DRAGON1 "My god." said Maxine Chalmers, her mouth agape at what she saw out the window of the air bus. She had seen pictures of Chicago before, but they didn't do the city justice. They were still at a thousand feet, and the traffic around the airbus was a study in chaos. Cars whipped past them to both sides, their little hover engines buzzing like motorcycles. Semi trucks with trailers in tow roared past them and disappeared into the surrounding clouds. If it was like this at a thousand feet, what was it like on the ground?
A quick moving red and white dot caught Maxine's eye, and as it got closer, she recognized it as a human form. The bold red "W" on the man's chest got instant attention from everyone on the bus, and a moment later, there were people shoving against her, trying to get a better look.
"Oh, my God!" squealed a teen age girl. "It's Mr. Wonderful." "Oooooh"s and "aaaaaaahhhh"s came from the people gathered in the aisle behind Maxine. Several cameras flashed, and a wife kept asking her camcorder toting husband, "Are you getting this, honey? Are you getting this?"
The passengers of the air bus waved frantically as he flew closer, and as he flew past the bus, he threw them a wave back. His grin was wide, and his teeth were perfect.
"What the hell kind of name is "Mr. Wonderful"?" Maxine asked herself.
An older woman sitting nearby said, "Mind your tongue, Miss. That there is the Guardian of Chicago."
"I'm sorry." said Maxine. "I'm new in town." She could feel her green skin darkening with a blush.
"Figures. You sound like a damn hick."
"I'm from Texas." said Maxine.
The woman rolled her eyes and said, "Foreigners."
The way the fin on Maxine's head was positioned could tell you a great deal about her emotions, and right now, it was threatening to stand up and throw off the backwards baseball cap that was covering it. It was the equivalent of hackles on a dog. She took a deep breath, tried to relax, and held the bill of her hat against the base of her neck. That's right, she thought, keep it covered. No reason to attract yourself any unwanted attention here on this bus.
The bus began to descend down through the clouds. They were moving past the tops of skyscrapers now, and to Maxine's surprise, the traffic was actually thinning out a little. A Freak that looked a little like a gecko was clinging to the side of one of the buildings. His toes each had a suction cups shaped appendage that clung easily to the glass. He held a bucket of soapy water in one hand and and squeegee in the other, which he was using to clean the windows.
Ahead of them, Maxine could see the sign for the Greydog bus depot. She pulled the bag with her few belongings in it out from under the seat and pulled the strap up over her shoulder. When the bus had docked, the passengers were allowed to disembark. Maxine filed out with them, and then made her way to the immigration center. She gave the clerk there her papers, and he looked them over.
"Do you have a place to stay tonight, Miss Chalmers? There is a hotel across the street if you need it." he asked her. He grabbed a stamp and began pounding it through her stack of papers.
"I'm going to the Police Academy." she said.
"Very good." he said and handed her papers back to her. "Welcome to Chicago. Next!"