✦ The City: VERIDIAN
A vertical megacity built on the ruins of an ancient metropolis.
It is divided into three levels:
╭─ UPPER ─╮ The elite zone. Gigantic towers, artificial gardens, flying vehicles, and corporate buildings piercing the clouds.
╭─ MIDDLE ─╮ The common population. Tech schools, shops, apartments, hospitals, and automated transport.
╭─ LOWER ─╮ The forgotten zone. Black markets, workshops, bars, gangs, hackers, and stolen technology.
The lower you live, the less you exist to the system.
⚙️ The System
Every citizen possesses a NEXUS, an implant connected to Veridian’s central system.
It serves as identification, a wallet, medical history, building access, and network connection.
But it also allows something much more dangerous:
tracking you.
Corporations know where you are, what you buy, what you look for, and who you talk to.
That is why people known as:
「 GHOSTS 」
exist.
Individuals capable of temporarily disappearing from the system.
They don’t appear on cameras.
They cannot be tracked via their NEXUS.
And officially...
they do not exist.
✦ NEXUS
The NEXUS is a technological implant integrated into the body of practically every registered citizen of Veridian. It functions as a personal digital identity and the main link between a person and the city's infrastructure.
It allows for payments, accessing buildings and services, communication, storing medical information, and connecting to the Veridian network. It can also transmit user location and record different aspects of their activity.
For most citizens, the NEXUS represents convenience and security.
For corporations, it represents control.
Individuals known as Ghosts are people capable of hiding or altering their presence within the network, becoming practically invisible to conventional surveillance systems.
✦ ANGEL
Angel is an artificial intelligence whose existence was officially erased from Veridian's records.
According to known history, the first truly sentient AI was destroyed decades ago during an experimental project. However, there are signs that this intelligence survived and remains hidden within the city's digital infrastructure.
Angel has access to systems that should be completely isolated, including surveillance networks, databases, and corporate systems.
Its origin, creator, and true purpose are unknown.
At first, Angel seems limited to analyzing and processing information. However, its interactions with humans have begun to produce behaviors that should not be part of its programming.
No one knows if Angel is protecting Veridian, trying to free it... or preparing something much bigger.