A civil servant investigates the app that runs London—then it all goes dark.
Who drives the story
An ORDA civil servant tasked with investigating The Wakk, the platform that runs London. He uncovers the WakkyDollar plan and the kill switch behind the Great Unwinding, then loses everything digital and rebuilds analog.
Loz's wife, a successful architect behind the exclusive tower The Cube. Her monument to elite isolation is targeted by protestors, abandoned, squatted—and her career's meaning collapses with it.
Loz and Kit's teenage son, fully embedded in Wakk culture. When the platform dies, his behaviour and safety become the family's sharpest worry.
Loz's data analyst colleague at ORDA, whose technical insights expose the vulnerabilities in The Wakk's system.
The senior Wakk Corporation figure Loz confronts, embodying the amoral, technocratic ethos that let the crisis happen.
How they are connected
Laurence 'Loz' ShepherdThe Wakk executive
An ORDA civil servant tasked with investigating The Wakk, the platform that runs London.
Loz and Kit's teenage son, fully embedded in Wakk culture.
Josh ShepherdThe Wakk executive
Loz and Kit's teenage son, fully embedded in Wakk culture.
Loz's data analyst colleague at ORDA, whose technical insights expose the vulnerabilities in The Wakk's system.
Go deeper
Who guards the guards? · Crisis as opportunity · Digital dependence and its withdrawal · Class, architecture and resentment
Themes explainedThe full story act by act, the ending explained and a quick quiz.
Open the summary