Crowd: A Dystopian Social Network Thriller (Final Draft)

Experimental Weapon

When a couple of Red Blockers opened the door to join the fray outside, Sasha and Rain used them as cover. Rain breathed in one last time before venturing into the smoke-filled street.

The air reeked of gunpowder and chemicals. The smoke swallowed rioters and police units like a mystical beast devouring the district. Shouts echoed as Molotov cocktails spiraled through the air.

"Follow me," Sasha said.

Rain raised her arms, willing to stun and shoot anyone trying to stop her. The adrenaline pulsated through her veins and increased her attention to one hundred percent. She could barely see Sasha as he rushed in front of her.

"Wait."

She pushed her lungs and tried to keep up with Sasha.

A guy with revolutionary gear bumped into her. He raised his bat and received a stunbolt jab for his troubles.

A nearby Red Blocker spotted her act and marched toward her. "What the fuck did you do to Sammy?"

She pointed the PEPS at him. "Want to be next?"

He flipped her off and hurried toward his shaking buddy.

Rain ran but lost track of Sasha. Either he had taken off or the smoke swallowed him for good. Rain tried to ping his geo-location but the network access was still down.

Damn.

Something whizzed through the air. The object impacted a few feet to Rain's left and released smoke. A rioter kicked the grenade away and shielded his mouth as a mechanical voice echoed from the other side of the street.

"This is the Metro police. Citizens, return to your homes while the curfew is being enacted. I repeat—leave the perimeter and return to your homes."

The Red Blockers and fellow rioters shouted in unison. The police's announcement spurned everyone on to fight with even more fervor.

Rain shouted Sasha's name but the war cries of the surrounding rioters drowned her voice, and with no connection to the network, the way pointers failed to show up. Rain was reduced to regular vision with no icons or helpful messages. The lack of street light and the smoke drowned the area into a milky darkness that was impossible to navigate through.

Rain was stuck in a living nightmare.

She ran closer to the house facades on the right and tried to avoid the major fight on the main street. She remembered Sasha's words about the cruiser's direction and snuck forward like a ninja. Another rioter spied her out and pointed fingers.

How the hell did they spot her? It wasn't the jacket. Must have been the stunbolt and the PEPS pistol that gave her away. Rain tried to ignore the rioter but the idiot followed her like a predator. "Oppressor!"

"Just leave me alone."

He grabbed her jacket from behind and pulled her. She yanked her clothing from the rioter and squeezed the trigger of her PEPS pistol. An empty click sounded. Crap. Amidst the panic, she had forgotten to reload her pistol.

"You tried to shoot me!" he exclaimed.

"It's a non-lethal—"

The guy rammed into her and knocked away the pistol. His weighed dragged Rain down, and her cheek hit the cold sidewalk. A dull pain numbed her head and broke her focus. The rioter tried to punch her face but Rain's right hand slammed the stunbolt into his ribcage.

Bzzzzzzz.

The guy on top of her spasmed. Rain pushed herself up and knocked the guy sideways. While he lay stunned, she fired a boot into his ribcage. "Why are you hitting me? I didn't do anything to you."