Chapter 265: Chapter 265: Sapphire and Antiseptic
Alexander opened his eyes, the blinding white light of the ceiling hitting his vision. He didn’t feel any pain; the hospital’s high-tier medical technology had neutralized the trauma, leaving his body clean of scars or marks, though a dull stiffness remained in his thigh and shoulder.
Standing at the foot of the bed was the doctor, her ivory skin contrasting sharply with her sapphire-blue hair and striking violet eyes.
"It seems you really enjoy visiting me, Mr. Alexander," said the doctor, a faint, teasing smile playing on her lips as she checked her digital chart.
Alexander let out a dry chuckle. "Trust me, doc, I didn’t have a choice. It was a system override. An order I couldn’t avoid."
"I heard it was an slaughterhouse out there," she said, stepping closer to adjust his IV. "The battle was intense."
"I didn’t even make it to the central zone," said Alexander, his voice flat. "The periphery was enough to put me down. I don’t even want to imagine what it looked like at the center of the conflict."
"Well, you are lucky the technology here is miraculous," she said, leaning over him to inspect his collarbone. Her face was only a few inches away, her violet eyes locked onto his. "A normal man would be dead, but you don’t even have a scratch left. You’re a very interesting specimen, Alexander."
"Are you flirting with me, doc?" asked Alexander, a smirk cutting through his fatigue. "Because I usually prefer a dinner first."
The doctor let out a soft laugh, her cool fingers lightly brushing against his jawline before she stepped back, arching an eyebrow.
"Don’t flatter yourself, handsome. I see body configurations like yours every day," she said with a playful wink. "Besides, I prefer my men to have better reaction times than getting hit by a truck."
"Ouch," said Alexander. "That hurt more than the bullets."
"Good, then you’re fine," she said, her tone shifting back to her sharp, professional self as she tapped her tablet. "Your regeneration is done, and I need the bed space for the agents who actually survived the epicenter. You’re officially discharged. Try not to come back next week."
She turned on her heel and walked out of the room. Alexander shook his head, swung his legs over the edge of the bed, and stood up, ready to leave.
His clothes and personal belongings were stacked on the side table, just like every other time he ended up here. Alexander got out of bed, changed back into his gear, and pulled out his phone. The digital clock showed it was late into the night.
"Well, at least I wasn’t out for too long," murmured Alexander, sliding the device into his pocket.
He walked out of the recovery room and stepped into the main hall. The medical center was buzzing with activity. A group of internal TMC supervisors had set up makeshift desks right in the middle of the corridor, actively sorting through documents and interviewing the surviving field agents who sat lined up against the wall.
The moment Alexander emerged, one of the evaluators caught his eye and signaled for him to approach.
"Mr. Alexander, please take a seat," said the supervisor, sliding a stack of official forms across the table the moment Alexander sat down. "First of all, TMC appreciates your immediate response to the high-level emergency broadcast. Since this was classified as an extraordinary tactical operation, standard field parameters do not apply."
"I noticed," said Alexander, leaning back into the chair.
"Because of the extreme volatility of the conflict, the command infrastructure has approved several performance bonuses," continued the supervisor, pointing a pen at the breakdown on the sheet. "The ballistic logs confirm you eliminated two high-tier operatives belonging to Big Black’s faction. Since those individuals were classified as elite hostiles, their bounties have been multiplied. Your total operational reward sits at ten million dollars."
Alexander raised an eyebrow, staying quiet as the man tapped a second document.
"Furthermore, regarding your equipment and the total destruction of your personal vehicle during the crossfire, the standard TMC premium insurance clause has been triggered," said the supervisor. "That adds another ten million dollars to cover hardware losses. A total of twenty million will hit your encrypted account within the next five minutes. We just need your biometric signature here to close the file."
A wave of relief washed over Alexander. His finances had been thin after his recent weapon purchases, and losing the Tahoe along with whatever gear was left inside the cabin had essentially put him back at zero. But twenty million dollars was more than enough to wipe out his losses and leave him with a surplus.
Alexander pressed his thumb onto the digital scanner, the machine flashing green with a soft chime.
"Everything is locked in," said the supervisor, standing up and offering a brief, professional nod. "Thank you again for your service to the network, Agent. You are free to go."
Alexander pushed open the glass doors and stepped out into the cool night air. Standing right by the curb was Marcus, leaning against the hood of his matte-black Hellcat with a cigarette dangling from his lips.
The moment Marcus saw him walking out intact, he threw his arms wide and stepped forward, giving Alexander a welcoming hug.
"Damn, man, I heard it was an meat grinder out there," said Marcus, pulling back and clapping him on the good shoulder. "I’m sorry I wasn’t there to back you up, but I’m glad you’re still breathing."
"You have all the luck, Marcus," said Alexander, a dry smirk touching his lips as he stretched his neck. "You dodged a bullet today."
"Trust me, nothing is ever what it seems in this city," said Marcus, tossing the cigarette onto the pavement and crushing it with his boot. "But hey, you’re out, and you look fine. Come on, climb in. I’ll tell you something fun on the way."
Alexander climbed into the passenger seat, the door shutting with a solid thud. Marcus slid behind the wheel, engaged the transmission, and mashed the throttle. The Hellcat’s supercharger let out a metallic scream as the rear tires lit up, launching them out of the medical center’s lot and disappearing into the dark city streets.
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