All she could see was darkness, lights flashing behind her eyelids.
The words of whoever was speaking never reached her ears—everything was muffled and loud all at once.
She felt something press into her sternum and a moment later pain shot through her chest, her eyes snapping wide open.
"Hands off!"
Pushing whoever away, her vision swam through shapes blurring together. Gasps slipped out of her while the man tried to speak.
"—?"
Their voice blurred into a single, continuous sound. She tried to stand—only for her legs to give way. She hit the cramped floor face-first, her shoulder jerking when her jacket caught on something and yanked her sideways.
"Cuidado lady, let me he—"
She pushed the hands away and the person stepped back, finding herself looking eyes with a man. Her dark blue hair slid across the ground, hued with faint wine. Her eyes dilated, the blur in her vision gradually fading. She swallowed nothing before forcing out the words.
"Where am I?"
She felt a vibration coming from her wrist but ignored it before grabbing the gurney beside her and standing carefully.
Her head thumped.
Her palms ached, her joints full of exhaustion.
"In an ambulance."
The man answered, his wheat-colored hair gleaming under the cabin lights. A shiver ran through her from the chill.
Something hanging from her hip let out a low, sharp whistle. Metal vibrated—far too loud in the moment, the cabin amplifying it before the sound tapered off a second later. The air inside began to warm when a hand shoved itself into her face.
"I cant let you do that, They're outside if I need to tell them."
His tone, flatness above all.
" you'd be billed for all the damages."
She stared at the paramedic, looking past the glasses and into his eyes, her grip on the gurney loosening.
She backed off, lifting herself onto the gurney. Her knees throbbed, popping under her weight before she sank slightly into the orange pad, which let out a muffled groan of its own.
"How long...was I out?"
She asked while her body eased enough for her spine to curve gently. The paramedic leaned in, a gloved hand extending toward her neck—holding her gaze for a long second.
"Veinte—twenty minutes since we arrived. Puedo...?"
She furrowed her brows and turned her head to the side. She felt something taken out, then straightened herself.
The man pulled back with something clenched in his grasp, then spun around on a stool—doing whatever it was paramedics did, something she couldn't bring herself to care about.
She looked down at the back of her hand, too exhausted to do anything else. It was covered in small bandages. The bracelet around her wrist buzzed again.
She stayed quiet, her eyes drifting to the little white pouch resting on her thigh. She stared at it until the man spun her way.
"tá bien todo, nothing's broken except for the mild pain yes?"
The man finally spoke, a few things resting in his hand. A thought crossed her mind while her tired gaze lingered on his tinted glasses.
"Yeah...I...I want out."
Her voice—soft, the crash of adrenaline already settling in her blood. The man only nodded. He turned to his side and opened a cabinet, pulling out a few things, reaching over the desk for a tablet, pressing at the screen, then finally turning everything toward her.
"Just sign...right...here."
He tapped the bottom of the screen with each enunciated word, ignoring the text above it. She raised a hand.
One of the bandages on her finger had peeled back just enough for the small, glossy rock stuck in her skin to shimmer under the light.
She signed her name, scrolled down with a light swipe, and hit accept. The man picked up the few items and set them beside her while the screen finished loading.
Ping!~
She peeled her gaze from the rock.
A list of notifications dropped down the wall behind the man, off to the side, cutting into her field of view. The top notice took center, loading quickly.
The discharge and refusal form—the one she had just signed over. She gave it a brief peek before looking away, the notice fading right after. Her hands reached for the small pile beside her, pulling everything together and slipping it into the white pouch at her side.
She swung her legs over and slid off the gurney, her shoes hitting the floor before taking a quick inventory. Her fingers moved over her pockets and the panel on her right, counting softly under her breath.
"Didn't touch anything."
The paramedic muttered without looking up, catching his breath midway.
"Si falta algo, así te encontré."
