Chapter 1: The Rooftop Below the Stars
Jaden Cross sat on an old rooftop, staring at the city lights below. The wind was cold, and the rain had just stopped. Water dripped slowly from the rusted metal roof beside him. He pulled his thin jacket tighter and tried not to shiver.
Below him, the streets of Neo-Lagos were loud and full of life. Flying drones zipped through the sky. Neon signs flashed across old buildings, advertising tech gadgets, food pills, and body mods. But up here, it was quiet. Only the sound of the wind and his own breathing filled the space.
The solar panels on the roof had broken days ago. Now the people living in the rooms below had no power. No lights. No heat. And they were angry. Angry at the cold, the dark, the hunger—and angry at him.
They blamed Jaden. He was the only one who knew a bit about tech. He had helped fix a few things before. Rewired an old fan. Repaired a comms port. But the truth was, he couldn’t fix the solar panels. He had no tools, no money, and no help.
Jaden was twenty-three. He had no family. His parents died when he was six. Since then, he had lived in shelters, on rooftops, and in the shadows of the city. Life hadn’t given him many choices.
He used to be smart. He loved machines and how things worked. He even got into a good tech school once. He remembered that day clearly—the only time he had ever seen his mother’s photo placed beside a candle. But life was hard. The scholarships didn’t last. He dropped out and faded away, just another orphan trying to survive.
He looked down at a broken tablet in his hand. He had found it in a trash bin two weeks ago. The screen was cracked. It didn’t turn on, but he kept it anyway. He liked to imagine what he could build if he had the tools. It reminded him of who he used to be.
Then, something strange happened.
A bright light appeared in the sky.
It wasn’t lightning.