Niq watched Lance go for a moment before Selna grabbed their arm and dragged them into her small workspace. Niq wasn’t sure what the building was before it had been left to rot, but the way that Selna had decorated it almost made Niq feel like they were anywhere but the Forgotten District, no matter how many times they had been there.
The walls were painted a nice dark dullish green, only one large window on the far wall of the room lightly cracked but repaired with some sort of grey clay-like material. A well taken care of sofa was pressed against the wall to the right. A perhaps once circular rug sat on the ground in the middle of the room, looking like a blob of burgundy. Opposite the sofa was a tall bookshelf, filled with small trinkets and baubles, including a magpies feather, a jar of sand, a few extra pretty rocks, and a piece of old construction wood that looked as though it had been struck by lightning. Selna’s desk and chair sat opposite the door, with a small blocky metal device sitting at the center of her grey work table.
Everything in the room looked new at a first glance, however, they all had wear and tear. The sofa had many holes, mended with a slightly different coloured thread with each tear. The bookshelf was water damaged and chipped, the desk was chipped and stained with different coloured pens or similar writing implements. The small mechanical box on her desk had exposed wires and a slightly dented shell but was otherwise the newest thing in the room by far.
“When did you get a new piece of hardware?” Niq asked as they were dragged inside the room, shaking off Selna’s iron grip and making their way towards the desk, examining the item with peaked interests after they closed the solid metal door behind them.
“Just after you visited last Loner dropped in with it. Said it was laggy, but it would get more use here than in the Collectors selection.” She explained as she made her way around the desk and plopped down in her worn leather seat, pulling the chair forward slightly as she stretched her muscular arms forward, waving her hand just above the mechanical device for a few moments, before a light brightened from inside, shining through the many cracks in the system’s frame.
Selna recoiled her hand as a translucent screen of light appeared in the air above the small device, which hummed audibly as it fought to keep the hologram visible. Selna gave a small smirk as she leaned back slightly in her seat. It held Niq captivated as they watched the screen move, form shapes out of light until suddenly, a picture appeared on the screen of a woman who Niq had never seen before, altho it was clear they were seeing a lot.
“Shit!” Selna quickly gasped, her face turning a beet red as she quickly reached forward and slammed her hand down on top of the device, banishing the light and the mildly inappropriate image in one hit.
Niq had already closed their eyes, turning their face away from the screen and keeping their hands firmly over their eyes. Selna sat flustered for a moment before she grabbed the device and quickly swooped it off the desk and into one of the drawers with a slam, all while Niq gave a hearty laugh, feeling their stomach clench as they fought to keep a straight face.
“Wow, Selna didn’t know you were selling that kind of information” Niq chuckled as they removed their hands from their eyes, a light blush over their well-tanned face.
“Oh shut up you scrawny urchin” Selna laughed, her hands cupped over her bright red face as she attempted to hide her shame.
“Guess you must know her pretty well then” Niq taunted as they raised their eyebrows suggestively, still chuckling.
“Oh, would you just!” Selna stood up and playfully, yet forcefully began to aimlessly hit Niq from across the desk, only reinstating their laughing fit as they ineffectively raised their arms as a defence against the attack.
At that moment, Niq heard the door they had previously closed open and turned to see a younger man, about the same age as Niq standing in the doorway, looking over a small piece of tech in his hands. He had dark skin, with a shaved head and large glasses over dark eyes. He was scrawnier than Niq and wore an ill-fitting short-sleeved shirt and what looked like pyjama pants, with small little cats all across the pattern, and bare feet.
“Selna do you know…” Loner trailed off as he noticed the current attack on Niq and gave a sigh as he walked into the room, shaking his head in disappointment. “ why are you two always acting like children?” He asked as he closed the door behind him.
“Puh!” Selna scoffed in disbelief as she tried to find a decent remark to throw back at the more mature teenager. “Says someone wearing kitty cat pants.”
“Says someone looking for a hook- ow!” Niq was quickly silenced as Selna raised her hand again, wacking Niq in the side of the head three times in rapid succession before she returned to her seat with a huff. Loner watched the interaction with a raised brow for a few moments as Niq cackled like a hyena, jerking out of striking distance.
