A few minutes had passed since the pulse. Leo still hadn't touched the UI; the urge to poke at it was stifled by the murmurs of the crowd and the heavy stillness in the air. People were arguing quietly or tapping at dead phones, trying to make the world make sense again. The crowd felt like dry kindling—every glance or sudden movement a potential spark ready to set everything on fire.
Sam was crouched nearby, fingers drumming on the pavement. His eyes flicked between his own interface and the people gathering in the square. He looked more curious than worried, like he was trying to figure out a puzzle he couldn't quite crack.
Phil leaned against a lamppost, scanning faces and listening to the murmurs, occasionally stepping forward to ask a question. Luka hovered between them all, catching snippets of conversation and working out his own take.
Parmo sat next to Leo, staring at his boots. He was in his own world, likely doing the mental math on the walk home. Unlike the others, he lived out of town; he’d need to find a way back to Trimdon soon.
Around them, Monkhaven moved in a tense shuffle. Some had managed to get their phones to light up, but signal and broadband were gone. One woman was trying to take a photo of her UI but getting nothing at all; apparently, the latest camera models couldn't capture the impossible. Cars sat silent in the road, making the usual hum of town life feel muted and wrong.
"I still can't believe this is real," Leo muttered, rubbing his jaw. "You sure we're not all just having a weird shared dream? Heatstroke or something?"
"Too many people saw the same thing for it to be a mass hallucination," Sam said, his eyes fixed on the floating shapes.
Phil stepped toward them, his voice low. "Anyone heard anything about the power? Like from the council or anyone official?"
"There’s that fella who was on the bench earlier," a man standing nearby offered, nodding toward the high-vis guy. "The one telling people to stay calm. He looks just as lost as the rest of us now, though."
The murmurs rippled out again. No one knew anything, and the silence from the authorities was starting to make things feel worse. Where were the police? Why wasn't there a single council worker out here trying to sort this out?
Luka circled back to the group, hands in his pockets. "People are still saying it’s an EMP. But even I can see the writing on the wall. Doesn't explain the UI, or why phones are useless but buildings with solar panels are still ticking over. That corner shop’s still got their vape deal flashing in the window. There's got to be a reason some stuff works while others don't."
Parmo shifted uneasily. "Sounds like everyone’s just making it up as they go. None of this makes sense."
Before Leo could answer, a man came running down the street. He looked like he’d seen a ghost, his face slick with sweat and his breathing ragged. The sight of him turned the crowd's confusion straight into dread.
The man swallowed hard, gasping for air. "Does anyone know where the police are? Or anyone from in there?" He pointed toward the Civic Centre. "I need to talk to someone. Everything past Murray Street... it’s completely gone!"
The square went quiet. Eyes flicked toward the north-east side of town.
Phil frowned. "What d'you mean gone? Blocked off?"
The man shook his head violently. "No. The road ends. Like the town’s been cut off. Past that, there’s just grass. Open fields. No houses, no roads, nothing familiar. It’s like the world just ended once you get so far from the town centre."
Sam’s brow furrowed. "If that’s true, this is way worse than we thought."
Leo looked at the UI hovering in his vision, then back at the panic continuing to bubble up in the crowd. People were getting more and more agitated, looking ready to bolt at the first sign of danger. Then, a voice cut through the noise, calm, firm, and familiar.
"Right. Listen up, folks."
Heads turned. Mike Ellis stepped forward. He was in his fifties, broad-shouldered and weathered, with grey hair tied back and a salt-and-pepper beard. He wore an old denim jacket over a faded band T-shirt. Everyone in Monkhaven knew Mike; he was an ex-fireman who’d spent two decades keeping things together while everyone else panicked.
He didn't raise his voice, but the square went silent anyway. He raised his hands, grounding the crowd.
"Phones are down, power’s spotty, and something weird’s happened, aye," Mike said. "But standing about sweating and guessing won't fix anything. If you’ve got little ones or anyone fragile with you, get them inside the Civic. It’ll be cooler in there. Anyone inside already, make sure they’ve got water. Simple stuff, yeah?"
The tension didn't vanish, but it shifted into motion. A woman in a barista apron spoke up. "I’ve got bottled water in the back of the cafe. It’s not much, but it’s something."
"We’ve got a first aid kit at the salon," another voice added. "I'll grab it."
Small offers and ideas started being voiced. It wasn't a plan, but it was enough to stop people from freezing. Leo watched from the edge, his arms folded tight. It helped, seeing the shift from panic to movement, but it didn't solve the core problem. There were still no sirens. No council workers. With this many people gathered at the Civic, that absence was deafening.
Phil turned to the others, his eyes tracking the edge of the square. "What about that guy? The one going on about the street ending?"
"We should go check," Luka muttered. "We’ll let you know what we find, Mike."
Mike nodded once, his eyes flicking briefly toward the edge of town before turning back to the crowd.
"Well," Phil said, trying to lighten the mood as they started walking. "Let’s see if the anime screen thing is still the weirdest part of today."