I had little understanding of what’s happening.

The operatives and I sat next to the giant table. Thousand Cuts was confident, Donovan sat unwavering, and Lyle as white as a ghost. Lorry gave a brief report.

Every person knew what was happening. I only kept track by word of mouth. The operatives had little expectations for me to understand, I knew that. Being a part of an ingroup was what I hoped for.

But, I was an outsider looking in.

I planned on having Donovan give me a low-down after.

My ears spun to the bits I understood. Thousand Cuts infiltrated the Civilian Guards and acted corrupt. Donovan was going to a party next month. Dolores spoke the details with confidence.

She looked at the operatives. Dolores asked Donovan to take the stand.

“I’ll be glad to,” he said. “Make sure that Lyle feels some hospitality for me,” Donovan patted Lyle’ shoulder.

Lyle flinched. Donovan and Dolores changed seats.

“You got some big balls you got back there,” she said to Lyle. “Perhaps a rubber band will fix that, collar-boy.”

The silver-eyed man cleared his throat, “I spoke with the Department of Propaganda. Dolores and I looked at the data. Our approval rating is at a recent low. I speak for the empire, there must be changes. We are patrolling the streets, indefinitely; doing jobs meant for guards. Try and build a sense of community with the residents.

Audible groans were heard from the operatives.

Donovan quieted them with a hand, “I know, but it’s for the…”

“Dammmn iiiiiiit!” an operative screamed.

A chair flew towards a wall. It smashed into little pieces.

“Wade, that’s the 3rd chair you broke this year,” Donovan said with a straight face. “That wood was of good, mahogany wood. That’s coming out of your pay.” My mentor cleared his throat, “Unless any of you have any objections, I can talk in detail.”

Donovan went through the plan as I listened in.

— — —

The devil was in the details.

Donovan’s plan was simple. The objective was to go around Snakewater. The operatives were charming guards, and locals alike. Maybe beat up some small-time gangs if they were daring enough.

The difficult part came in the specifics. on how to go about achieving that goal. I wasn’t knowledgeable enough in telling logistics. I had no say in the matter.

I went into the locker room where all the other operatives were dressing and preparing for the patrol outside.

Which left my predicament.

I had my uniform on, yet there was one piece that completed the gear as a whole. Donovan carried that last piece. Donovan held a helmet that matched the armor and duster.

My ears twitched as my eyes scanned the headgear. The helmet went above my head. I jerked backwards to prevent the headgear from going on my head, to my ears.

My tail twitched as my ears flattened, “Nya! I don’t want to wear the helmet! You can’t make me!”

“Mekiko, this is for your own protection,” Donovan said. “I promise that I won’t hurt you, so stop squirming. We have to talk through this. Tell me what’s getting you worked up,” he pulled the helmet down.

My tail raised, “I’m not getting worked up!”

“You already meowed 4 times, Mekiko.”

“Well… My problem is that blasted hunk-of-metal. It would pinch my head. Who can make a helmet so tight anyway? Where’s the savoir faire? The tact? It’s like the makers are out to get me. Can I have some dignity around here?”

“I believe you are not telling the whole truth. When you were saying your grievance lied in your head, I believe you got the location wrong. Perhaps you meant up above?”

A tremor resounded in my ears. I hated when Donovan teased me like this.

I pouted, “Fine, I don’t want my ears getting covered! Are you proud of yourself?”

“Look, Mekiko,” he patted my shoulder. “I understand having these expectations thrust upon you is hard. Having so much pressure to perform, but this helmet is for your own protection.

I paused, stared blankly into space; yet broke himself out of his lull.

“Sorry Mekiko,” he said. “I just don’t want you getting a bullet to the brain. That alloy can protect so much. The discomfort is temporary, bare with it. The irritation will not last.”

“But the helmet will be touching my ears, Nya!~”

“Stop meowing and put on the helmet.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

“–Nya!~ Nooo!” I pushed my mentor the best I could.

I wore no headgear in the end. I got my way from my constant meowing and bagging. I definitely lost some of my dignity pleading with Donovan.

Other operatives had their helmets on while I was the person without. They had amazing visors that come with the gear. I was missing out. I let out an eternal sigh.

The operatives and I waited for Lorry. We were assigned groups for patrolling target areas.

I half-expected that Thousand Cuts was pairing with me today. The helmet’s obfuscation made telling people apart difficult.

Lorry glanced at her clipboard, “Okay, the catboy is up next.”

She called for me, so I got up. She scanned for my headgear, or what lack there was. She asked where my helmet was.

“I… I prefer not talking about it,” I lowered my head.

Lorry studied my ears, “unstandable,” she dropped her questioning.

She knew the reason alright.

“Disregarding your fashion sense, I picked out a place for you to patrol,” Lorry said. “You are patrolling inside Snakewater, Hognose Street specifically.”

“Snakewater? You’re assigning me to the slums? I just started, and you want me swimming into the deep end?”

