Acid rain pattered through the dark clouds, corroding every corner of the city. The buildings along the streets, the passing cars, the pedestrians—all seemed blurred and decayed, as if eaten away.
In such conditions, most people walking the streets hurried along. Only a few drunks occasionally staggered around, but the acid rain soon sobered them up, and they vanished as quickly as they had appeared.
Beneath the rain, the entire city seemed silent.
"Stop!" A shout suddenly came from a distant street corner. Then a woman in a raincoat dashed out, clutching a small bag to her chest. She ran with all her might, glancing back at the people chasing her.
Special mechanical devices were attached to her legs, giving her a good turn of speed and allowing her to dodge obstacles with precision. The people behind her wore the same kind of devices, but they couldn't catch up anytime soon and could only keep cursing her.
The woman didn't dare let her guard down. Even after opening up some distance, she didn't slow down. But as she passed through an intersection, she collided head-on with someone coming toward her under an umbrella. The momentum threw her off balance, and she was about to go flying when the person she'd hit kindly grabbed her, saving her from injury—but the bag flew out of her hands!
A miniature metal net shot from the device on her arm. It caught the bag, but the bag still hit the ground with a muffled metallic thud.
"Are you all right?" the man asked.
The woman clutched her bag anxiously, but with her pursuers behind her, she didn't want to get caught up with him. She only snapped, "Can't you watch where you're going?" before hurrying off.
The people chasing her came cursing and swearing.