LifeShield

Jonathon

Jonathan rubs his eyes, from squinting through the screen glare in the dimly light room. The product looked unbelievable, well into the too good to be true category. He'd spent hours sifting through the net rumors, both in normal forums, and in a few dark web sites that no search engines could find. A few tantalizing threads whispered proof of the claims that it worked.

If there's even a chance this works, this changes everything.

Plans and scenarios flick through his mind like a movie, one after another. The advantages it'd give him. The overwhelming certainty he had to get there first.

With a growing purpose, he clicks the Buy link

The background shimmers in the same rich blue tones as he'd seen, with an elegance that would give design students wet dreams. But Jonathon sees only the notice at the top.

"LifeShield's limited worldwide release begins June 3rd. Get yours today."

He chuckles reading the fine print. "This product protects humans to the best of its abilities, with future improvements as the product evolves. But LifeShield cannot be held responsible for unforeseen circumstances. You can still die. Don't be stupid."

Jonathon snorts. No, I'll be very clever indeed.

He taps the glowing "Pre-Order Now" button. A cartoon map of the world snaps open, major cities are quivering jello towers. But most darken and grow still. The US and EU have nothing left. Less than ten still glow and wiggle for attention. Prague, Delhi, Buenos Aires, Saint Petersburg.

Wait.

He pops open a new window, tapping furiously. A moment later, a rare smile stretches across his face.

Perfect.

Flipping back, there's no hesitation in clicking the Reserve button.

"Your order is reserved for the next 5:00 minutes to complete your transaction." Red digits tick down.

Harsh white glares out a him, with bold black text titled "End User License Agreement" with the Accept button dimmed. Even without the timer, he's too anxious to read it. Jonathon swipes his finger past dense text until Accept glows at the bottom. Click. He doesn't even flinch when the price appears, jabbing his credit card number in.

The window fades to grays while the logo spins. "Processing".

A second. Two. The logo disappears.

"Congratulations. You have successfully pre-ordered a LifeShield. It will be available for installation on June 3rd at 8pm Saint Petersburg local time."

He scribbles down the address. Saves his order details. Then swipes open his app for Finnair.