The Beginning
The city’s power grid pulsed into evening mode, nodes dimming in precise sequence like a conductor leading an orchestra into pianissimo. Juniper watched from her office window as the granges shifted into their nocturnal protocols, their veins glowing a softer hue against the darkening sky. The gibbous moon hung low, already dimming the holiday displays scattered across the terraced district.
Like ok yeah now I have to pretend I’m not thinking about him, she thought, her mind betraying her with images of Daniel moving through East Park’s chaos with that quiet certainty that kept invoking her blossom. The memory of his touch sent an unauthorized surge through her system, electricity where it shouldn’t have been… finding paths it shouldn’t know. For me, these spastic tremors of my digits are completely unacceptable. Total system failure.
“You’re still here?” Sophia’s voice cut through her reverie. “I thought you’d be home processing everything by now.”
Juniper turned to find her friend leaning against the doorframe, big eyes catching the last rays of sunset. “Just reviewing the technical specifications from the logis facility. I think the jury will know the truth when we show them how the affected contributed in silence.”