Standard Studio

The man threw his ill fit hat over his trench on the coat rack, loosened his choking leash, flopped on his back and turned on the holi projected from the ceiling above his bed. It was a very comfortable bed and a rather big one for a single Classification D Male. It was enormous in his standard 5x8m Classification D Studio. Most men used the loft space above the kitchen as the bedroom. But the Lieutenant preferred to fill the high ceiling in what would be the living space with the holi so he could lie on his back on his comfortable bed looking up.

Every Standard Studio in his complex had a sweeping view out the grand 5x5 Standard Shield Window. The Lieutenants window had an especially wonderful view of the sunset over Black Bay. From his lucky vantage at the 58th floor he could see above several other older Standard Housing Projects and the aesthetic cacophony of the Industries that fed the Black Bay. On the clearest of days he could see white crests of the Pacific Ocean.

But most days he found little reason to even glance at a sunset. Most days found heavy blue shades drawn over a Standard Shield window tuned 'OPAQUE". Tuned 'OPAQUE', the window let in no external light. The heavy blue shades only existed to hide the blackened window from staring back at him like the lid over an ominous eye.

But on the clearest of days the Lieutenant would tune his window to 'MAX LUX', pull the heavy shades back and stare out into sea, stare out as far as he could strain to see, as far away as he could fathom, as far away as his mind could carry. On the clearest of days he would pull back the lid on that ominous eye and fly. Fly far far away from his 5x8 Standard Studio, above the streets and the Beat, and the filth that obscured everything; the filth that obscured everything -even on the clearest of days.

Today was far from clear on the 58th floor of the Sunset Standard Living Complex. The Lieutenant was already flying but instinct still had him fumbling through the terrible tripe that Standard Optic fed the masses in the guise of entertainment. Instinct also tuned in The Vegas Sport. It was his favorite channel and one of the few that was also a Big Cities Circuit multicast. He used to gamble there quite a bit but had been reduced to an Accessibility Status of 'stranger'. Which allowed him no interactions with anyone during or before a live multicast, no gambling, no ability to suggest to anyone where they should place their wagers. Not only did this status apply with The Vegas Sport and affiliates but to every gambling multicast network available via Standard Optic Holi.

The Lieutenant had also been deprived of enough winnings to buy his own Classification C and enough for the deed two a condo with more than 2 meters of visibility on a night like this. His winnings earned him a massive investigation, which proved nothing, yet ended with him being assigned his Beat as an effort to politically put him in his place.

His bets and his advice had (or would have) cost a major gambling conglomerate 100s of millions. He had caught the earmarks of a fixed bet and tipped off half the people in his network. Every one of them

a busted broke Classification D with few to no privileges. Before the big tip he had already skimmed a couple million with well timed, well placed bets that were, to him, easy money. He even had to throw a few from time to time to keep up the statistical guise of luck and probability. The gambling conglomerates aren't intent upon paying out on a sure thing. Unless its their sure thing. And even then they don’t want to pay you for the sure thing.