I've been hesitant to post this. I randomly found/rediscovered this the other day. But I didn't want to upload it in case I didn't actually write it, you know? But honestly, given the voice, writing style, and choice of name for the protagonist, I'm convinced it was me from another time and place - 2008

Last Day On The Job 

Please disembark from the Mag-Levs in an orderly fashion…be prepared to present identification…watch your step at all times…be aware of surveillance equipment for your safety and convenience…have a pleasant day and look forward to tomorrow! 

The monotonous drone of the voice repeated a looped message of hollow meaning and devoid of any real warmth to it. What was expected from a mechanical loudspeaker? Holo-boards, holographic billboards, constantly shifted, advertising various products and services provided by an automated society. 

Mag-Levs, short for magnetically levitating, were advanced trains that sped along their tracks, much like bullet trains, though built to withstand subsonic speeds as well as numerous other environmental hazards – bullets, plasmablasts, explosions, natural disasters, even weapons of mass destruction. Nothing would keep public transportation from being on time and on schedule. 

Arriving at its destination, the Mag-Lev careened to a halt. The platform and station below it were both filled with tired commuters eager to get home. For Jasper Saito, it was his last day on the job. Not everything had been converted to holograms. He had heard of printed material still secretly circulating throughout the city. Working for the Ministry of Information (or lack thereof, as a media specialist, it was his job to censor and garble what became the news, as well as spin unsavory events that might tarnish the city’s standing with its citizens).      

   He was fed up with his job, and although it was a career position, he grew more disenchanted with it every day. The government already monitored its citizenry in any and every possible way. They didn’t need to be misinformed, deceived, and basically lied to. However, the government was in luck that its populace consisted mostly of docile sheep. Sheep which herded along on their dull daily routine of sleep, wake, work, eat, sleep, and wake again. 

Gyrocycles buzzed along the streets down below the elevated platforms and rails of the Mag-Lev system, while Verticoptors flew by at regular intervals. Shops lined the streets while traffic lights hovered over intersections. Innovation and experimentation dominated the city of Aegis, so named as it was under the protection and leadership of the government, which called itself Aegis as well.

Tomorrow, Jasper intended on quitting. However unlikely his request to resign be met with a cushy severance package, he still had to try. He wanted out.