NeoLondonium - Year: 2557
Winter was not the usual winter that you think it is. Twenty degrees. A perfect temperature for everyone. Kids who had nothing better to play but outdoor disc slide. A majority of adults who sat in their virtual offices, when really it was their own house, wearing high tech glasses with augmented reality lenses. People who spent their time doing hobbies such as beating a video game speed run which came out nearly five hundred years ago or even creating an 4D art piece in their adjustable balcony. Then you had outliers who did not like this format of living.
Day in and day out. The recognizable one out them all. With a dirty blonde hair, he stood out. A enemy is what the general public named him. Zooming past the three hundredth floor windows with his hoverboard -which was only recently approved as a public vehicle-, habitants would always catch a quick whiff of his pungent smell even in speeds going up to 240 km/h. The world was a race track to this abnormal boy.
Leon Karter was always alone, with no help from his peers or his previous family. He was always met with authoritarians from every corner. He was smart enough to evade such obstacles for him to reach a new level of 'freedom' is what he would call it.
But through the past years of speeding and disruptions that was caused, he was bound to be caught. The ATP (air traffic police) were aware of him, but they never got the chance to even catch him. Even in the year 2557, people learnt ways to outrun them with modifications and other amplifiers. Technology was moving faster than ever in this world and it seemed as though the government couldn't catch up.
Two ATP (air traffic police) would end up stopping him abruptly on a clear sky day. While he about to enter the 2,000ft sky zone. Leon did this on a regular basis, in fact to look at the world in distain as if he was a higher being. He always felt like he never owed the world anything. He did this often. So much dopamine in a matter of seconds. People would often fly in the restricted zone, but that was risky since he would start to be alerting air traffic control.
An ATP officer used a cybernetic hook that had a fast reaction time and incredible grip, latching onto Leon's hoverboard. The momentum almost made him slip off the board. While being 2000ft in the air, safety measures were made in place in case a person does end up falling from a great height like that. Luckily Leon was able to tighten his feet into the shoe holders of the hoverboard while pushing the weight opposite to where the hook was pulling.
His palms start to sweat profusely. His thinking became clouded and tried to understand the issue he was in. An egg was about to crack.
Another hook from a different direction forced Leon to be immobile. The flashing lights of the ATP officers hoverboards started becoming more and more of a bokeh.
3 months later.
'You don't want that!' exclaimed a man in his 40s as he slapped the poorly made thin ham sandwich that Leon was holding in his dehydrated hands. 'Lil boy doesn't know his place after time being here!' Life didn't seem to get any better for Leon. Even in the public eye no one ever stopped to help him from being constantly harassed and mentally tormented everyday. The bystander effect took place as people walked by without a single care in the world for him.
Litter, debris, wires and other mechanical part that ended up on the ground from flying objects or high rise buildings. He always watched the world from the top but he never knew that it would be so lonely at the bottom. Buildings looked like concrete jungles, endless reflective panels. He couldn't help be sulk and look down at what has to offer to him in his very moment. But it was a beautiful sight looking at the vegetation take over the architecture and adapting to the peculiar shapes of the modern world.
Somewhere high above...
"I dont know where i put it sir! I promise!" an unknown man in a white knee length overcoat, with broken dusty glasses on was shaking in fear while raising his voice towards his small rectangle blue screen in his hand. He was sitting in darkness as if a mysterious figure was about to drag him out of no where. He got up abruptly. Pacing back and forth.
The blinds and windows were closed, to make sure that no chemicals were to make it out in the larger city. But there was a cracked glass opening towards the opposite side of the room.
"Listen, I know tha- Wait i can make a new one- wait! wait!" The call ended. The man in a fistful of rage decided to throw his worn out glasses onto the floor. He starts to crumble in a panic attack fuelled by anxiety.
He starts to sob loudly. Louder. and louder. But the room was fairly large that the levels below or above couldn't hear him. All he could do was to wait for his dire consequences.
Down below, Leon and his other offenders continued picking up remains throughout the evening. It was a national policy that the greenspaces that NeoLondonium held were 100% clean, a 16 hour cooldown, if any litter was found within that time, they would be paralyzed while taking violent beatings the guardian knights that protected the lands.
Before finishing up, Leon accidently bumped into a somewhat regular person.
"ooph- sorry mate..."
The passer byer twitched for a few seconds before going about their day...
Leon thought to himself "what the fu-?" After walking away from that strange person, a sharp object stabbed his foot.