Disguise

It rained as usual.

Vi watched the droplets drift carelessly through the air. They blew gently in the breeze, descending upon the dark city of Arnem. 

She sat quietly on the rooftop of the crew´s safe house, her body laid back but tense, trying to make as little sound as possible. This was one of the few places she could find solitude. 

She wore an overcoat too big for her stature, an old one she convinced Trap to give her. 

Vi gently ran her fingers against her wristband again. She watched the empty and dimly lit streets stretching out like a web below her. The air was heavy and the mists were visible once more, though faint and barely noticeable. It felt just like that day six years ago. 

Ghoul activity. Somewhere nearby.

She heard footsteps a short distance away, then the slanted window on the rooftop snapped open and Rash´s voice called out, "Trap´s been looking for you again." Iris sighed as he closed the window at once. 

"Kind of why I came here in the first place," she thought, and wished she had used some of her Tech to remain hidden, stay holed up there longer. But no, she could not waste it. It was too precious, and their next job would be all but safe.

 Vi heard the sound of glass smashing downstairs and quickly scrambled up and made her way back inside. She went down the staircase through the hallway, until she found another set of stairs leading to the basement.

"Where do you always disappear to?" Trap shouted as she came into view. Vi jumped slightly at the sudden sound but then looked down at her feet, not making eye contact. She almost instinctively bit her lip in anger but did not let the hatred and rebellion show in her eyes. Instead, she simply looked down, trying to look as weak as possible.

"Closer," Trap said, and her eyes widened. She quietly obeyed, until she was standing directly in front of him. She closed her eyes shut. He growled, then raised his hand and backhanded her across the face. The force of the blow jerked her body backward until her head hit the wall and she collided weakly against it, her left cheek blazing with pain. 

Trap studied her for a moment as she got back up again. "This is an important job. Mess this up and you´ll be back on the streets, girl." 

She nodded curtly, tasting blood on her lip as she finally looked up to Trap. She must have let some of her emotion show, though, because Trap´s expression became even more furious. He was going to strike her again. 

Desperate, Vi used some of her Tech. She directed it at herself and noticed Trap´s eyes grow wide as he slowly lowered his hand. He stood still for a moment, then turned away. Iris felt relieved and stopped as Rash entered the room hastily. 

"What´s the ruckus?" he asked, then looked over towards Trap. He noticed the blood on Vi´s face, staring intensely at her. "We need her. To pull this off."

"I know!" Trap barked, spit spraying from his mouth. Rash nodded and quickly left. Vi said nothing, retreating herself at once. "Honestly," he said, as she turned to walk towards the door. But Trap´s back was turned and he did not object.

So Vi left. "He won´t hit me again. Not tonight." As far as she had seen, the beatings were merely a tool to assert his control over his crewmembers. He never overdid it, not with Vi, maybe because she was a girl. Maybe because she was the only one in the band of thieves who had her Tech. 

As for the bruise tonight, she was strong enough to deal with it. She had done so before. 

As she walked back down the hallway alone again, her mind strangely wandered back to the rain. They seemed so kind... and uncaring... and free. Vi imagined what that would be like. Sometimes she wished she could escape, run away and run beyond Arnem, to a better place. Far beyond the Shroud.

Maybe to the land above. Her father had talked about the overworld constantly. About how there was no ceiling above their heads out there. And how, instead, it was a shade of blue, stretching out endlessly. How the air was warm at certain times of the year and cold at the others. About how there were bodies of land called mountains, which reached high up into the sky. 

She had never seen the outside land in her life. Nor had anyone else, for that matter. You could not leave even if you wanted to. The Monarch and his Prowlers made sure of that. 

On top of that, the incident six years ago left her bound to Trap´s crew. Even if she could steal some Darcs and run, she would not survive alone for long. But, the lair was not her home. 

None of them even knew her real name was Iris. "Vi" was just a front.