The Anonymous

Chapter 4: The Anonymous

Shannon's POV

I am donning a pair of black pants topped with a white long sleeves shirt and a broad face cover to avoid facial recognition by countless security scanners within the area. Along with that ensemble, I am also wearing a yellow construction helmet, a pair of goggles, and a gas mask. This is what all of us are wearing right now, so that we can clearly identify who’s among us and who’s not.

I know that any time soon, the minions— the police will obstruct and prevent us from continuing this movement. I heard that they don’t care whether they need to use force and hurt someone as long as they break us off. They won’t hesitate to shoot rubber bullets and throw tear gases just to shove us away, that’s why we are equipped with such toggery to be ready for the upcoming uproar that will occur.

I am in the crowd in the middle of central park, joining the biggest political protest of our country after a decade. We are strongly opposing the pending bill in the council that is aiming to clearly set dividers among different social statuses in Huxley. 

They are imposing the CDRID or Citizen Division Restriction ID which will result in having restrictions in different areas. Each Messier can only be accessed by certain individuals, who either have rankings, or classified as Elites or Eriles. The President can access all of the Messiers, while the Council can only access Messier Eleven to Seventy-Five. The lower the ranking, the lesser the places that are accessible. So far, commoners like me can only access Messiers Sixty to Seventy-Five. The people of the lowest rankings, the paupers and peasants, will be left in the outer Messiers with no choice. They will have less food and facilities.

That's why we're raging with anger because the newly published bill has already passed its third and final reading, and is now only waiting for the President’s signature. The Council only gave the President thirty days to sign the bill but whether he signs it or not, the bill will become an official law after the deadline. The bill has been pending on the President's table for twenty-eight days now. And by my observations, it looks like the President wants the bill to become official but doesn't want to get his hands dirty, since he's neither signing it nor vetoing it.

“STOP CLASSISM! STOP DIVIDING SOCIAL CLASSES!” we all collectively shout.

I don’t usually join rallies, but today is different. The administration is getting too much, too cruel, too inhumane! I can’t just sit inside my home, draw, and hope that someone will look at my art and join the rally for me.

“STOP CLASSISM! JUNK CDRID!”

Even before the bill was published, we are already experiencing different bias treatments and restrictions just because of our social classes. Now that they are legitimizing the prejudice that is blocking our freedom and rights for years, how can we stay silent?

“The police are coming! Get ready!” one of the leaders of the protest announces with his microphone.

We position ourselves in our designated areas. Before going here, we carefully planned out everything. We have to be prepared and vigilant because any lack of information or carelessness, one, two or maybe all of us can die. That’s how cruel they are.

I positioned myself on the far upper left corner and ready my black flag and white paint. In this rally, my role as a warning flag bearer is to communicate with our co-activist at home who’s hacking the system and stealing information about the police's command that will warn our associates within the battleground.

“They are about to arrive in Ballsy Village in Messier 62 now, 15 minutes before they arrive in the central park,” one of the teasers from our team informs.