Vayne woke up to silence. The rain seemed like it had stopped. His line of sight shifted toward the entrance to his makeshift shelter. There was a dull gray glow that seeped in through the gaps in the scrap panels. He sat up slowly. His clothes were still slightly damp, hanging where he had left them. The fire had burned down to embers. The air felt a lot colder without it.
He glanced towards the parcel. Staring at it for a moment, then pushed himself up slowly. His body felt a lot heavier than usual. The faint ache in his head hadn't fully gone away.
"...Fay."
"Yeah."
A shadow stretched from outside into the shadows of the shelter.
Vayne didn't respond back. He was just making sure Fay was still there.
He stared at the entrance a little longer.
His clothes were mostly dry now. Although they were still cold. He pulled them on, fastening the strap across his chest and securing the parcel at his side. He glanced down at his watch.
[ 7 UNITS ]
No updates or notifications still that same message.
[SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY]
And his ongoing mission.
[LOCATION: WITHIN PROXIMITY]
"You have to turn it in today."
Vayne already knew that. He stepped outside. The scrapyard was quiet as usual. The ground was wet. The sky above him looked dull and gray. Vayne moved through the scrapyard towards the fence.
Going past the fence he walked through the narrow roads of the lowline district.
A yawn crept up on him. He lifted a hand to his mouth, stifling it halfway. His eyes watered slightly before settling again.
"Tired?"
Fay's voice murmured faintly from his shadow.
"Didn't get to sleep much."
Vayne kept walking. He cut through a narrow alley with a collapsed wall. He went through one of the only roads where the lights actually worked. After quite some time. A tall building came into view.
This building was way cleaner than its surroundings. Its lights didn't flicker. A worn sign hung above the entrance.
DELIVERY CENTER
Vayne stopped just short of the door.
"They won't kick me out because I'm suspended right?"
Fay replied.
"I dunno."
"..."
Vayne's line of sight was fixed on the door.
Fay didn't speak right away.
Then—
"You ever wonder why everything goes through here?"
Vayne's eyes shifted slightly.
"What."
Fay's form shifted closer to Vayne's feet.
"Everything in the district ends up here at some point. And it all comes back through here too."
Vayne finally looked down a little.
"…So."
Fay hesitated. For a second—longer than usual.
"It's where they sort things."
"Things?"
"People too."
Vayne's back straightened slightly. He had been here countless times before. There was nothing new about it. Yet something felt slightly off this time. It wasn't enough to stop him from going inside. But just enough to make him less eager to step in.
Vayne pushed the door open. It didn't creak dramatically or anything. It just made a dull click as it opened. The inside looked the same as always.
Behind the counter—
Someone was asleep.
She was slouched deep into her chair, one leg hooked over the armrest, the other barely touching the floor. Long light brown hair, held back by a headband, drooped all the way to the floor. Her head was tilted to the side. One arm was resting on the counter near an empty cup.
Vayne stopped in front of the counter. He let out a quiet sigh. Fay's shadow stretched faintly at his feet.
"She looks quite busy."
Vayne ignored Fay. He set the parcel down on the counter nudging it forward a little.
There was no change. She was still asleep.
"...Hey."
Vayne's voice was not enough to wake her up it seems. She didn't even react.
He tapped on the counter once. She flinched slightly.
"…mm—what…"
Her eyes barely opened halfway. They weren't focused but vaguely pointed in his direction. After a long pause she yawned.
"…You again," she mumbled.
"Aren't you supposed to be working?"
"I am working," she said.
She rubbed one eye, still slouched.
"…Drop-off?"
"Yeah."
"Mm."
She didn't move. Vayne waited. She had her head down on the counter.
"Are you gonna take it?"
"I am taking it."
Vayne just stared blankly with his usual listless expression.
"You're not doing anything."
"I'm getting there."
Fay murmured, amused.
"An impressive pace."
She finally looked up, lifting her head off the counter. She dragged the parcel closer with her hand. Her chin dropped into her palm as she looked it over without much interest.
