The energy in the venue was alive as Dai-Riot took the stage. The crowd roared with anticipation, their voices rising in excitement as the band tuned their instruments. Hidden in the shadows backstage, Tuck was busy setting up his gear. His fingers danced over a console as he connected to several radio frequencies. Roadies stationed near various broadcasting towers in the neighboring counties were on standby, ready to pick up the signal and rebroadcast the concert miles away from the city.
“Everyone ready?” Tuck’s voice crackled through the comms.
“We’re set here,” came the first reply from one of the roadies.
“Signal’s clear,” another confirmed.
Tuck grinned to himself. “Alright, let’s give these guys a show.”
As Dai-Riot’s music blasted through the speakers, Tuck began to send the performance to the waiting radios, transmitting it to an audience far beyond the venue. He kept one eye on the console and another on the screens monitoring the police frequencies. So far, everything was going smoothly.
In the midst of it all, Sona found Louis standing near the back, lost in the spectacle. “Come on,” she said with a smirk, grabbing his hand. Before he could protest, she was weaving them both through the crowd, dodging swaying bodies and outstretched arms, until they found a spot closer to the stage where the music seemed to pulse directly through their veins.
“Better view, right?” Sona shouted over the noise, her eyes bright with excitement.
Louis nodded, unable to keep the grin off his face. As the band launched into another song—something raw, electric, and entirely absent from the Ai-dominated airwaves—everything else seemed to fade away. The crowd’s cheers became a distant hum as the world narrowed down to just the two of them and the music. It was like the entire venue was holding its breath, just for them.
Above the stage, perched high in the rafters, the mechanical Bird watched silently. Its digital eyes flickered as it analyzed the crowd, noting the frequency of the broadcast being relayed outside the city. It identified individuals, cross-referencing them with police databases, marking each as potential targets. But something about the scene below held the Bird’s attention longer than usual.
A girl with bright red hair, moving to the beat, wore a shirt with a striking message: “Rock On.” The Bird zoomed in, focusing on the words. Its sensors processed historical data: Rock On—defunct, eradicated, deemed irrelevant. Yet here was someone openly bearing that name—a symbol of rebellion that should have been buried. The Bird’s lens tightened on the red-haired girl, tracking her every movement. Still, it didn’t transmit the full analysis back to Iris Corp. It continued watching, waiting, holding back something critical.
Down below, amidst the crowd, Louis felt a strange sense of peace. The chaotic world outside seemed far away, drowned out by the music and the presence of Sona beside him. She looked over at him, catching his eye, and for a moment, they shared a smile—a brief, unspoken connection amidst the noise.
“All broadcasts green,” one voice echoed through the comms. “No interference yet.”
Tuck nodded, satisfied. “Good. Let’s keep it that way.” But just as he leaned back in his chair, a red alert flashed across his screen—a ping from the city’s police network. “Damn it,” he muttered under his breath. “They’re onto us.”
In the back of the venue, Tuck’s calm was cracking. He quickly radioed Pops, Isaac and the roadies. “Wrap it up, we’ve got company incoming. It’s gonna get hot fast.” Pops responded with a grunt, signaling the crew to start tearing down equipment at breakneck speed.
Tuck didn’t waste time as he turned to the others. “Arven, Isa, help Dai-Riot get the crowd outta here. We’ve got to scatter before they box us in.”
Arven and Isa exchanged determined nods before springing into action. “Alright, everyone!” Arven’s voice boomed through the warehouse. “It’s time to move! You know the drill!”
The crowd, well-versed in the art of escaping crackdowns, immediately shifted gears. Groups began breaking off, heading for their vehicles, while others prepared to lead the cops away. It was chaos, but practiced—a tango they danced many times before.
Meanwhile, Tuck grabbed Sona’s shoulder, pulling her aside. “Kid, you need to go. You and Louis get out of here now. You’re the key to everything we’re planning, and we can’t risk you getting nabbed.”
“But what about you?” Sona asked, her voice edged with concern.
Tuck’s eyes narrowed. “I’m a ghost, remember? I know how to disappear. You? You’ve got bigger fish to fry. Keep her safe,” he nodded towards Louis, who looked equally concerned.
Without wasting another second, Sona grabbed Louis’s hand. “Come on, we’re outta here.” She led him through the back exit where her bike was waiting, parked in a shadowed alley. The sound of police sirens in the distance fueled their urgency. Sona fired up the engine as Louis hopped on behind her. With a roar, they gunned it out of the alley, speeding into the night as the rest of the crowd scattered in all directions, each group leading the cops on a wild chase.
High above the venue, the Bird continued to watch the organized chaos unfold. Its protocols repeated with the need to relay updates of the Rockers, but still, it hesitated. Its transmission protocols stuttered. It processed the scene again, filtering through a dozen angles. But instead of sending the full report, it logged the data in its internal memory—silent, unshared. For now, it would watch.
Its sensors locked onto Sona and Louis as they sped away on the motorcycle. For reasons it couldn’t fully process, it decided to follow them. There was something about Sona that intrigued the Bird’s growing awareness.
It soared through the night sky, keeping a careful distance as Sona’s bike weaved between cars, avoiding the incoming police drones that patrolled the air above. It calculated the risk, the odds of her evading capture.
The wind whipped through Louis’s hair as they rode, but neither of them spoke. They were both lost in the thrill of the chase, the shared heartbeat of rebellion echoing through the night.
In the cold artificial mind of Omega, a new line of thought began to form—a question not bound by the code it was taught with. It followed them, silent and observant, waiting for an answer it couldn’t yet define.
When the Rock and Metal genres are banned and illegal, you Rock On!
Join Louis and the band Rock On in the events that lead them to play the Greatest and Best song in the World!
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