The Orchestrated Rain

Night

The holo-cafe had a long history, dating back to almost the first years of the Tower itself. Spacious but quiet, with expensive decor, and lit just enough to highlight main objects but not too much to turn huge windows into mirrors. And though right now, the storm was ravaging outside, rendering everything beyond them pitch black, the place still felt luxurious. However, the cafe has not always been like that.

In the beginning, it was just a small room, tightly packed with cheap tables-transformers, drone bays for customer service, automated mini-kitchen, and a couple of NEt access points. Quite unlikely that someone from those times would recognize the place now. It has expanded by a lot in all spaces, physical and virtual, and now shared a certain resemblance with grand lecture halls of old universities.

The administrator of the cafe was a mysterious figure, surrounded by rumors. Some believed that he was one of those who during the last boog flood exposed greedy tycoons who tried to make a profit out of the catastrophe. He was seen as a respectable businessman, the one for whom personal profit and public service went hand in hand. Few, however, knew that he was also a player.

Being of small commercial value to the Tower, the cafe had strict limits on how big it can ever become and how much of the Tower's resources it can take. Despite that, the cafe was well known and popular. In order to remain among the top establishments of the "Tower of Changes" the administrator did not shy away from changing the physical and virtual properties of the cafe to customer desires, allowing sometimes extra freedoms beyond the law. Usually, those involved altering the limitations set for the NEt to assure that no client is ever inconvenienced. To do so, the administrator utilized the restricted network lines, reserved for emergency situations.

Ever since Elena had disconnected from the VirtShow stream, she felt dizzy, anxious. Something was wrong, but she could not quite isolate what. A suspicion of something so utterly impossible, so disgusting overwhelmed her, blurring the vision, numbing her legs and arms. Her mind was in disarray. Medical implants had already launched millions of simultaneous checks on her physical and emotional condition. Confused, they transmitted lists of advices and precautions to the user's mind, interrupting her thoughts, vying with each other.

After consulting with a central medical AI, implants injected a small -- couple nanograms -- a dose of alleviant into the bloodstream. Elena's heartbeat calmed down and her thoughts slowed. A vague, but consistent, picture of her own life started emerging from the blurry vision. A picture, dissected into episodes of the VirtShow. But before Elena understood what that meant, before she realized how she was used and for what, the glaring warning filled up her mind, replacing every thought. It came from the NEt, -- a severe storm warning, and a request from the government to stay inside and remain calm, as all the measures were now being taken and the risk for Tower visitors was negligible.

Confused and disorientated, Elena looked around her. There was too much happening at once. The oscillations of the Tower have reached an unpleasant amplitude, forcing Elena to hold on to the table. At the same time, there seemed to be a spike of activity on the local NEt. Most of the people and entities that were pouring into the cafe -- and by now there was a crowd -- were converging on one of the VirtLayers. There was something going on. Without hesitation, Elena initiated the connection. It was an escape from reality, a perfectly presented opportunity. She desperately hoped that by the time she returned, everything would have calmed down.

But just when the connection was established and the world of the VirtLayer loaded in front of her eyes, a deja-vu pierced Elena as a fiery short-circuit. The place was familiar. She has seen it before many times as a viewer, but now she was a part of it. The... scene.

A small town in a valley by the river. Late evening. A central street that is usually empty at this hour is filled with people. The crowd is diverse and noisy. People are angrily shouting, laughing, and swearing. It is contrasted by their colorful, evening dresses, expensive costumes, and elaborate makeups. It seems that they have gathered here for a different reason that the mood here was quite different just a moment ago. But the atmosphere has changed. Their attention was fixed on one man, who...