Markus Bones heard the notification and smiled faintly. Sherly led him to the space allocated for her team. At this moment, there were three officers sitting on different tables, one of them was writing reports on a computer and the other was probably sleeping with her head down on the desk. The last person was watching a video on his mobile, and this person was also the oldest one among them.
Sherly looked at them and clapped her hand as she said, "Guys, we have a newbie joining us. This is Markus Bones, he starts today, I will team him up with Liam. You can introduce yourself."
The three people shifted their focus immediately to Markus who took off his cap and placed it under his arm and said, "Hello, good morning to you all."
The girl among the three shrieked, alarming the entire floor, and she dashed up to Markus with a starving gaze. She stopped and looked at Sherly as she said, "Boss, can you pair him with me? I am tired of looking at Ayrton's face. Please, I will buy you lunch for two days."
Sherly sat down on her own desk and said, "You owe me ten for saving your ass from suspension. Get back to the desk and be honest for the next few days. You have given me enough headaches already."
The girl was deflated, and then she turned to look at Markus and said, "Handsome, I am Gemma Atlas, you can call me Gem, Gemmie, Darling, Love, anything."
She blew Markus a kiss, and the young man smiled faintly as he said, "As you say, Big Sister Gemma."
His words killed Gemma on the spot, and the two males burst out laughing. Gemma was frozen and she asked in a high pitch, "What did you call me?"
Sherly jumped in from the back, "The kid is twenty years old and straight out of the academy please mind your manners lest he sues you for workplace harassment."
Gemma and the two guys were shocked, they were looking at Markus's well built physique, but when they looked at his face, he indeed looked a bit too young.
The old man turned out to be Liam, full name Liam Joe Hargreeves, he was an older person who retired from the military and found a job in Civil Police force but due to his accumulated injuries he could not maintain the peak of his physical fitness and was limited to a Patrol Officer.
The person who was making a report was called, Ayrton D'costa, he was a veteran on the force, been on patrol for three years and was the most likely to get promoted this year.
Markus was paired with Liam, and after exchanging a few greetings, Sherly said, "Old Man, get going, the night team should be coming back from work, take charge."
Liam put his phone away and said, "Ok, Boss. See you at lunch."
The man turned to look at Markus and said, "Let's go kid."
Markus nodded and followed him outside. They met with the night team that was coming in at the reception and after the brief introduction, the people wished Markus good luck and Liam began to go through some clerical formalities, while Markus thought, 'System, bring up the attribute panel.'
'Ping: Yes, host.'
A holographic screen appeared before Markus.
Name: Markus Bones
Age: 20
Rank: Patrol Officer
STR: 9
STA: 9
INT: 9
Skill: Crime Scene Analysis (Beginner)
First-aid(Versed)
Martial Arts (Versed)
Talent: Quick Reflex
Free Skill Points: 0
Free Attribute Points: 0
Markus smiled faintly as he looked at the panel. He was sixteen when he unlocked the system, and his stats were anything but nice. Naturally, he was below average, and now after all the grinding in the past four years, he was above an average human, this gave him a sense of achievement.
Liam turned to look at Markus, and said, "Let's go, sign here and we are off."
That said, Markus signed his name in the register and left the station with Liam.
…
In the team office, Ayrton asked, "Boss, what is the story behind this kid? Isn't he a bit too young to join the force?"
Sherly nodded and said, "I was looking through his files just now, and what I found is nothing short of a movie material."
Gemma joked, "He does look like a movie star with those silver locks of his."
Sherly shook her head lightly and said, "He was born in this city, and his parents were teachers at the Western Central School. When he was six years old, they were killed before his eyes in a home invasion. The report says, Mrs. Gene Bones was stabbed thirty times in the abdomen, and Mr. Allan Bones died from repeated blunt impact to the skull, his cranium was shattered from four spots.
It was a hate crime, and treated as a homicide, the criminals were there students who were angry because they were punished for smoking. The four teenagers were given a maximum of ten years, but they got out after three years on parole because of 'good behavior', can you believe it?"
Gemma clicked her tongue and said, "Fucking juvenile laws."
Ayrton nodded, and said, "What about Markus then, what happened to him?"
