The dominant institutions are all cyber-socialist trade unions, co-ops, etc that are pretty wholesome and reasonable overall. The society is seemingly Star Trek utopia with less overall physics-defying tech, but post-scarcity in a material needs sense. Based on a future Earth that is still trying to manage the climate apocalypse, but on the path to resiliency and massive rewilding of much of the planet.

The 'heroes' are libertarians trying to take down 'the system' of all these interrelated pluralistic institutions of minimal hierarchy via asymmetrical warfare tactics using crowd funding with little success. They decry the loss of billionaires as an affront to the limitless human capacity for individual brilliance, but they are all very unremarkable individuals themselves.

During the tense scenes throughout their adventures they are constantly bickering over negotiations of the structure and stock ownership of their 'corporate cell' as the conditions change. (think something like Ferengi DS9 infighting dialog)

The ending reveal would be that the daring adventure cyberpunk thrill ride was a psyop LARP managed almost the entire time by the secret federation of institutions to occupy the tiny group of radical libertarians in a non-disruptive timesink. They've been in The Matrix since early in the escapades when they were trapped in a honeypot without realizing it.

This transition into the honeypot VR reality comes via a blackout during an initial heist they attempt. They become jacked in without realizing it. Suddenly the fates begin to smile on them, their crowd funding takes off after their 'successful heist' and a promotional campaign of their RadLibist action. Their constant squabbles are suddenly much easier to resolve usually due to some improbable luck that befalls them.

OK, that's more than I planned to flesh this idea out.

  • UlyssesT [he/him]
    ·
    10 months ago

    I'd love that eleventh hour reveal that all the Main Characters are far more predictably ordinary than their libertarian beliefs made them think they were. sicko-hyper

  • ForgetPrimacy@lemmygrad.ml
    ·
    10 months ago

    Fuckin run with it!

    A really fun setting you've described. I think the honeypot situation sounds like a Third Act transition though. If it happens too early, that's a long time to write convenient victories without the reader noticing. Could be done though, of course.

  • RNAi [he/him]
    ·
    10 months ago

    They too dense to get satire, but sounds great.