AfterNet 01 - Good Cop Dead Cop

unexpected move brought the man straight down and his chin whacked into the plywood roof.
    She stood back up and was hoping to get him into a pin long enough to slap her cuffs on him when she saw someone else clambering up the side of the room.
    Oh great, reinforcements, she thought, but then saw that it was the kid who’d helped her up onto the roof. Once on top, he reached down to bring up the girl who’d been clinging to his arm.
    “Get off the roof!” she yelled at them, waving her free arm while still trying to control the man who’d attacked her. They waved back. “Get off the roof! Police officer!” she yelled again.
    The man at the far end of the roof now noticed the other people on the roof and had stopped what he was doing. He was advancing toward them with long, halting strides matching the spacing of the two-by-four ribs. She thought he was carrying either a weapon or a tool.
    The well-muscled kid now reached down and pulled up another person and she saw more hands grabbing the edge of the roof as others tried to pull themselves up. At the same time, the man she had dropped tried getting up. She shifted her position on the two-by-fours to get a better position to handcuff him, but stepped on a knot that splintered under her feet. She lost her balance and fell backward, coming dangerously near the edge. The edge of a two-by-four hit the middle of her back. Her vest cushioned the impact somewhat but the air still whooshed from her lungs. She saw her opponent advancing toward her at the same time she felt hands clawing at her — the hands of other kids trying to get on the roof.
    Munroe was inside the fenced corridor when he saw a man climb onto the roof of the room. Oh crap, they’re going to start. Linda, I think it’s up to you.
    He went through the door of the room. Inside it was dark except for the light coming off displays that ran the length of the room. The panels either showed live video of the rave outside or the chat conversations of the people inside. He also realized the field inside the room very slightly pulsed, probably in time with the music outside.
    He logged in and realized the room was just local, not connected to the AfterNet or Internet. Just like the LoDo rave. They can’t call for help.
    He made up a screen name, this time going for an official tone.
WeldCountyDeputy has entered the room
WeldCountyDeputy: ATTENTION EVERYONE. There is a fire in the school. I want everyone to leave now.
jbruner: ? the hell do I care
wendy.cisneros: whose idea is this
shaggerific: there are no cops in this room
WeldCountyDeputy: I’m dead just like you. Alex Munroe, I’m a sheriff’s deputy. Please leave the room now.
wendy.cisneros: hey somebody just closed the door
    Munroe hadn’t noticed the door closing. He now saw that the man who’d guarded the disembodied entrance was standing on the other side of the glass door, looking in.
    Yamaguchi tried kicking the man who advanced on her, but he simply grabbed her foot. With her free foot, she tried scraping his hands off her foot. She considered going for her weapon, but shooting a man she didn’t know to be armed with all the kids around would be difficult to explain. Just then, hands grabbed at her shoulder and started to lift her. She glanced upward and saw the faces of several kids looking down at her. These stupid kids think I want to go crowd surfing. Lame ass Christians!
    A cluster of kids now surrounded her, lifting her to waist level. Two more kids grabbed her other leg, joining the man holding her foot. Suddenly a sickening crack sounded underneath her and she felt the people holding her stagger and then she was dropped onto the two-by-fours again. With the impact of her body, the cracking turned into the scream of wood being stressed too far. Someone screamed. The entire roof dropped a foot and she slid along a two-by-four until her gun belt caught in the splintered wood.
    Inside the room, Munroe noticed that the man on the other side of the glass door looked up just as the glass door shattered outward, showering him with the shards. Then he noticed that the ceiling above looked dented in places. A two-by-four pierced the black painted plywood and one of the displays crashed to the ground.
    Above, more people were screaming as the roof lurched and tilted. The man who’d grabbed Yamaguchi’s foot now fell backward, off the edge. More people fell as the roof suddenly dropped again, several feet this time. Munroe felt the air