The patter of rain outside seeped into her ears, the steady tapping on the roof. Raindrops sliding down the windows. She caught her jacket, sliding down one shoulder, and pushed it on without a second thought.
Glancing over her shoulder, she found the man typing on his tablet. She reached behind her back for the hoodie and slid it over her head.
"Open it."
Without a word, he leaned sideways and hit a button, the locks releasing with a solid thunk.
Her hands found the tufts of feathers on her head—painted a dark amber with the occasional spotted white and brown. She grasped two clips on the hoodie and pinched her tufts with them.
She turned to the rear doors, grabbed the handle, and pushed down. Wind howled through the sudden gap, cold wet air rushing inside. She hopped out, the soles of her shoes slapping against the wet concrete that barely kept her from falling.
Flashing orange lights reflected on the puddles. Around her, red and blue lights washed across her body and eyes.
The rain hit her harder than she expected, narrowing her eyes.
She spun around, searching for the rest of her gear. Its size made it easy to spot, even with the downpour hammering her. The ambulance's rear doors slammed shut on their own, the thump in her head fading at the same moment.
The clear hoodie gave her an unobstructed view in every direction. She took a few steps forward before an icon appeared in the distance. Wind pushed against the jacket, the white wool underneath soaking through and weighing her down even more.
The faint icon that appeared ahead—shaped like a simple wallet.
It drifted farther, moving like something tugged it across the ground. A thin line connected it to her stuff, almost lost behind the droplets.
She pushed through until only a few feet remained between them. Her eyes landed on the figure dragging it, visibly struggling. The icon faded away while her steps echoed around them, slow and heavy.
"What are you doing?"
Her voice was barren of most emotion—too tired, too exhausted to raise it.
"Go away! I found it first!"
The voice cracked—young and rough, forcing itself to sound older. She kept moving without pause.
"Move or I'll make you."
Her tone turned irritated when the figure ignored her, her patience thinning by the second. She clicked her tongue, and her bracelet began vibrating once more, souring her mood even further.
"I said...move!"
She kicked the person square in the shoulder, sending them stumbling into the wet street. Her leg snapped at them again like the thunder high above, frustration driving her foot.
"Ack!"
They stumbled backward, clutching their arm as the hoodie slid off. Her expression didn't change. She met their eyes and dismissed the panic in their stare. A malnourished teenager.
That was all it was—ranting about the unfairness.
step.
The figure dragged themselves backward through the rain, then turned and bolted into the night—somewhere she didn't care about. She dropped to a knee and looked through her stuff.
Nothing...taken.
Grey in tone and worn in places, some more than others. She pushed aside the cloth draped over it and rummaged through the small bag, its faded brown color catching the light, the contrast sharp against the red beside it.
WRAA—WRAA—!
Her hands froze at the blare of a siren.
She lifted her head and a pair of headlights flashed in quick succession through the rain, her silhouette casting long shadows.
She slowly rose to her feet, ignoring the rest of the items pressed flat on the ground. Each piece remained connected to her gear, washed in the headlights.
The back of her head throbbed and her tool let out a light groan before lifting off the pavement in a soft rise. It bobbed up and down like a living beast, then settled behind her.
Its front angled downward, its body tucking behind her while her mind churned.
Dammit...
The back of her head throbbed, and her gear let out a light groan before lifting off the pavement in a soft rise. It bobbed up and down like a living beast, then settled behind her. Its front angled downward, its body tucking behind her while her mind churned.
FSSHH—!
Ah!—my eyes, you damn imbécil!
The bright, sudden glare forced her to raise one arm over her face. A feeling like she could burn straight through the concrete rose in her.
She stepped cautiously toward the driver's side, the front window rolling down a little. The street stayed mostly empty except for only a cruisers and the lone ambulance nearby.
"Tantos problemas causantes y como me las vas a pagar. How?"
Disinterested. Two in the same.
She stood there, staring through the window while her hand ran through the pouch hanging from her left. Her fingers brushed against something smooth, a bundle of some kind.
