*Law of the City

Intro: I'm not exactly sure where this story came from. It was just my brain wandering. I may do something with the setting but I don't know if I will do something with the exact characters.

Heber City celebrated the nation's 700th birthday like every other city. People moved through the streets in herds. Even with the fast paced life, traffic was slow. More than once traffic jams occurred for weeks on end.

The small section of railroad tracks divided the city like an invisible wall. Though the unused track only extended a a short way through the buildings, the line continued to either end. No one crossed the tracks. There wasn't even danger of being struck by a train. The tracks hadn't been used for years. No vehicle needed tracks, or even roads, to move.

The city extended for nearly a hundred miles on either side of the track. From end to end the small city stretched for a hundred and fifty miles. Yet that number came from an old survey and it didn't include the suburbs which grew every year.

There are two different social groups: homies and drifters. Homies have a place to live. Drifters live on the tracks. They are one of the safest places in town.

Jarryn liked living on the tracks. Today, more than every, it was great. With the celebration going in town he had a great views. All he had to do, was get to the old railroad station before anyone else. With his pack slung over his shoulder, he jogged between the rails. Other drifters were already setting up to watch the parades go by on either side.

Blankets spread across the tin roof but Jarryn's small corner remained clear. His power was complete. Limited but satisfying none the less. He had been accepted as a drifter. Some of the others on roof nodded to him as he sat on the edge, his legs dangling off. The person next to him had the boots Jarryn drooled over every day in one of the nearby shops. By living on the tracks they saved more on rent and put it towards other items.

The parades went on for most of the day. The hover cars and floats were packed with people all dressed in some form of red, white, and blue. When the parades finished on one side, everyone turned and watched the other side of the city's display. The two sides always competed. That was why it was so great to be a drifter. The best of both worlds. And the worst. Get to cozy with one side and it would be dangerous.

As Jarryn and the rest of the drifters collected their stuff, a noise broke out in the crowd. A figure jogged through the milling bodies and up to the track. The drifters raised a hand in greeting but the figure kept going up over the tracks and into the other side of the city. Immediately a cry broke out and the man had to run for his life through the buildings. The Jarryn kept his head down and moved on. No use getting involved. It wasn't worth it.

That was the law of the city. People may live together but they did not share lives.