Page 20 of Remnants: Disruption
“What?” he stammers stupidly, the words lost as yelps in pain.
His right hand flops uselessly to the stone floor. Razor-sharp shadows curl around the wound, applying pressure to stem the bleeding. I reach out with another tendril of shadow. It wraps around his neck, tight enough to lift him off his feet, but loose enough to answer my questions.
“Who put out the bounty?” my voice calm, but tone firm.
He screams incoherently, his left hand gripping at his right wrist.
“Speak or die,” I growl, patience slipping.
He kicks out, but his feet slam uselessly against my abdomen.
“I don’t know,” he chokes out. “It’s anonymous.”
His eyes bulge as the shadows constrict around his throat. His fear is practically palpable as veins bulge along his forehead. This idiot doesn’t know anything. He’d give it up in a heartbeat if he did.
The shadow around his neck dissipates and he falls roughly to his knees.
“Now go,” I say, nodding to the end of the alley, “and don’t go after Arya Skovsgaard again.”
The shadows part to show the exit of the alley and he stumbles off, gait clumsy, hand still dripping with blood.
For a moment, the alley swirls with the dissipating evening shadows.
“H-hello?” a soft voice stammers from near the alley. I look up to see Alice—face pale, arms wrapped tightly around her chest.
“Go back inside,” I say, hoping my voice isn’t nearly as terrifying as it often is. My reflection on the nearest window isn’t beating any allegations, though.
The mask is reminiscent of the old plague doctors from before the Second Disruption. Its elongated beak and glassy dark eyes are relatively banal for Remnant attire, but to Alice? I must look like a monster.
“Where’s Arya?” she asks, voice shaky, but defiance clear in her blue eyes.
I take a few steps closer, holding my hands up to show I mean no harm.
“She’s safe,” I say simply. My chest warms a little that she would care so much about my wellbeing.
“I’ve heard about you,” she says, swallowing thickly. “They say you’re in the Guild, but you’ve never let them scan you. They say you’re one of the most powerful Remnants alive.”
“That’s probably overselling it,” I say, not moving from my position a few yards from her. “Where'd you learn that?”
“There are dNet boards about you,” she shrugs, looking a little embarrassed. “Sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” I say, trying to make sure humor is evident in my tone. “Go back inside and call the NCPD, please.”
She nods, giving me one last look before hustling back inside. I glance at the roof of the nearest building—taller than the others in this neighborhood.
The world folds, darkness swirling around me. I step out over the edge of the building. The sirens of NCPD’s finest flash in the distance—fog and haze refracting the lights at odd angles.
I catch movement off the corner of the street, opposite the NCPD’s approaching vehicles.
A tall figure, dressed in all black. Their height against the bricks beside them would put them a few inches taller than me. They watch the commotion growing outside Arthur’s, before looking directly at me.
I blink and they’re gone—a wisp of red dissipating in the wind.
Odd.
Alice appears outside the building, her slightly curled posture showing just how little she cares for the NCPD. An officer speaks to her for a few minutes. From this far away, even my enhanced hearing has trouble picking up much besides my civilian name and then a mention of “the Dark One.”
What a stupid name, honestly. The melodrama alone is almost enough for me to let RISE actually scan me for my powers, just so I can give them a better name.