She tossed it through the gap and It hit the floorboard softly, followed by a brief rustle inside.
"Five...do what you want with them."
The window slid upward right after, the driver's command echoing through the closing gap.
"Back off."
step...step...step...
The cruiser rolled forward to join the other two at the far end of the street. She let out a sigh through the rain. Her soaked shoes dragged her down. The cold drizzle eased her nerves just enough to face the rest of her worries.
She looked over her shoulder at her kit hiding in her silhouette—its shape barely visible, lit only by the moons above. Her fist clenched in frustration and a single thought pushed through her mind.
⌞Perception.⌝
Its figure began to distort slightly.
She shifted her gaze forward and stepped off, leaving the street for another, doing the same two more times.
Lifting her left hand—the one with the bracelet, she turned it on with a simple tap. An opaqued screen materialized above it, and its curved edges pulled in the light while she brought up the map.
Shoes splashed through shallow puddles, cars cut through the rain and washed the sidewalk in dirty water they never glanced at her stuff but at the clothes she wore.
People passed by beside her silhouette like if it were her. A man nearly walked straight into it, veering aside at the last moment The night, a blanket for her weary spirit.
A few moments later, the bracelet buzzed again. She lifted her hand and pressed a recessed button. The device came to life, a caller ID filling the floating screen—a cute cat with brown, black, and orange fur.
She accepted the call after a brief hesitation, pulling her wireless earbuds from the panel, and sliding one bud into her ear.
Only silence followed, the pitter-patter of rain filling the backdrop of the call. She swallowed once, twice and spoke after some hesitation.
"H—Hey there...um..."
Her stuttering left her bemused, feeling like a fool while she waited for a respond.
A half-laugh escaped her lips, stepping ever so closer to her destination. Looking both ways before crossing a street, too lazy to wait for the pedestrian light.
A soft sigh filled her ear, followed by a feminine voice that massaged her senses, ticking her heart with bliss.
「I've been calling you for thirty minutes, I even made food for us since—you were supposed to come home an hour ago...you said you'd only been gone for a week. Is my food not good enough. Sienna?」
Sienna stumbled over her words, days without speaking to anyone turned her tongue useless. Her voice broke into a strangled noise and a giggle rippled through the line, setting her face on fire with shame.
If someone shone a light on her face, it'd put the red of an intersection to shame. The rain doing little to cool her down.
「So? How was it?」
The voice was light, and teasing—utensils clinking and the faint sizzle of cooking oil echoing behind it, followed by the soft gulp of someone drinking.
Sienna felt the weight of her unintended failure and rubbed her eye while she stopped at a busy crosswalk.
"Terrible. Absolutely terrible. I ended up on a gurney, you know?"
The cooking cut off the instant she spoke.
「Whut.」
"Just kidding~"
The conversation drifted into small talk, unimportant things that filled the empty, the minutes stretching by—the rain still pouring all around.
Eventually, she reached a parking garage. Well, the entrance at least.
"We'll talk later okay? I found my car. Mmm. Mm."
She rested against the narrow booth's wall, sliding down when her finger dipped into a puddle that kept spreading under her shoes.
「Come back in one piece okay? Jaa ne.」
The call disconnected, leaving only the sound of rain filling her mind and numbing her heart.
Sienna exhaled, her shoulders sinking with her reflection in the puddle rippled.
Looking at her face, the raindrop slid down the hoodie and onto the ground. Her eyes shimmering red, just like a camera capturing the eyes of a fowl in the dark.
She drew in a breath and let it out, her breath becoming one with the air.
Stifling a laugh, laughing at her predicament and at her fortune.
Sienna stood up all at once and turned to her side, walking around to the front of the slim booth. No one worked in a place like this at such hour except for the maintenance cleaning crew.
The screen on the booth flickered and shifted into a number pad. A barcode blinked at the top, with the manufacturer's name faint beneath it.
