Prologue

The project titled ‘New Chronicle’ was introduced in the United States of America in 2085. Created by the company ‘New Age Tech.’, they stated this was intended for improved security that would bring with it a better quality of life.

It included a complete overhaul of current camera systems, installing one on almost every corner that would connect to a singular database in each town or city, which would be run by the police force in the selected area. These cameras provide the highest quality possible at the time of creation and have sensors in an attempt to inform officers of situations before it begins or as it starts. Tests were conducted in a number of criminal situations with much success.

The company also created ‘chips’ to be implanted in people at birth at the top of their left wrist. In addition to containing the individual person’s personal information, including medication, health risks, age, address, etc., it would allow people to more easily and safely enter and exit designated areas such as work, school, and even their own home, helping to combat intruders. With just a wave of their wrist, doors would open for those who are recognized.

Although the developers wanted everyone to have a chip implanted to make the system more efficient, people were always given the option to deny it if they so wished, with the exception of most newborns.

This was a major project that was estimated to cost 2.3 billion dollars, as well as take decades in order to install everything across the whole country, but the president at the time deemed it necessary to protect the citizens from internal and external threats. Although the government was aware of the project’s existence years before it was revealed, once it was, the president and senate didn’t hesitate to sign the order for the new project to begin.

Of course, not all citizens agreed to this plan, with thousands refusing to implant the ‘tracking device’ as they called it in themselves and their children. In addition to that, the system catered more toward those who carried one. That made it difficult to enter/exit buildings, travel through states, and even do something as simple as grocery shopping for those without it.

This almost caused a civil war until a few of the resistance leaders made a suggestion: migrate to large cities that have yet to fully install the new security measures, resulting in a complete takeover of each city. This didn’t happen right away, but over the course of 2 years as people in the resistance steadily moved. Some abandoned their own homes or belongings just so they could feel safer themselves and away from areas where the security system was being installed. The major cities included are: Oakland, Minneapolis, Chicago, Philadelphia, Columbus, Austin, Denver, Mesa, Detroit, Kansas City, Portland, Atlanta, Tampa, St. Louis.

Even 38 years later, those cities have yet to include even one part of the ‘New Chronicle’ security measures. They have not become lawless or war zones, police officers and government officials still reside. However, the crime rate remains high in those areas. A stark contrast to other parts of the country that have accepted this new way of life.

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Near the end of summer in the year 2123, a teenage girl named Jessica Bell moved from her parent’s home in the safe city of Boston, to her grandmother’s apartment in Philadelphia, right along the Delaware River. Despite having lived in a ‘safety zone’ for so long, she remains unaffected by the differences. That is, after getting used to having to do more herself due to the chip being inoperable here.

It is currently the second month into her 11th school year where she is attending N. Philadelphia High School. She picked up the routine of waking up at 6am, making a simple breakfast just for herself as her grandmother is still sleeping, walking to school by 7:30 am, attending class, going home afterwards, making dinner, completing homework or watching television, then going to bed.

Day after day, doing the same thing, not even attempting to befriend any neighbors or classmates. It’s not exactly that she doesn’t want to, it’s more like she has never had any reason to. Over time she decided to just accept her life of solitude.

Today, October 6th, is the first time any changes have been made to her routine. Since she had trouble sleeping the night before, worried about the assignment she wrote that is due today, Jessica is very sluggish getting out of bed. Having hit the snooze a few times, it is 6:30 am when she finally sits up, yawning before looking into the mirror right across from her, noticing the bags under her eyes. She decides to pay it no mind since she’s sure no one will notice.

Despite the late start, she takes a quick shower, dries her hair, and grabs a pair of jeans and a short sleeved shirt that are lying over the edge of her hamper. She only wore them once so to her, they can still be considered clean, and it takes less effort compared to picking out fresh clothes.

Still feeling little energy after getting ready, she decides to just eat a pear and granola bar for breakfast. Jessica will be hungry well before lunch, but she can’t bring herself to make anything else. No eggs, bacon, toast like usual. Just simple grab and go food.

Being on the 5th floor, she takes the elevator to the ground level and, once there, walks up to the exit door. It’s not a simple automated door like many facilities in the city. Instead there is a keypad to enter each individual person’s code to exit, with there being another to do the same when entering.

Today when Jessica arrives at the door, her mind goes blank, completely forgetting her own 6 digit code. She’s been inputting the code almost every day, twice a day, so how could it be forgotten at this moment?

Rather than wanting to think too hard, she waves her left wrist across the screen as if to use a chip to open the door instead. Being born and raised in Boston, a chip was implanted in her wrist at birth. It’s not something she was able to accept or deny. When a child is born it’s typically their parents who decide if they get a chip or not. It’s not an issue if the children are raised in an environment where it is used daily, making it easier to accept.

However, here in Philly, her chip is useless. There are no security systems to utilize it and in fact, her grandmother told her to wear a wristband to hide any sign of it for her own protection, despite there not being any visible scars.

