Content warning:

I was increasingly thinking my choice of somewhere to park my transit pod was a bad idea as I walked alone through the dark alleyway from the kink club to where my pod was parked. It was always a balancing act, park somewhere with lots of people about and I’d get abused and shouted at by passers-by for crossdressing in public or park some quiet and risk getting attacked or something worse. I was halfway down the alley when 3 men walked down the alley from the opposite direction. Don’t make eye contact and keep your head down, I told myself. As I walked past the group the man in the front grabbed me and pushed me to the wall. “What have we here then?” he said.

I tried to struggle but he was far too strong. There was nothing I could do to escape from his clutches. This is how my life ends I thought but at that moment out of the corner of my eye, I saw a woman dressed in leather appear behind me. She shouted, “Leave her alone!”. “His is not a woman just a fucking tran...” one of the men said before collapsing on the ground his body spasming from the barb fired from the woman’s stun pistol. “Who wants to be next!” Said the Woman. “Fuck this shit! Let’s get out of here.” said one of the other men and they both ran off. “Are you ok?” said the woman as she placed her stun pistol in a concealed holster in her jacket.

“I’m a bit shaken up, but no broken bones or anything,” I replied.

“Want me to walk you to your transit pod?”

“Yes, I’d like that. Who are you?”

“A friend.”

I wondered what she meant with that reply, but I was too stressed and exhausted to even think about it.  When I finally made my way safely to my transit pod and punched in the address for home.  I must be more careful next time I’m out. I could have ended up in hospital tonight or worse I. I felt sick and was still shaking as the pod took me through the deserted streets of the city.  I wondered who the mysterious woman was as I drifted in and out of consciousness.

---

It was about 3am when I finally sneaked back into my apartment. It was a modest apartment in a quiet area. I liked the area as it was residential and quiet enough that no one would be around this time of the day to see what I was wearing.  When I made it to my bedroom, I threw off my clothes and got into bed.

I woke up late the next morning. After last night I was glad it was Saturday and I didn’t have to worry about work.  I brought up the news on my datapad.  The news was the usual opinion pieces about the dangers of LGBT people, which made my heart sink. I hated living on this planet with this horrible right-wing government and transphobic press but with my qualifications, there was no realistic chance of affording passage on a starship anywhere else.

While I was reading the news, I heard banging on my front door followed by someone shouting “Police! Open up!”. What now, I thought as I made my way to the door and saw what was going on.

I opened the door to a man dressed in a black suit, I also saw two police vehicles outside the apartment block from the complex's balcony with their lights on and police officers walking around bored. 

“I’m Inspector Stephenson from his majesty's bureau of special investigations. Can I come in to talk to you about last night?” said the man. It did not sound like had much choice in the matter, so I let him in. 

I gestured to a chair and said, “Take a seat”. 

“Thank you.” replied Inspector Stephenson as he sat down. 

Why is the bureau interested in a thug getting shot with a stun pistol in an alleyway? I thought. 

The inspector brought out a datapad with a woman's image on it.

“Have you ever seen this woman before? She’s wanted for the assault of a man in an alleyway last night,” he said. I instantly recognised the woman it. It was the woman from last night. 

“I don’t recognise her.” I lied. There was no way I was going to report the woman who saved me last night.

“Are you sure? She was seen in the area about the same time you were seen on CCTV leaving a nearby nightclub.”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Well if something jobs your memory let us know. She’s highly dangerous and withholding information about a known criminal is a serious offence.” He said and with that, I heard the notification beep on my datapad as his contact details appeared on it.

“By the way while we are here.” He said. Oh, gods here it comes.

“What were you doing dressed like that?” He said bringing up the CCTV picture of me from last night.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t aware that cross-dressing is a crime.”

“Not yet.” He replied.

“Then I’m not sure how it’s any of your business and unless I’m being detained, I’d like you to leave,” I said back in response. I was glad right now that I’d read those ‘what to do when if you are stopped by the police’ leaflets in my student days.  

“No, you are not being detained this time.” He said threateningly and with that, he left. I was shaking as I closed the door, WTF is going on and why am I involved in it, I thought. This weekend is going from bad to worse I thought. A few moments later I heard the message notification sound again from my datapad. What now, I thought as I opened the message:

Alice: Hi, I’m the woman who saved you from those thugs last night. If you want answers meet me in the park around the corner from your apartment in 5 minutes.

Who is this person, how does she have my contact details and how does she know where I live? There were so many red flags about this, but I needed answers. I got dressed and made my way to the park.