THE MOMENT
"You're not modded at all?" Officer Springer asked his senior partner. The officers walked a patrol through the downtown area in the evening. It was a Monday night and the shops weren't as busy as the weekend. The few patrons moving between stores were obviously modded. Cyber enhancements were commonplace; but, it wasn't entirely unusual to meet someone without them. Something bothered Officer Springer about his partner and he couldn't put his finger on it. The question was the only thing that came out when he opened his mouth. Her record was even more impressive without any mods. Maybe it was her hair that left him uneasy. Bright pink wasn't a natural hair color, but hair dye didn't quite count as an enhancement. Or, maybe it was the white suit she wore instead of the uniform he wore.
"Never been curious," Officer Justice replied. "How about yours, how are they working for you?" She nodded at his cybernetic legs.
"Sometimes I forget they're there," Officer Springer answered. Then, he chuckled with a follow-up. "And sometimes, after a fun night, I forget where they are. It's a good thing I can track them," he laughed some more, and Officer Justice joined in with her own giggles. Then, she came to a stop at the corner. Officer Springer took a few steps onto the street before he noticed, then he returned to her at the curb. Though, he had the vague feeling that he'd done something wrong. Officer Justice's smile faded slightly and she tilted her head at him. The more he looked at her, the more he had the feeling of 'wrongness' that he couldn't explain.
"Not gonna stop for coffee?" she asked as she waved at the corner café.
"Nah," Officer Springer was already in the process of answering the question even as he considered what he was responding with. "I thought I'd try something different today; we always stop there...," he went quiet. This was his first night on patrol with his brand-new partner. Why did getting coffee feel like a habit he decided against this particular time?
"What's your favorite number?" Officer Justice asked.
"34!" Officer Springer's eyes opened wide with the question. He answered it as soon as she asked. It wasn't his answer to the question that surprised him most. But, as soon as he heard and answered, something was different about Officer Justice. He was finally able to identify what was wrong. She was his superior. She was a decorated officer with over two dozen convicted arrests just this year.
"You're just a teenager?" he asked her. Officer Justice didn't quite reach his shoulders and she looked young enough to still be in high school. His question was punctuated by a sudden shrill alarm coming from the coffee shop. An armed gunman dashed out and then across the street down the block. He made it to the middle of the street before Officer Springer went to follow.
"Let him go, this attempt already failed anyway...," Officer Justice yelled. Officer Springer was distracted enough to comply. He made his way back to Officer Justice.
"Huh?" he gave her a confused expression. She gestured at a black hole hovering in the air by them. A few pedestrians made their way around it without acknowledging the hole in reality.
"I'm sorry," Officer Justice shook her head with a shrug. "I'm not in a great mood and I don't feel like dealing with it too much right now. If you go through there, someone will get you up to speed with everything." Officer Springer stared into the black hole and saw nothing but darkness.
"I can trust you, right?" He was asking himself as much as the teenage officer.
"Yeah, c'mon," Officer Justice nodded and stepped into the portal. She disappeared as soon as she was through and Officer Springer followed her. He emerged into a large, gleaming white lobby. A row of teller windows took up one side of the room with guests sitting on white and red chairs on the other side. Officer Justice was returning to the spot where Officer Spring came out and she handed him a numbered ticket.
"Wait till they call your number and you'll get all your questions answered."
"All my questions...?" he chuckled as he shook his head. He knew he had several, possibly too many. "... I don't even know where to start...," he said.
"Oh, that's easy. When you get to talk to Mundo tell him you were an NPC that woke up, they'll take it from there."
"NPC...?" Officer Springer asked. He was new to the force and still relatively young. He enjoyed gaming from time to time and he knew what an NPC was. "...I'm an NPC??" He immediately began wondering about what that meant for his life. What that meant for the rest of the force. Or even the rest of the world. He felt some relief when Officer Justice shook her head on her way back through the portal; but, it was short-lived.
"Not anymore...," she said. "...Luckily, the system will just set up another rookie to get shot during the coffee shop robbery."