Cold… that was the only thing Solonar could feel as his mother's blood seeped into the cracks of the alleyway.
Tears trickled down his cheeks as he stared at the morbid scene—four lifeless bodies sprawled across the concrete.
***
A few days earlier
"Hey kiddo, I'm off to work. Don't stay up too late for me, alright?" Misty said softly, nudging the blanket-covered figure on the couch.
No response—but she knew he was awake. She always did.
"I know you're upset," she continued, her voice laced with motherly warmth. "But you know I have to work."
Solonar stirred, his stubborn silence cracking. He turned toward her, catching those hazel eyes—sharp, mesmerizing, framed by light makeup and a touch of red lipstick. She looked radiant.
"Just promise me you'll be careful," he said, voice low, tight, filled with worry. "It's not safe out there."
"You know it's not safe anywhere," Misty replied with a soft chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. But the truth in her words only deepened his worry.
"Just promise me," he said again. "Tomorrow is… 'the day' ," hesitating before saying the last part in a barely whisper.
She paused, hand on the doorframe. "Alright. I promise. And you—get some sleep. Only people sixteen and up get taxed, remember?"
Solonar swallowed. The words hung between them like rent notices and forcefield hums. The city took a cut of what people stored in their emocores every collection day; that energy fed the walls which kept the beasts at bay.
'Doesn't help that I'm turning sixteen next month' he thought, forcing a smile he didn't feel.
Misty's mouth tightened for a second. She stood there a moment longer than she needed to — like she was working something out that she wasn't going to say.
"Your coat!" Solonar called out, his voice rising slightly.
His voice prompted her to glance down at her outfit—a black, tight-fitting crop top with a plunging neckline and a mini-skirt that clung to her curves.
It was a treat for sore eyes.
Solonar hated how much attention it drew—how it made her a target in a world that didn't care. He knew she wore it for work.
For survival.
And yet, all he saw was danger stitched into every seam.
Misty's gaze shifted from her outfit to his face. The worry etched into his features warmed her heart.
For Solonar's sake, she grabbed the coat from the hook and draped it over herself.
She smiled at him and stepped into the night.
Solonar watched the door close behind her, dread curling in his chest.
A few days ago, another woman in her line of work had been found dead. No suspect. No leads. Just silence.
He was smart enough to realize the silence from law enforcement was due to the fact they weren't actually looking for the suspect because the victim was a tier 3 citizen.
The tiers marked social status but for tier 3 citizens, they were more like shackles.
Solonar, still laying on the old couch, stared out the window of their small apartment toward the dark night sky.
…
Misty could see the intimidating shimmering middle city gates in the distance, she could feel the powerful force it was emitting from afar, these were the only gaps in the forcefield that separated the middle city from the outer city.
"Sigh, here we go again" Misty exhaled and muttered under her breath, she took off her coat and hastened her steps.
Within a few minutes she was in the line of sight of the military officers stationed at the gates to the Tier 2 part of the city.
"HALT!!" an officer with a grey badge on his uniform shouted.
The grey badge signified his rank was higher than the other two who just had plain uniforms.
"What's a rat like you doing so far away from the gutters you call home", he sneered, the other two guards behind him had the same look on their faces, openly displaying their disdain.
"No need to be so harsh officer~~" misty said as she continued forward slowly and unfazed by their words, her hips swaying side to side, her voice and movement seemed to be laced with a hypnotic effect.
"aren't we all friends here~" she continued in the same alluring tone now standing directly in front of the officer.
A stern look could be seen on his face "Those cheap tricks won't work on me," he said seemingly unaffected by whatever she was doing.
"I can't say the same for those two behind you." Misty replied with polite smile on her face seemingly taunting the grey badge.
The other two officers were standing not far behind with flushed faces.
They seemed to be in a trance-like state.
"That's enough, display your identification." the grey badge said with a frustrated sigh, a slight pinking tint forming on his face as he spoke. He wasn't completely invulnerable.
Misty stretched out her arm for him to scan the watch on her wrist, reveling in her triumph. The air around her returned to normal and the two dazed officers were released from their trance-like state.
One of the previously dazed officers stepped forward to confirm her credentials with metallic handheld scanner, the machine made a whirr sound while it displayed the information with a hologram.
The officer holding the scanner couldn't help but sneak a few glances at Misty while his superior inspected the information. Whatever she did still had lingering effects.
Name: Candace stone
Citizen grade: tier 3
Emocore type: Desire
Power level: Grade 2 empath
"You're free to go" he said after inspecting the information on the hologram.
With a sly smile on her face Misty stepped through the gate.
The clean road, air that didn't smell like trash and smoke were clear signs that she was no longer in the outer city.
Soon enough she hailed a flying taxi and was on her way night job, the club where she worked.
'Don't worry Solonar, we'll be living here soon', she thought to herself, closing the cab door.
"I wonder why a grade 2 empath would choose to remain in the outer city." the grey badged officer thought to himself as he watched the taxi take off in the distance.
….
"Hey Candace— good to see you again!" a bald-headed man said in a loud cheerful tone when he noticed the approaching figure of a particular blonde woman beyond the sea of teenagers and adults trying to get in.
The neon sign that read: "The blue cherry" cast a soft glow unto his face.
She walked to the front of the line of people waiting to get into the night club, snarls of discontent teasing her ears, but she paid no mind to them.
"You see me almost every week James." Misty said with a polite smile on her face.
"I see you almost every night, and I'm happy each time." James said, returning a wide grin to misty.
His smile was infectious now she was a smiling ear to ear.
Just as she was about to walk past the burly man, he blocked her path slightly—standing in front of her.
James lowered his head slightly and whispered into Misty's ear; "someone from the inner city is inside, y'know it's not every time we see their kind around 'ere, be careful." James said with slight worry in his tone, he moved out of the way and let her continue walking into the club, with a stern expression on his face he resumed his duty as the security guard of The blue cherry.
'The inner city, it's been a while….'