The World After The End

The Bazar, the most miserable sector in the city. It was one of the first sectors created, but with the city growing larger and larger, it slowly became a sinkhole for the unfortunate. Laws and morale don exist there. The whole sector became a large bazaar where you can find everything – scraps, food, electronics, drugs, fake IDs. You can find everything you want in the Bazar if you have the right connections. A forsaken neighborhood of the city, yet the liveliest.

In an alley between two apartment buildings a neon sign ”hideOut ” was glowing above a bar. But unlike the one Arthur first entered, this one was full of people who drank, laughed, fought, and danced. Once this was a link cafe, now, a place for those who want to escape life. Ironically, the place was teeming with it. While everyone was relaxing at the bar, no one paid attention to a room on the door of which was written ”Virtual Meeting ”. One of the chairs plummeted and when it came back up, Arthur was sitting on it. He went to the bartender and sat on one of the bar stools.

– Morning Hue.

– Well if it isn the tiny fussy teen.

– Sure fat guy, just give me the usual.

– You should stop acting so tough kid. You are one punch away from your grave. – Hue said while laughing. Even if it was said as a joke, it wasn far from the truth. Hue was a big, chubby guy in his forties who was the owner of the bar. He didn have much hair and his face was round but had a thick mustache covering his mouth. Hue was always smiling quietly behind the bar, but when he was given the right to speak, he wouldn stop all day.

– Just give me what I want.

Hue left a glass full of orange juice and a key in front of Arthur. The boy quickly drank at once the glass, took the key, and went outside. The two buildings were very tall, probably around thirty-five floors tall. There were wooden bridges from one terrace to another, connecting the two buildings. On them, people walked, carried things, and kids played as if they weren 100 meters above the ground. The alley looked like a giant web full of tiny people moving from one side to the other. Arthur took a deep breath and felt the smell of the many freshly washed clothes spread out on the terraces(to be precise the washing powder, because people here washed their clothes 3 times a day to get rid of the stench of the Bazar), and the stews being cooked by the childrens mothers. Next to the bar was the entrance of the building. Arthur went inside and got on the elevator to the fourteenth floor. Then he went to the apartment with the doors initials M-14. He took out the key that Hue gave him and opened the door. It was a one-room apartment. The room was full of electronics, scraps, gadgets, and pizza. At the center of the room was a giant table, which Arthur used as a workbench. He had big french windows covering the whole wall to the terrace, but because of the other building not much light was coming in and if it did, it was just enough so you can see what was going on. Next to the table was a large sofa with its back towards it, facing a TV mounted on the wall in front of it. There was a desk with a PC close to the front door and next to it was something like a small kitchen. A perfect place for a fussy teenager.

Arthur threw his bag on the couch and started gathering some things he had made from electronics he found in the trash. The boy was gifted enough to create anything he wanted with his hands and imagination, what he touched he turned into magic. In fact, his inventions were the only fine-looking things in his room, everything else was a total mess. He grabbed ten small black devices in the form of a coin and put them in his bag. Arthur turned on his PC and opened an app called ”hideOut ”. While loading he continued to pack his things.

*Its eleven. I have an hour to get to the bus station if I want to finish my work, otherwise, I won have an opportunity like this again. Like I have a choice…haha. I must go to this skyscraper.*

Arthur took his bag, grabbed a slice of leftover pizza, and went out. The room was lonely again, the only thing alive was the monitor of the computer with the open app:

ACCOUNT: ShiruEto

Rank: 1

Completed TDRs: 1073

Identity: Unknown

The bar was empty now, only Hue was in it reading a book in pure silence.

– Where is all the fun? – Arthur asked breathlessly. He just ran to the bar to be in time for the trip.

– People here have jobs too, you know.

– Well I have to go to do my job too.

– Oh, you are leaving so soon? Why bother coming here anyway? – Hue closed the book he was reading – Don tell me the reason is a lady.

– Go to hell. I came here because I have a task to do today, a rather dangerous one too. Not to look at your stupid face.

– Oh so that is why you were here. – Hue suddenly looked serious, his casual smile gone, his face showing concern – This business you put yourself into is going to turn your life upside down one day boy. I know you have the guts, but please try doing something different, you and your young goddamn spirit for adventures.

– You know I can . This is who I am. – Arthur said smilingly – Anyway, here is the key to the apartment. The place is a total mess, maybe I should start cleaning it from time to time, what do you think?

– Sure, only from time to time. – Hue laughed and slowly started to regain his old look – Try washing your hair too.

– Whatever, old man.

Children in the cities are separated from their parents from around the age of six. They see each other only on special occasions, such as holidays. Parents are required to leave their current living space and the family regulation agencies transfer them to a bit more luxurious sector to live in without any expenses. The child goes to live in the dorm of the school he studies, so that way they become independent from an early age. Arthurs parents are the perfect example of the norm of the city – not much money, living in a moderate space, and having only one child which they see only once a year. Arthur hated his parents for following the system so blindly, not caring for his feelings. The thought of being left alone by the closest people to you, and realizing that you are not valuable to anyone in any form was what made Arthur so arrogant, so defensive, not letting anyone get close to him. You would think he is an outsider, but he is not, actually, quite the opposite. He was popular, he had friends, and he had what it takes to live normally or even higher up in the system. But he never considered anyone close, not sharing anything about himself, he just thought of everyone as good acquaintances. His hatred towards the system was incomparable. The only person close to Arthur was Hue. He was like a father to him, an idol.

– Ive got to go now Hue. See you later.

Arthur went into the room with the sign ”Virtual Meeting ” and soon after, he was gone.

– This kid will make me go crazy. If he keeps doing these jobs soon he is going to end up like me – another slave of the system. – Hue said to himself and continued reading the book in the empty pub.

*I have everything I need. Now, the fun part begins.*

Arthur looked at his watch and it showed eleven fifty – ten minutes to the start of the trip to the biggest skyscraper in the city – SaiNDai. He was already on the bus waiting.

After an hour of driving, the bus finally stopped in the center of the city. Arthur and his classmates got out of the bus and looked around. They were surrounded by gigantic skyscrapers, so tall you can see their end, playing different advertisements on enormous monitors built in their windows. Many cars went by so fast you couldn even tell what their color was. On the sidewalk were hoards of people in expensive suites, only watching their phones and paying no attention to their surroundings. The center was so full of life, that people from the more moderate sectors, like Arthur, felt dizzy and lost in this huge space.

After a short walk, the school group was in front of SaiNDai. The building was like any other building, with only windows visible from the outside, and full of offices on the inside, with the only exception, that it was incomprehensibly tall – 875 floors tall.

*This is it. Ive been waiting for this moment for a long time. Forget about the money. I am finally going to make a difference in this stupid city, and take down this system. Starting with this.*

Arthur was standing at the entrance of the skyscraper, glaring at the man-built giant that went through the clouds. But he wasn amazed by what was around him, he wasn petrified by the 875 floors in front of him. His mind was full of thoughts that should be kept only for himself alone. Just like the many buildings, he showed nothing on the outside, but inside, he was full of emotions, thoughts, and motives against this city he lived in. Corruption. Manipulation. Oppression.

Right now, in front of one of the most influential places stood not a person, but a silhouette of the rebels of the system. A voice of many. An activist for the better good.

*I am going to destroy this place from the inside out.*