Islamabad – February 2027
The crisis came without warning.
A gas shortage, triggered by a frozen LNG contract dispute, spiraled into a week of blackouts across major cities.
Sindh was worst hit.
Furnaces stopped. Traffic jammed. Hospitals rationed oxygen.
Federal ministers scrambled.
Blame flew faster than fuel.
The public raged.
TikTok boiled.
And yet, quietly, in 22 districts… people saw something different.
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Local Response, National Confusion
In Dera Ismail Khan, generators at a rural clinic ran uninterrupted—because the UC Chairman had solar backups installed six months earlier.
In Sukkur, a woman-led NGO partnered with the local SeedNet contact to set up LPG distribution booths within 48 hours—bypassing hoarders.
In Layyah, an "independent" councilor released a full 7-day ration and fuel plan on his Facebook page.
None of them waited for a federal order.
None of them blamed Islamabad.
They just acted.
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The Forest Has Awakened
Ali Mahmud was first to notice.
SeedNet lit up with alerts:
#FP-9, #FP-3, #FP-5.
They were Forest Protocols—crisis response modules designed a year ago by a backchannel team led by Rayan, meant for eventual rollout.
They were never officially launched.
Now, they were spontaneously activated.
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Zara's Realization
Zara sat stunned, watching the SeedNet map light up like a constellation.
> "They're moving without instructions," she whispered.
Rayan didn't look surprised.
> "Exactly. That was the point."
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The Media Twist
News anchors initially ignored the local responses.
But then, a young reporter in Quetta did a live segment from a functioning Seed-led fuel bank while the rest of the city froze.
> "This is not the work of the state.
It's not even the work of an NGO.
These are the children of something new."
The clip went viral.
Again.
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Backlash, But Too Late
In a National Security Council meeting, the term "Forest Protocol" was mentioned 12 times.
Some generals called it parallel governance.
One senator called it digital insurgency.
But the intelligence liaison present—Faraz Shah, the one who once resisted and then joined Rayan—leaned forward:
> "They're not rebelling. They're filling the vacuum we created."
Silence.
> "Shall we dismantle it?" one bureaucrat asked.
> Faraz shook his head. "You can't uproot a forest."
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Final Scene: Rayan's Flat, Midnight
Ali: "You expected this to happen after 10 years."
Rayan: "It's happening in two."
Zara: "Is that good or bad?"
Rayan, staring at the map:
> "It means I'm no longer in control."
He smiles.
> "That means it's working."