The door remains shut. She lowers her hand and chuckles, “Of course it wasn’t going to work.”

She then hears footsteps approaching from behind and steps aside. It’s an older gentleman in a suit, probably leaving to go to work. Although she never spoke to him or heard his name, she at least knows he lives on the same floor as her. The man glances at her before entering his own code.

“You’re Alsa’s grandchild, correct?”

“Yes.”

Not feeling the need to go into detail, Jessica gives a simple answer. The door opens and he looks at her once more to give her a warning.

“For your own safety, you’ll want to be more careful when waving that thing around. There are some people who are prejudiced against the security system and may attack you for simply having one.”

He walks out of the building, leaving Jessica to consider his words. She takes one look at her wrist and, when the doors begin to close, she runs outside. Still not having remembered her own code, she would rather not be late to class for such a silly reason.

She watches the man who just spoke with her as he continues down the sidewalk and shrugs her shoulders before crossing the street in front of her. The man wasn’t lying. There are many stories of those who had chips and were beaten or even murdered, but to be attacked for something she didn’t choose, she finds the thought to be ridiculous.

Jessica’s school is a straight, 10 minute walk from her apartment. She crosses Keystone Street and heads down Magee Avenue until she reaches the school right after Torresdale Avenue.

Walking through the city, you can see how it decayed over time. There are many run down, abandoned buildings, some with yellow signs labeling them as too dangerous to inhabit. The signs were clearly hung up long ago with no repairs having been done.

The stench of raw sewage, litter scattered all around, homeless people on almost every block, the residents have always turned a blind eye towards these issues. There is just one thing that is difficult to ignore: the feeling of death that looms over the city.

The mornings are usually quiet. Most of the crime happens at dusk, leaving the students and their parents with little to worry about, but the aftermath always remains the day after. The amount of murders reported each time is always in the double digits.

The closer she gets to the school, the more the teenagers crowd together. All are going to the same destination, with many of them talking to each other in small groups. Not wanting to converse with any of them, she continues to stare forward, avoiding eye contact.

After Jessica reaches the school grounds, she stops right before entering the gated area. With the sun rising behind the building, just now reaching the top, it temporarily blinds her, but she still can’t help looking up.

She places her hand above her eyes in an attempt to tone down the sun’s rays and to her surprise, there is someone sitting on the ledge of the roof. It’s difficult to see due to the sun, but it appears to be a girl with her legs hanging over and long hair blowing in the wind.

Then there is something else that catches her attention. Jessica narrows her eyes to see a long stick by the girl’s side. Is she carrying a bat, or maybe a sword? No, that couldn’t be right. A student? Carrying a sword? As if that would be allowed no matter how lax security may be.

Jessica assumes she’s seeing things and averts her gaze. She’s not even sure why the word ‘sword’ came to mind. A weapon such as that isn’t used within the high crime rate. It’s typically guns or small knives. Putting aside the possibility of a weapon, Jessica instead focuses on the fact that someone is sitting on the roof.

“She must be a strange one.”

With there being only a few minutes until school starts, Jessica wastes little time getting to her classroom. The halls usually contain lockers, but you can see many have been removed or screwed shut. This was done to combat drug deals and theft of student’s belongings. Although those kinds of incidents rarely happen anymore, it makes you wonder how this school managed to stay open with the numerous issues over the years.

Besides that, the school is in relatively good condition despite it being one of the oldest in the city. All the walls and windows are intact, with graffiti only on the outside of the building, and rooms themselves untouched.

The technology used for teaching has also been kept up to date. Students are given the option to attend virtual classes instead of in person, alerts are sent to students directly through their cell phones, and the old chalk and whiteboards have become virtual as well. Anything written can now be erased with the simple touch of a button, making it much more convenient.

Jessica’s class is in room 220 on the second floor. They have 10-25 students each, with hers containing 18, though it’s questionable whether most will attend in person. Jessica has nothing else to do and hasn’t missed a day yet.

She takes a seat to get ready and glances toward the door to see an Asian girl with long black hair walk in. She instantly wonders if that’s the same girl she saw on the roof. During that thought, the girl takes a seat next to her. Despite perfect attendance, Jessica has never seen this girl before today, but it’s also true that she doesn’t pay much attention to anyone either.

Remembering what she saw this morning, Jessica turns to her and asks, “What happened to that weapon you were carrying on the roof?”

The girl’s eyes widen and she turns to her classmate. After a moment of hesitation she responds, “My sword…you could see it?”

“So it was a sword.” That one word almost makes Jessica regret starting this conversation, but she continues anyway. “And what do you mean? Of course I could see it.”

“That’s amazing!!” Overjoyed, the girl claps her hands once and smiles brightly. “Not everyone can see it, only the best of the best are able. I’m Yuuki, I hope we can be good friends!”

Jessica is taken aback. How could you get so excited just knowing she could see something like that? What’s she missing here? No matter what, she can’t come up with an answer. Instead of fighting it, she lets out a sigh and introduces herself.

“My name is Jessica.”