I'm not entirely sure when this rain will stop, but it most certainly
beats out the cold. Winter this year was the longest I can remember,
in all of my 15 years of age.
But the rain. I don't mind cold too much, as people aren't out and
about, and you don't need to worry about getting robbed while you sleep.
Biggest problem in winter is keeping the shack I cobbled together warm.
Plastic sheeting helps, but it can get pretty bitterly cold down here.
I suppose I should fill you in. My name is Drake. I'm 15, and all 15
years has been spent in Undertown. That's what we call it, at least.
Officially, it's the Buffalo district in the Northeast Megacity. But,
the Overtowners never consider us a part of Buffalo. The overtown is
for those who have money, power, or usually both. Everyone else lives
in Undertown.
I guess it's like this everywhere, but I don't know for sure. There's
not much contact between Overtown and Undertown, and most districts
have very few visitors since the travel permits dropped off. But,
the few visitors that have come through pretty much all say the same:
Shit sucks everywhere.
But, now I have to take care of this rain getting in my home.
Chapter II
Rain. Well, it's what we call it, but it's not the rain you're probably
thinking. We're pretty certain whenever it rains hard in Overtown, the
pipes leak down here... But, the bonus is, when it comes, it comes hard,
which is good for us, as that's where most folk here get their water from.
Collection points. Then we store it, to be used in makeshift tanks.
Works well enough, our plumbing down here is about as good as Overtown's.
At any rate, I got the collector funnel set up, to collect the rain
coming in. I don't usually keep it set up, because it gets in my way.
The area of Undertown I live in is called Terminal, which is what is left
of an old north east train station. The upper levels have collapsed
from neglect, but the sub basement was maintained, and expanded by the
earliest "settlers". Now, it goes down about 15 levels, and our last
attempt at mapping showed us most levels are about 5 square kilometers.
Now that the collector is set up, time for some quiet time. See the vocom
system we have set up is great, but it's really only useful for voice,
some of the time. So many people using it, there's only so many channels.
It's not private at all, since anyone can hop on your vocom channel, and
listen in. Overtown's vocom is better, you can't have random strangers
listening in, and it's never overloaded as far as I knew.
But, I know a spot near the upper levels of Terminal, where there's some
open vocom lines that Overtown put in, but never used. Vocom pirates
like myself found them over the years, and started noticing people from
other districts using them.
At first, people used normal voice, just like everyone else on the vocom.
But, as more people started using them, the idea of linking different
lines in different districts came up, and people thought it was great.
Until a handful of districts were linked together, and you really couldn't
get a word in.
Not to mention, in the areas these lines are, it's usually quiet,
because nobody goes there due to tunnel collapses and the like. But,
if you're talking, even in a whisper, your voice travels through these
tunnels really well.
So, an older pirate came up with a box you could hook up to the
lines, which had a keyboard and a screen. The screen showed you what
everyone was typing, and after a while, someone came up with a way to
use channels. Basically, vocom that you read. It actually works well,
for a few reasons. No noise, so people wont find you (A vocom pirate
box alone would fetch a pretty high price in the markets), and you can
leave your vocom box there, to catch everything, all the time, so you
can catch up when you return.
A few years after the first vocom boxes, another pirate came up with a
new one. This one allowed you to connect to pirate vocom, and in a few
minutes, it would catch up on news that other pirates posted. Sometimes,
the news included new vocom hacks, but mostly just news from other
districts as to what is going on there, and rumors about Overtown.
But, most of all, it provided a distraction from the dreck of living in
Undertown. Trying to stay warm. Trying to scare up food. Keeping your
home secure from would-be thugs. On pirate vocom, you got to escape,
even if only for a couple of hours a day.
Let me get my vocom box connected...
Chapter III
BEGIN PRIVATE FEED
TO: drake!buffalo!primary_tutor!rochester!sammy!albany!
RE: Something big has happened!!
Drake! Something really big has happened in Undertown here! Well,
in Overtown, actually. There a lot of people in uniforms throwing gas
cannisters at huge crowds, and the crowds are fighting the uniformed
people. They don't look like the enforcers that sometimes come down to
undertown to kick us out of the upper levels, these uniforms look more
high tech.
A few people from overtown came down here, to escape. My family took
them in, but they were so beat up, and gassed up, that we couldn't really
understand what they were trying to tell us. It just sounded crazy.
When I find out more, I'll message you on pvocom.
END PRIVATE FEED
I couldn't believe what I was reading. Nobody from overtown comes to
undertown to escape, except criminals (It's really how the undertowns
started). The uniforms Sammy was seeing? They sound like enforcers,
but Sammy knows what an enforcer is...
COMPOSE PRIVATE FEED
TO: sammy!albany!primary_tutor!rochester!drake!buffalo!
RE: RE: Something big has happened!
Sammy, I guess I can believe that the overtowners sounded crazy, because
what you're saying doesn't make sense. Reply back when you can, I'm a
little worried.
END COMPOSE PRIVATE FEED
Ok, saved for when I connect back into pvocom.
I wish I hung out there for a while, so I could have read it before
leaving. Too risky to go back today. Too much traffic draws attention,
and I really don't want that. Looks like I have to wait until tomorrow
to lob this packet out.
