The next morning, the city of Orbitera was exposed by the cold, unambiguous light of the sun—a spectacle the citizens had been subconsciously trained to fear. There were no screens, no surveillance, no protective infrastructure. The shock had rendered the populace immobile, standing in silent clusters, watching the world they knew shatter around them.
Einar and Saira stood on a rocky outcrop overlooking the city's vast, silent landscape.
Einar surveyed the ruined towers, the dead displays. "We have recovered the option of freedom. The system of constraint is gone."
Saira was pragmatic, her expression a mix of exhaustion and resolve. "But are we structurally, ethically, or psychologically prepared for the consequences of that decision? We have granted agency to people who have forgotten how to use it. The true battle begins now: the fight against entropy and self-governance."
Einar looked at the chaotic scene below—a city that was now a functional wasteland. He felt the weight of the moral trade-off: Tyranny traded for Obligation.