Eventually, I got to the police station. Almost immediately, I was met by a cop, who directed me to an office at the back of the building. There I met the old guy who had taken my phone.
“My phone, kind sir, if you please,” I said, holding out my hand.
“That is unimportant,” the man replied, rising to his feet. “Can I have the box?”
I pulled out the strange thingamajig that had caused me all the problems I had experienced that night. It was still glowing green, although the intensity of its luminescence was dimmer. “I’ll gladly exchange this for my phone,” I said.
“I fear your phone has become a thing of the past,” the man said, as he took the box and began observing it, most likely searching for blemishes or faults. “I was apprehended by some… unscrupulous folk, who took your phone. You may have to find one of them to ask for your phone.”
Ah well. And to think that I had actually saved money to buy that phone. I was still feeling dejected about losing such an important electronic device, when the old man said to me, “please place your hand on the box.”
It was at this point that I realized that only myself, the old man, and some cop in plain clothes were the people in the room. For a moment I hesitated, wondering whether to comply, although I didn’t wait long to hesitate. The old man had never threatened me, and that was most likely the pivotal reason that I could place my trusting the man on.
Stepping up, I placed my hand on the box. There was a click, and some panels on the box began to shift. Eventually, the panels shifted to reveal a slim metallic cuboid, which the old man took.
“When you threw the box at your attacker,” he said, putting the cuboid in his pocket, “the impact activated its imprinting protocols. Then you touched it, and your biometrics were imprinted on the box. In other words, the box will only respond to you. Congratulations. You’re a part of this story now.”
“Uh, what story?” I asked, feeling more and more confused. It was then the plain-clothes cop spoke. “We belong to a special task force designated to protect the interests of this country and its people. And permit me to say welcome to ‘the Order’.”
The Order. Oh great. My mama had always warned me about joining secret cults.
To be continued...
Thanks for coming!
That little boy,