Then she turned it. Her hand stopped.
"Oh?"
She leaned forward slightly, brushing one of the loose pieces of hair back under her headband. Her eyes settled on the seal pressed into the back.
Her lazy slouch didn't disappear, but she was holding herself up now. She glanced up at him.
"Do you know what this is?" she asked.
"Not really."
"Mm."
She looked back at the seal, quiet for a second.
"You were scouted, and you've passed the first screening—congratulations."
Vayne just stood there staring at her blankly.
"...Right"
He had a vague idea of what this meant. Fay had given him the parcel for this reason, after all.
"Anyway."
She straightened her back a little more—not fully, but enough to actually do her job now.
Her hand moved under the counter, pulling out a scanner. She nudged the parcel into position.
She scanned the parcel. A short beep.
"Fifty-five."
Vayne's eyes shifted.
"…Units?"
"Yeah."
That was a lot. Vayne's brows pulled up just slightly, like he was trying to confirm he heard that right.
The woman set the scanner down with a soft tap. She pushed the parcel fully onto her side of the counter. Under the desk she pulled out a thin, rectangular device. It flickered to life as she tapped it, a faint blue glow lighting up her face. She pressed something on the side of it and held it near her ear.
"Yeah. I need an escort request."
She paused. After a while she frowned slightly. She tapped it again.
"...Hello?"
Silence.
She stared at the screen for a second, then lowered it.
"Gah... of course."
She let out a quiet sigh, longer than before.
"Line's dead."
She stared at the device for another second hoping it might fix itself. Which it didn't.
"Yeah... I'm not dealing with that."
Vayne waited. She glanced at him, then reached down again—this time digging around a bit longer. She grabbed a dark rectangular box which had a glass lens on the front. She pointed it up at Vayne's face.
Click
A bright light flashed from the lens. Vayne closed his eyes and flinched back. The woman looked down at the device. A faint glow flickered across its surface as the image processed. She tapped on it once more and then set the device down.
Vayne just stared at her, confused. He had never seen anything like that before. Finding working tech around here was like hitting the jackpot—not that he was ever lucky enough to. The only tech he had was his watch, the kind only people in debt got. Which, in the Lowline district, was basically everyone.
The woman reached back under the counter. She pulled out a thin card. Dark, smooth, and had a faint strip running across it. She placed it on the counter and slid the device over it. Then a soft light spread across the surface of the card. A faint outline formed, then it filled in with his face and info.
She put the device away and squinted her eyes at the result.
"Yeah, this should be fine."
She slid the card toward him.
"You'll need this."
Vayne picked it up, turning it slightly in his hand.
"What's this for?"
"Access," she said. "For getting up."
He looked down at the card. Then glanced up.
"Thanks."
He wasn't very enthusiastic to go up. The other districts were probably more lavish than his own. But leaving Lowline after spending all of his life here felt a little unnerving.
He turned towards the door. And started walking.
"Hey."
He stopped and turned around. She was already slouching again, one arm hanging off the side of her chair.
"Head to the center square," she said. "Find a patrol officer."
She pointed at his card.
"Show them that. They'll take you up."
She yawned as she spoke.
"Find Dr. Galen when you get up to the Ashen Ward."
Vayne responded.
"How am I supposed to find one person?"
"He'll be easy to find, don't worry."
She shrugged lazily.
"He's kind of a big deal."
She closed her eyes and slouched back in her chair.
"You'll find him—or he'll find you if you take too long."
That made Vayne hesitate.
What does that even mean? How would he even find me?
The way she said it sounded a little ominous. He's been alone his entire life. He wanted to avoid talking to people as much as he could. Given his current circumstances, it seemed likely he would be interacting with many more people moving forward.
He just gave a slight nod.
"Okay."
She gave a lazy wave of her hand, already done with the conversation.
"Don't lose it."
Vayne stepped out. The door shut behind him with the same dull click. Fay stretched along the ground beside him.
"Well," Fay murmured, quieter now, "That's probably the second district."
"Yeah."