The curfew dropped in the middle of the afternoon.
Rin felt it more than heard it. Conversations thinned in the market, like someone had turned the volume down on the district. A second later, every public screen and battered wall speaker crackled to life.
"Attention residents of Twelve‑Lower," a neutral voice said. "Effective today, a temporary dusk‑to‑dawn curfew is in place for your safety. All citizens must be indoors from 18:00 to 06:00. Community Review Panel activities are postponed pending security review."
The words marched across the nearest screen in white on gray.
Under them, a new image blinked into existence.
KAEL – SUBJECT ID: [REDACTED].
RISK LEVEL: CRITICAL.
CITY‑WIDE APPREHENSION ORDER – ACTIVE.
The photo was blurry, grabbed from one of Aiden's old leaks a profile with lightning ghosting around his hands. The regime had not bothered to crop that part out.
Kids in the crowd pointed.
"He was outside the center," one said, awe and fear mixed.