Sherly said, "He faced PTSD for ten years, spent time in and out of foster homes till he was eighteen years old and joined the police academy. His records are crazy, his scores are consistently improving and in the last semester, he was at the top of his class, with distinction. He holds a bachelor degree in Criminal Psychology, trained in advanced weapons, and martial arts. From the remark of his instructor, Markus is super cop material."
Gemma chuckled and said, "Are you sure that instructor is not his relative or something?"
Sherly rolled her eyes and said, "The terminator is not related to anyone, that much is true."
Aryton sucked in a cold breath and remarked, "That old man never smiles, and is a nightmare for rookies, if he praised Markus, then it might hold some truth, let us see, how this guy is a supercop material."
The two ladies nodded.
…
The scene changed, Liam had been showing Markus the area that came under their jurisdiction. On the way, many people came to say hello to Liam while they scrutinized Markus. Liam did not say anything but Markus asked, "Are those people your sources?"
Liam was surprised and remarked, "I did not expect you to see that, how did you do it?"
Markus replied calmly, "Given the fact that they were smiling at you and also scrutinizing me, they were not normal people. The image of police in crest city is not amicable, there are four types of civilians around us, one are the normal people who steer clear at the sight of a cop, they do not want anything to do with us.
Second are the sources that are happy to see us, because when we need information, we give them something they want, be it money, favor, or free pass on some minor offense.
Third are the convicts who maintain vigilance and get alert as soon as they see cops.
Fourth is the mixed bunch, they are the sources of the criminals, or small time thugs, they are good on the surface and bad on the inside."
Liam was nodding the entire time, and then said, "I did not expect you to have such an understanding of humans. Well, what you said is very close to being the cardinal truth, but the connections between people are multi-faceted, so before you make any judgments, take your sweet time to analyze."
Markus was confused and Liam said, "Some people who came to greet me are the ones who received favor or help from me."
The young man understood that favors did not work one way but both. He nodded in understanding and they reached a shopping complex. Liam said, "This market complex is where we gather after shifts to chat and socialize."
Markus nodded and he wanted to ask something, when suddenly, they heard a loud cry, "Stop, thief!"
The two people turned their heads and they saw a young man wearing a hoodie running away after grabbing a handbag. Liam was surprised and yelled, "Fuck, daring to snatch bag so early."
Markus heard a notification, 'Ping: Solve ten cases and get a commendation: Best rookie. Reward: Skill Branches.'
The young man said, "I will give him a chase."
Liam wanted to turn the car around but he sensed a gust of wind beside him. He saw Markus was already ten meters away from the car, and he was accelerating after the thug. Liam raised his arm and pressed the button on the walkie strapped to his shoulder, "Dispatch, this is Unit 3, we have a 211 in progress at Wendy Shopping Complex. Officer in pursuit."
The operator on the other side replied, "Unit 3, copy, Please confirm your position."
Liam replied, "We are heading to the crossing on Sixth and Cram. The suspect is wearing a black hoodie, six feet tall."
The operator replied, "All units near Sixth and Cram, we have a 211 in progress, respond code 3. Unit 3…"
However, before the operator could say anything, Liam was shocked and he said, "Dispatch, this is Unit 3, we have the suspect immobilized. Will bring him in for processing, over."
The operator was surprised, and replied, "Alright, good work."
Liam just saw Markus engage in close combat with the thug and take him down bare handed. He hurriedly got out of the car, and approached them when he heard Markus reading the civil rights, while cuffing the guy, "You have the right to remain silent, all and everything that you say can be and will be used against you in the court of law. You have the right to a lawyer, if you cannot afford one, the state will provide for you."
Liam was surprised by the calm look on Markus's face and the surrounding people were starting to gather. Markus stood up and yanked the man up from the ground. He looked at Liam and said, "Sir, the bag."
Liam woke up from the daze and picked up the bag. A young lady rushed over, saying, "That's my bag."
Liam shook his head and said, "Young lady, you can take it after you have recorded your statement in the station."
The girl nodded and then said, "Thank you. I will go right away."
Markus looked around and said, "Excuse me, clear the way please."
The crowd moved away and Markus dragged the thug to the back of the police car they had and stowed the guy inside. Liam also came over after asking if anyone else was hurt. He looked at Markus, and patted his shoulder and said, "Good job."
Markus smiled as he heard, 'Ping: Good Job, 1/10'