of place, besides that staircase, it was definitely that sofa.

I still decided that was the best place for me, so I stalked myself over there and huddled myself as comfortably as possible. As I sat there, I looked up at the second floor noting the tranquillity that smothered the room.

The walls had ridges with white tiles in between. After staring at them for a few seconds, my curiosity struck and I zoomed in on them with my cybernetic eye.

There was a sombre illumination to these tiles, which held a humble glow. The aura from that light was what filled the room with tranquillity. A staple concept I’d heard of, but had never seen till now.

As I peered up I saw the opposing contrast that embellished the room on the second floor. A War Room. It was an operations planning room basically, but calling it a War Room just sounded cooler.

It was enclosed in glass, which was, more than likely, soundproof, and probably utilised jamming technology. I could see a table projecting a pulsing blue light hologram of Bridge City in its entirety rotating slowly in an anticlockwise motion.

The third floor, though, was enshrouded in a frosted glass with the spiral case puncturing through the bottom of the floor. I let my imagination run and the only rational thoughts that came to me were Lab…torture chamber…pleasure chamber…maybe? Anything’s possible these days.

I held my gaze for a bit but nothing but bad thoughts came to mind. But when I finally pushed the inquisition from my mind, A bellowing groan of compressed air hissed from the bottom of the staircase. The commissioner slowly made her way down the stairs.

Commissioner Hexan wore a black uniform with multiple badges stitched onto the breast chest section of her jacket. The skirt uniform had a long red strip going down the sides. The most endearing thing about her was the blue visors she wore to cover her eyes completely.

As she came down the stairs, heels clopping against the steel frame staircase, frost trailed behind her making her entrance seem grandiose and quite flashy. I wanted nothing more than to chuckle seeing such an entrance first hand.

She found her way to her desk, pulled her chair back and fitted herself in like a glove. She didn’t remove the visors, and I could still see the frost coming off the sides of them.

I fought hard, but my lips betrayed me and I released a snicker.

I knew I had enraged the woman, based on the line her lips drew.

“You’re not only Late…but rude and uncouth. The rumours about you seem to be true,” she said. The steam wafted from her blue lipstick lips.

“Hardly, Commissioner, I am what I am.”

“And what is that exactly, EXiCON Cypher?”

“A mercenary.”

“Humph…at least you’re honest.”

“I try to be…in most circumstances.”

“Interesting, well I’ll tell you now, this is the time for you to be honest because I have some questions about how you’ve handled yourself with case officers.”

Really? I get called up here, to one of the most powerful members of the Antillean Federation to answer for a cheap shot punch to an asshole detective? Really?

“I believe I’ve handled myself as best as I could, regardless of anything said or unsaid regarding case officers within the EXiCON department.”

“Oh, really?… Do tell, I have a report here saying you punched Lieutenant Eclain in the face, then snapped off his cybernetic wrist.”

“That’s not entirely true, Ms Hexan.”