Okay so, dystopian au time. Heavily inspired by a certain band with a certain 2010 album that means everything to me. Let’s go!
So its 20XX, the world has gone to shit after a huge nuclear war and bio plague that has stripped humanity back to its more basic forms. Most nations are split into two sections. The City and the Wastes. Within the City walls are the most futuristic things imaginable; high glass buildings, everything covered in bright screens constantly flashing advertisements and messages from the people in charge. The sky is just a dome that displays a perfect summer day or clear star filled night. The streets are patrolled endlessly like clockwork to keep people in line, make sure no one has slipped through from the Wastes. Everything looks picture perfect at all times. People smile and wave at each other, there’s music but it’s little more than just lofi, food that all tastes the same, art that’s carefully curated to not be inspiring.
Everyone who lives in the City is essentially a drone. Everyone is drugged to no longer feel anything but merely calm. There’s no anger or sadness or joy or pain. It’s just all on the same one level.
Of course the people, the family, in charge is different. They can access pure happiness in a pill taking instant effect. Anything you can feel has been distilled down into a single capsule. The son, that isn’t labelled as a prince but may as well be, has been brought up with none of those things. Bred to be a perfect example of modern living.
Steve has never felt a single thing in his life.
Now, on the outside in the Wastes, are the undesirables. Those with personalities not fit to live in the Cities, so were left to die in the endless deserts and mild nuclear fallout. Those who didn’t just eventually die grew together, created towns based around gas stations and random buildings that didn’t crumble to nothing. They’re outlaws and love it! Free to feel and think and just be human. Life is rougher sure, there’s barely enough food and water needs to be caught from acid rain and distilled and decontaminated into plastic jugs, but it’s actually living.
Billy’s heritage kept him out of the City, not that he’d care to even be in there. He’s got his car and is part of a gang; The Banshees. Decked out in leather and chains, tattoos and piercings and as loud as can be. Travelling from dust bowl to dust bowl doing odd jobs, deliveries, racing rivals gangs who think they’re the shit to only be proved otherwise by Billy’s beast of a car. His absolute pride and joy. The camaro body with no roof, a rumbling V12 under the hood and of course skulls and flames painted all down the side, weaved around exhaust pipes. Nicknamed Gravedigger because foes may as well die than think he can be beaten in a race. Billy isn’t the leader of the gang, but that’s okay. It looks like far too much work and not nearly enough fun. Why plan a raid when you can drive to the dunes and rave until morning?
So how do these two meet? Simple. Steve is stolen from the City in a daring midnight raid. An idea cooked up over too much homemade hooch in the gang’s gas station base. Getting into the City isn’t all that hard, Billy does it all the time for supplies and tools, more modern engine parts to keep his baby purring, so he leads the way. Guiding the Banshees through the checkerboard streets. With enough noise to wake the dead Steve is grabbed from the streets and driven away in a wild chase. He doesn’t understand what’s happening but his eerie calmness is more than enough to put Billy on edge, who is in charge of keeping the little prince safe for the time being. Until ransom demands are met to free the people of the City, let them feel real things again, and get more supplies out to the Wastes to those that are dying. No one is expecting it to be quick.
Billy is put in charge of detoxing Steve, keeping him inside and opening his eyes to the real world and not the lies he’s been taught since birth. It’s tough. How do you teach someone how to feel happiness? That the bubbling in his gut is nerves and not just indigestion? That tears don’t mean his eyes are broken and need to be replaced with newer models?
For a long while Billy hates this overgrown baby; who’s had every privilege the world can offer thrown at his delicate feet, who doesn’t eat or drink anything for days because it isn’t vacuum sealed, who just stares at the wall but frequently tries to escape back to the familiar bright lights in the far distance once the detoxing starts to kick in and he realises what’s actually happening. After a while Billy finds out Steve actually has a personality; a dry sense of humor, and also isn’t as clumsy as his looks make him appear. He finds out that Steve loves to talk, isn’t usually allowed to within the City, but boy does he have stories and secrets to share. His head is full of them! Steve is a lot more useful than just a chip to be played, he could be the main piece to bring down the whole unjust world order, he just needs to be convinced to stay, and with how close the guys grow over time, that isn’t too hard at all...
