The towering Techno-human statue in Foundation Square was drenched in red paint. That was the first thing I saw when we arrived. Angry shouts of protesters filled the air. Signs held high echoed the slogan that had gained popularity over the past few months: Disconnect from control.

I was surprised to see all kinds of people, including techno-humans. One woman had splattered red paint across her prosthetic arm and half of her synthetic head and held a sign that read: Am I free, or am I theirs?

I gazed at Erik and his eyes were filled with worry. "Even the native techno-humans are turning against them." He muttered.

"What surprises me is how no one saw this coming... it was just a question of when." I said.

Suddenly, a group of angry protesters shoved us from behind. I grabbed Erik's hand and pulled him to the side.

"Stay close," I said. "This could turn into a war zone at any moment."

Erik nodded as he pulled his shirt back into place.

"Heather said she would come from the south, right?" He asked.

"Yes, let's try to get to the south entrance."

We moved through the crowd, trying to be discreet. Narval Officers were everywhere, locking down the entrances and exits, standing as firm as techno-human statues. However, they would clearly lose control since people kept pouring in, unstoppable. The situation could blow up at any moment.

"This won't be easy." I said.

"No, it won't." Erik felt exactly the same.

To our right, there was a platform. Probably set up for Brooke's appearance. Fortunately, she hadn't arrived yet, and given the situation, I hoped she'd decide to skip it.

As we scanned the faces approaching from the south, a woman with her face hidden by a scarf stepped onto the stage. She held a microphone in one hand and a pamphlet of the new implant rule in the other.

"Does this thing work?" She asked, tapping the mic a few times.

The crowd responded with shouts of affirmation, and the woman began speaking.

"For years, I served the Reg Society just like all of you. We were promised so many things: protection, freedom, evolution... But ever since the reset rule was enforced at the border and security tightened, the cracks and lies in this system have become clear."

She raised the pamphlet. "Technology can't control us! This implant is the last imposition they'll try to force on us!"

The crowd erupted into loud applause, waving Reg flags smeared with paint. The air grew thick with sweat, and I struggled to breathe.

"Hey," came a voice from behind. "Aren't you Brooke Abbot's shadow?"

Erik and I spun around, blood running cold. A woman with a red paint handprint across her cheek stared straight at me.

"You definitely are. I saw you at the press conference yesterday. You're quite the defender of the implants, huh?" Her voice dripped with sarcasm.

"It's... a complicated matter." I said, trying to keep my cool, even though my nerves were going haywire.

"Indeed." She turned toward a nearby group and yelled, "Hey, look who's here! Brooke Abbot's crow!"

Heads snapped in my direction.

"What the hell is she doing here?" Someone shouted.
"How dare she?" Another voice chimed in.

Anger rippled through the crowd like a wave. Voices rose, sharp and hostile. The woman on stage stopped mid-sentence, her gaze now locked on me. Erik's grip tightened on my hand, and I felt my heart race.

A man with a prosthetic neck, glowing with a fluorescent line like a necklace, pushed through the crowd, his voice booming with fury.

"She should pay for what they've done to us!" His eyes blazed.

"She hasn't done anything!" Erik shot back, stepping between us.

"Shut up, you bastard!" The man roared and shoved Erik aside with so much force he hit the ground.

"Don't touch him!" I shouted.

The guy with the prosthetic neck lunged at me but I knocked him flat on his back.

Shit. Bad idea, Grace. Bad idea.

The crowd erupted before he could even cry out in pain. No time to think. I helped Erik to his feet, and we left, shoving past the swarm of people. Running wasn't going to be easy, but we had no other choice.

A couple of protesters chased after us, pushing people violently, which caused even more chaos. In a matter of moments, the entire square was engulfed in a whirlwind of anger; shouting, arguing, and jostling. The Narval Officers quickly intervened, which only made things worse.

The more we moved, the more trapped I felt. The exits were packed with people, crazed by the chaos, and Narval Officers were trying to calm them down, not really succeeding on it.  

To avoid the crowd of people, we pressed our backs against the wall of the square, moving slowly toward the adjacent alleys, trying to slip by unnoticed. Just then, a firm hand gripped my arm and yanked me into an alleyway. I barely had time to react before I noticed the red paint smeared across a woman's face. Shit. They had caught me.

"Grace!" Erik shouted while trying to follow us.

I tried to let off her grip, but she shoved me into the shadows of the alley.

"Let me go!" I shouted.

She locked her gaze onto mine, covering my mouth with her hand to force me into silence.

"Be quite, clown" She whispered.

My eyes darted at her upon hearing that. Beneath the red paint, I recognized those features. I should've known from the warmth of her hand. It was Heather.

"Are you okay?" She whispered.

My heart soared. "I am now."

Heather's lips curved into an adorable smile.

I didn't have time to say anything else before Erik stumbled into us, overwhelmed by a wave of nerves. "Leave her alone!"

Heather stepped back, and I caught Erik before he fell. "Calm down, it's her!" I said.

Erik stared at Heather, confused and gasping for air. The red paint made her hard to recognize, she looked like just another protester, a smart move to blend in.

"You must be Erik. Nice to meet you." Heather said, stretching her hand toward him. She looked a bit nervous, which was kind of cute.

Erik glanced at her hand, then unexpectedly wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Heather stepped back again, trying not to fall, clearly unprepared to hold him up.

"Thanks for taking care of Grace." He said.

"Oh..." Her eyes looked at me popping up from Erik's shoulder. I smiled tenderly at the scene. "You're welcome... but honestly, I think you took better care of Grace than I did."

"Excuse me, you two..." I cut in. "I can take care of myself, you know?"

Erik released Heather and grinned at me. "Alright, alright...Don't be mad Grace." Erik said to me, and then turned to Heather once more.

