At five in the afternoon, the sun showed no signs of restraint. The streets of Mars Central City were cut into patches of varying light and shade by the shadows cast by the tall and short buildings on both sides.
On the sidewalks, pedestrians either buried their heads in the crowd and walked briskly or stood in groups of two or three on the roadside, talking loudly. Others waited anxiously, watching the atomic clock on the bell tower at the street corner, while some strolled aimlessly, gazing at the shop windows.
On the truck lane, heavy trucks loaded with supplies rolled by slowly, making a loud noise. Closer to the center, flying cars sped by silently on the flying lane, their roof height lamps and tail brake lights flashing intermittently, forming two roaring streams of traffic.
