Lithium City Midnight (Prologue)

         A gust of wind picked up, whistling down the adjacent alley and out into the street, washing over Marshall Kairo's form.  He shivered and pulled his duster a bit closer to him.  The smooth edges of the pistol under his arm press against his torso, but he was more than willing to bear the slight discomfort in favor of having the trusty weapon close at hand.
         Wispy clouds of vapor bellowed with each breath from a mouth surrounded by a day or two's worth of facial hair, the same two-day growth that Marshall was meticulous about keeping groomed and neat.  The light brown matched the perpetually unkempt mop on his head and the thick eyebrows that sat above ice blue eyes.  He was a classically handsome man in a rugged sense, with the occasional scar marring what might have otherwise been a tripvid-worthy face.
         His physique, under the thin form-fitting armor he wore under his clothing, was lithe as opposed to muscular, it was the form of a man who valued speed above raw power.  His armor was covered over by a pair of khaki slacks and a black shirt that would have looked right at home in any corporate boardroom in the city.  Leather straps crossed his chest, securing the pistol holster under his arm, while on his left shoulder sat a thin metallic pauldron that hugged his neck up to the base of the skull on that side.  The metal sloped and contoured to his body, not restricting the movement of his head, while the portion of the metallic peice that covered his shoulder was hidden under the light brown longcoat that he was wrapping himself in for warmth.
         "Goddamn Simterra... it's too goddamn cold,"  He mumbled.  "Freezing my ass off out here... Renbeck better show."
         A mechanical voice answered from a speaker mounted on the metal protrusion of the pauldron.  That was Zax, Kairo's personal digital assistant.  Integreated into the device, Zax had quite a bit of processing power, along will a full suite of utilities that could be chosen by the user.  Marshall had purchased the device secondhand, and was still getting used to it's synthetically emotional voice...not to mention manner.
         "My analysis of the Simterra system indicates that it is functioning properly, Mr. Kairo.  I remind you that it is meticulously programmed to mimic..."
         Marshall cut him off, staving off a clinical description of how the Simterra, Lithium City's Weather Control Program, was governed by a well-programmed control mechanism to mimic normal Earth seasons and weather patterns within the protected dome.
         "Yes yes, programmed to mimic natural weather patterns, I know, I know... I just wish it wasn't so goddamn cold."  Another gust of wind picked up, causing Kairo to shiver again. 
         Zax's voice was unsympathetic.  "I fail to understand why you chose this spot for your meeting, Mr. Kairo, given your aversion to the weather.  My analysis suggests that Renbeck would have happily met you at an indoor location."
         Marshall shook his head, gesturing by force of habit despite the fact that Zax had no optical sensors and so could not see the action.  "I'm sure he would have loved to meet indoors... trapped me in a building..."  His head becomes still.  "Just becuase I'm getting good info from a guy doesn't mean I trust him."
         "Nothing in my analysis suggests that he would benefit from betraying you, Mr. Kairo.  You do not seem to have any value"
         That got a chuckle from Marshall.  "You're not developing a sense of humor on me, are you Zax?"
         "As you know, Mr. Kairo, I am unable to..."
         "Yes yes, I know, thank you Zax."
         He blew out a long breath before speaking again.  "I know there's nothing in the file to suggest a setup, but something about this just doesn't feel right... something's rotten."  He relaxed the grip on his coat enough to fish out a pack of cigarettes, from which he plucked one and clamped it between his lips.  The pack disappeard back into its pocket, replaced by a lighter which he brought up to the tip.  "My gut tells me I need to be careful"  He lit the cigarette and began to pocket the lighter as Zax protested.
         "Pardon me, Mr. Kairo, but my understanding of Anatomy and Physiology suggests that that would..."
         "Shut up, Zax."
         Zax's voice was silenced immediately by the command.
         Marshall took a long draw on the cigarette and blew out a cloud of smoke to mix with the cold air blowing throughout the city.  Another chill, and Marshall grimaced.  "It's gonna be a long night... I can just feel it."
         "Pardon me, Mr. Kairo, but the duration of the Simterra's nocturnal hours is governed by..."
         “Shut up.”