She lifted her bracelet and searched for a specific app before opening it. She aimed at the barcode and snapped a picture.
And not a second later.
Her ticket number and vehicle information appeared, along with a toll. A few hundred in total, nothing severe, even if she wouldn't receive her full pay this time.
"Nine hundred n thirty two pesos."
She pressed pay, and a new barcode appeared. She stared at it and willed it forward, an outline forming in her view. A string of numbers surfaced at the top, and the same amount showed beside it with a minus sign.
The screen on the booth changed as a receipt came out from its side, a joy filled expression took its place. The gate to the parking garage opened—well, the underground version of one at least.
Sienna walked through the gate, and another icon appeared a few meters ahead, a slim green arrow appeared next to it as it pointed downwards while it bobbed in place.
So that's what she did—moving from one floor to the next, walking three levels down. The concrete walls stayed identical the entire way. She unclipped her hood from her feathers and let it fall against her back.
Her car waited near the middle of the row, quiet and beneath the low ceiling lights only married with the presence of a few other cars.
She walked up to it and dug through her pockets, pulling out a small bundle of keys. After a brief search, she found the right one and unlocked the door. Sierra slid off her jacket and tossed it onto the passenger seat before unlocking the remaining doors with the press of a button.
The door unlatched, and she dropped into her seat. A quick look in the side mirror showed the rear door opening. Her stuff lifted itself into the back seats and the door shut, the lock clicking into place.
She grabbed her pile of keys, slipped the earbud back into its place, and pressed her right foot onto the brake pedal.
Her left foot found the clutch and pushed it to the floor. She slipped the key into the ignition and turned it once. The cluster lit up in a soft glow, followed by the headlights washing the concrete wall ahead in pale light.
Her hand closed around the parking brake. Thumb on the button, she lowered it, then pulled the gear stick into neutral and gave it a quick shake.
Once.
Then again.
Only then did she turn the key over.
The engine cranked for a few seconds with nothing to show for it.
She tried again.
This time, the car roared awake.
Its rough idle climbed unevenly, shuddering through the frame and up into her body. The whole thing trembled around her like it wanted to shake itself apart before settling. At the same time, her bracelet linked to the stereo. Music bled through the speakers, and the volume knob turned on its own until it landed somewhere comfortable.
The exhaust poured its intoxicating smell into her lungs before rolled the window down.
At first, it was only pieces.
A faraway hum. The faint bark of a horn. Wind howling through narrow gaps between buildings.
With the engine finally warm enough, she buckled her seatbelt and shifted into first. She eased off the clutch and let the car creep forward before feeding it more throttle.
The street opened up ahead of her after a couple turns.
By the time she reached the first red light, the city had consumed her.
People moved along the sidewalks in uneven streams.
A woman in office clothes hurried across the crosswalk with her heels clicking sharp against the painted lines. The smell of oil, rain and cooked food wafted together beneath the glow of traffic lights.
She stopped right beside another car.
Red light spilled over the two in long streaks. It painted the glass, the hood and the sharp line of her cheek. Sierra peeled off her hoodie and tossed it over one shoulder, a hand still resting on the wheel.
Green.
She slammed through the gears the second the light changed.
Second. Third. Then down again as she drove it harder, the engine rising through its mounts. Streetlights streaked across the windshield for every storefront blurring into ribbons of color. She shot past glowing signs, shuttered shops, and crowds.
Again.
And again.
Three more times before the city finally thinned enough for the building she had been looking for to rise out from the ground.
Abandoned.
It suited the building just fine.
She killed the high beams and eased the car toward the overgrown lot, the front end nudging through the weeds.
The sound changed the second she crossed the threshold.
She let it coast a little farther before pressing the clutch and brake together, bringing it to a slow stop beneath the dark.
The stereo kept playing for all of three seconds before the music began to warp.
Sierra lifted her wrist.
An opaque screen bloomed above her bracelet.
「Calling...」