“Unless you count an area that is beside Banana Road dangerous. You’re going to the better part of Snakewater. I have enough faith that nothing can pose any meaningful threat. Besides, you have a teammate protecting you, remember?”

“You never mentioned who the aforementioned partner was,” I replied.

“Let’s say that you are going to know that person well, intimately.”

Please don’t be Thousand Cuts, Please don’t be her; I crossed my fingers. Anyone else was better.

“In fact, you know them quite well,” her words made me pale. “Hey, you! Quit dallying and come over here, you know who you are!” She grunted.

“Yes, maam,” my hope dropped when I heard his voice.

While the helmet made identifying hard, I knew at first glance.

I take what I pleaded back. Please pair me up with Thousand Cuts. I go as far as meowing for her, please not him!

I recognized that collar anywhere. A bright red that stuck out on his uniform. The tag attached to the collar stated the home, name, and owner. Dolores and Donovan went the extra mile for authenticity.

“Yeah, that’s right, You are chaperoning Lyle for today,” Lorry said.

I observed Lyle. He lowered his head. His behavior wasn’t out of choice, but from external pressure. He was perfectly docile.

“Uh. Lorry, a moment of your time.” I tugged her duster. “Can we speak alone?”

“Sure, Catboy, anything for you,” she said in a soft voice. “You, collar-boy, stand here!” she demanded. She shut the door, leaving only me and her on the outside. The area was isolated from guards and operatives. Alone, she continued, “I know what’s on your mind. I can only say, your worries are misplaced.

“You know what Lyle did to me. I can’t be friends with a.. With him. He went over the line. I am more than happy with Thousand Cuts.”

I remembered every detail. The way he pulled my ears, how he belittled me. There was no going back.

“Aren’t you so energetic to be with her?” she asked.

“I’m not… No, don’t change the subject. Why is he with me?” I shifted my head.

“Don’t worry your head. Let’s say he had correctional behavior the last time he met you.”

“Correctional behavior? What did you do to him?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” She suppressed a laugh.

Was Lyle the same person? Was he still the same threat? What did she do to him? Questions ran through my mind. Not one I wished to know the answer to. Donovan was right about her. My comfort slipped away from her.

I kept my ears from flattening, “I wouldn’t like to know, Dolores. I’m not in the mood anymore.”

“You’re still skeptical?” She swung the door wide open. “Hey, collar-boy, you have something to say?”

Lyle had permission to speak, “no, I have nothing of importance.”

“Alright, anything you have to say to the catboy specially?” She asked specifically.

“I made a major lapse in my judgment. I let my anger get a hold of me. What I did was reprehensible. I swear in my heart that I will never make the same mistake again.”

“Because that will be the only mistake that you’ll ever make,” Lorry warned. “Mekiko, do you see now? He has no choice, he must be on good terms with you.”

I refused to respond.

“Mekiko,” She inched me closer. “If Lyle ever lays a finger on you; never, ‘and I mean never’ hesitate to call me. “I’ll make sure he suffers for his actions,” she clapped, Lyle winced. “Okay! I put some supplies into that locker of yours. You know how to use morse code, right?”

“Yeah, Donovan taught me enough,” I replied.

I opened the locker and spotted a flask, rations, two maps; and some flairs. The provisions went into my duster. That’s when I noticed an unusual device. It came with a dial, buttons and an antenna.

“I slipped in something special.” Dolores responded. “The device is only the latest in high-end technology; A portable transceiver. This baby can send and receive Morse code from across the city. A marvel of technology it is.

“Is that so?” I replied.

“You seem unimpressed, catboy.”

Of course, this is just a worse pager,”I don’t see how the transceiver is necessary. Why not meet in person instead of relying on beeps?”

“For a lot of reasons. Your actions require immediate attention when out in the field. Like telling coordinates for backup, I gave you a map for a reason.

I checked both of the maps. The first map was the official map for Newcity. It contained a list of street names along with buildings, parks, and waterways. The entire section of Snakewater was blank.

Which left me to the other map which was more of a diagram. The drawings were more crude, yet showed Snakewater in full view. Despite the rudimentary drawing, the diagram had way more detail. I noticed several minute details with Mamba Market alone. Every ride in the amusement park was there, including Falcon’s Reach. The map was hand-drawn.

Lorry pointed at the map, “we had outsider informants cartograph this map recently. The map lacks polish, but the information is solid. See the color-coding? It highlights the dangerous areas and places known for high gang activity.”

“I can see that all of Iron Graveyard is colored red, which is so close to Snakewater,” I rested my finger on the parchment.

“Exactly, Hognose street has none of the dangerous zones.”

“Yeah, I see,” I checked.

“You have everything to set off. Remember to use that device and report for every noticeable development. Dispatch will respond shortly. Always keep track of coordinates, and I mean always. You understand me?”

“Crystal,” I folded the maps back into my duster. “I’ll keep your advice in the back of my mind. Thank you, Lorry. I should be leaving. You know, to Snakewater.”

“Mekiko, one more thing.”

“Hmm?”

“Be safe out there.”