The novel “Metropolitan” by Walter Jon Williams was published for the first time in 1995.

Aiah is a low-ranking employee of the Plasma Authority who works in the metropolis of Jaspeer. During an emergency intervention following the appearance of a mysterious burning woman who causes damage to several city blocks, Aiah discovers a large source of plasma and realizes that the mysterious woman tapped it directly and ended up killing herself after damaging the area. She’s supposed to report the source location but she decides to keep the information to herself.

In secret, Aiah turns to Metropolitan Constantine, a politician in exile after his political enemies managed to oust him from positions of power in their metropolis. Aiah aims to get a hefty sum in exchange for the secret of the plasma source but the woman ends up entangled in Constantine’s political intrigues.