"Sorry for, um, the hug... I just... I've heard so much about you that I feel I already know you." He said.

Heather tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her cheeks slightly pink. "I've heard a lot about you too," she replied, glancing down for a moment. "All good things, I hope?"

"Mostly." Erik said with a nervous chuckle.

Just then, the sharp crack of gunfire pierced the air, and our moment of awkwardness shattered like glass.

"What the hell is happening?" I exclaimed.

"Shit. The Narvals are shooting at the protesters. We need to disappear," Heather said, quickly pulling a bottle of red paint from her backpack. "Grace, look at me." she ordered.

Heather held my chin with one hand and gently smeared paint across my cheeks, eyes, and forehead. The acrid smell of the paint seemed to suffocate me, just like the techno humans were suffocating the people in the square. But when I looked at Heather's eyes, filled with confidence and protectiveness, everything faded away.

"Let's go," she said, her tone firm. "Stay close."

We wove through the side alleys, doing our best to dodge the chaotic crowds, which wasn't easy. People were sprinting everywhere, their shouts echoing off the walls, while others faced off against the officers. Thankfully, the red paint helped us stay under the radar. Heather was in the lead, glancing back every now and then to check if we were still behind her.

Suddenly the buzz of the drones. We gazed skywards. A gang of them cut the air.

"Hurry." I said. "We need to find a place to hide and soon."

As we emerged from the alley, we were met with a surge of people racing down the main street, fleeing from drones and Narval Officers. Crossing would mean risking being swept away in the chaos and potentially getting caught in the crossfire. But staying there wasn't an option either; the drones could spot us at any moment.

"We have to cross." Heather stated.

"That's suicidal." Erik shot back.

"We don't have a choice." Heather took a step forward. "I'll go first."

"No way," I said, panic rising in my throat. "It's been a nightmare just finding you. I'm not letting you go like this."

"What do we do then?" She asked frustrated.

"I don't know!"

Suddenly, a spaceship descended, its blinding light zeroing in on us.

"Shit, get down!" Heather ordered, yanking me to the ground.

But it was too late; the ship had already spotted us. A ladder dropped down as the door opened, and the woman we'd seen giving the protesters speech on the stage climbed down.

"Come with me!" She shouted, grabbing my arm.

"Don't touch her!" Heather snarled, shoving the woman aside.

Without a word, the woman pulled out a laser gun and aimed it straight at Heather. My heart pounded heavily in my chest.

"It's not a question." The woman said, her gun not even shaking a bit.

"We haven't done anything!" Erik protested, stepping in front of Heather.

"Everyone just calm down!" I shouted, trying to defuse the situation.

"I won't repeat it." She said, her eyes barely visible under the scarf. Something about her seemed familiar. Did I know her?

Heather gave in and climbed the ladder to the spaceship. Erik followed, and I was the last to go. Once inside, the woman took the pilot's seat.

"As soon as I saw trouble, I knew it had to be you, Grace." She said, pulling down her scarf. Her black skin and shiny head implant glinted under the dim lights. Heather stared at her.

"And where Grace goes, Heather's never far behind." The woman added with a smirk turning at us.

"Kate?" Heather asked, eyes wide in surprise.

"That's my name, yeah." Kate grinned.

Heather hit her arm angrily.

"Hey! I'm driving!" Kate complained.

"Why didn't you say it was you?! You scared the hell out of me!" Heather yelled.

"I couldn't! Are you blind or what? Have you seen this mess?" Kate gestured wildly at the chaos outside.

"You could've made us a sign or something!" Heather shot back.

"I'm a veteran, Heather! If any Narval Officer sees me like this, I'm dead!" Kate took a tight turn in the air, and we all tumbled into one another in the back seat.

"Sorry," Kate said, glancing back at us. "There are drones everywhere. Driving this feels like a fucking jungle."

Erik leaned on Kate's seat, trying to join the conversation. "So... um, sorry to interrupt. I'm Erik, by the way. I'm here too..."

"Oh, right," Kate said, suddenly realizing she hadn't mentioned him at all. "Nice to meet you, Erik."

I grinned at Erik before gazing out the window. The streets were in turmoil; I'd never seen people so agitated. I looked back at Kate, she didn't look like a veteran at all. Dressed like a protester, she fit right in with the crowd.

"But Kate, you were giving that speech on stage... I thought you were in favor of implants..." I said, confusion creeping into my voice as I processed everything.

She sighed and handed me the implant promotional pamphlet.

"They're forcing kids into this, too. I don't want..." Her voice trailed off.

"You don't want your daughter Zoe to go through this, right?" I finished for her. 

Kate nodded. "Yeah. Veteran kids are supposed to be the first ones to get these things. I won't let it happen." She declared.

"Nobody should have to go through this, especially not kids." Erik added.

"Things are going to change soon. I promise." Heather said.

As we headed to Erik's apartment, where we'd settle in to figure out our next move, I noticed the sad look in Kate's eyes. They seemed to wander off, lost somewhere on the horizon, filled with anger and uncertainty. It tugged at my heart to see that disappointment in her, echoing what I'd seen in Heather when she realized the system she lived in had let her down. But beneath that sadness, there was also a glimmer of hope, a hope for a life where her daughter wouldn't have to worry about controlling mind implants or enhancement surgeries. A future where freedom wasn't measured in codes or numbers, but in laughter, choices, and the simple joy of living without fear. 

Author's Note: 

Hello! :)

How's your Sunday going? 😍

I feel a bit sick...  🤧 But writing helps a lot. 💖

I'd like to know what you thought about Kate changing her mind about implants. 🤓

Thanks a lot for reading, for real!!! Love you!!

Ava 💫