“Anyways.” Loner sighed, rolling his eyes before he set down the small piece of hardware he had been carrying. “Well Niq, I have to hand it to you.” He said as he waved his hand over the small metal and wire cube. “You sure know how to make an exit.”
Before Niq could question what his friend meant, a small holographic screen appeared above the screen, a simple violet image with a spiked line in the middle that moved with every crackling sound that the box emitted.
“Intel Team, report.” an almost robotic female voice began, the line in the middle of the light image spiking up and down.
“Intel Team reporting.” A gruff male voice responded. “The Ranger Street Team reported a sighting of a possible abnormal. They claim that they were following a petty thief when he just vanished.” The voice continued in a very formal yet blunt manor. Niq gave a small huff of annoyance as the misgendering comment. The Abby guard worked in specifics. To them, it didn’t matter what anyone identified as, but rather what they were born as, and Niq didn’t exactly have the most feminine features. It still pissed them off either way.
“What did this individual look like?” The feminine voice spoke again, almost like it was a statement and not a question.
“Looks to be of Hispanic descent, late teens early twentys long curled dark purple hair, tanned skin, ratty clothes. I suspect he is from the Forgotten District, however, there were no visible tattoos according to the team who pursued him.” There was a long pause after the man spoke again, and Niq momentarily heard the faint wooshing of a higher-tech hologram in the background.
“Niq, they got your description and everything! Whatever you were after better have been worth it.” Loner exclaimed angrily, slamming his hand down on the desk with a thud. In any other circumstance, Selna would have yelled at him for getting so angry, but she too took up the concerned and angry look that Loner had in his eyes.
“Niq, do you have any idea what you’ve done? You could have led them right here! For god sake, Niq getting spotted is one thing, but getting spotted and revealing yourself? Do you have any idea what you’ve gotten yourself into….” As Loner spiralled into an angry rant, Niq stood in front of the desk silently, looking down at the ground as they slowly began to tune Loner out.
They knew they were in trouble, that was a given. At the moment, they had been too scared to do anything but getaway, like a wild animal. Niq felt the shame rise, mixing with minor traces of anger. Anger at Loner for yelling at them like such, and anger at themselves for being so stupid and careless.
“Anything else to report?” The recording was still going, and Niq was keenly aware of it now.
“Yes, civilians reported seeing a white-haired girl of seemingly English descent in her mid-teens on the southern edge of the Forgotten District. They reported that she ‘looked lost and confused.’” The gruff voice explained. It was only at this point that Niq began paying attention to Loner once more.
“I mean really. You could have gotten seriously hurt.” Loner had just finished saying, ending with a hefty disappointed sigh. There was silence for a moment, as Niqs brain began to think, moving like an electric shock through a spiderweb as they weighed their options.
“How long ago did you get this?” Niq asked, finally meeting Loners’ gaze. His eyes narrowed for a moment, as though trying to peer into Niqs mind and see what they were thinking.
“About ten, fifteen minutes ago.” Loner responded cautiously. He had known Niq long enough to know when they were about to do something stupid.
“Then I have about an hour to move all my stuff to somewhere else. I have plenty of time!” Niq soothed, giving a confidant smirk. Selna and Loner weren’t having it. Selna in particular had leaned back in her chair, looking up to the ceiling with her hand over her face in an exasperated attempt at calm.
“Niq. just moving your stuff isn’t gonna save you. They know what you look like, and I’d bargain they already have hunters on your tail.” Selna huffed angrily. Niq could hear the tapping of her foot against the cement floor.
Niq gave a sympathetic smile to both her and Loner, glancing between the two of them. Niq had known these two since they were a kid. Selna had sworn to watch over Niq after she had found them when they were seven, trying to steal a rotting crow from a stray dog. Selna had introduced them to Loner, another child in her care after his parents had died. Even then he was a smart and slightly standoffish boy. It took Niq getting over their brief crush and resulting heartbreak before the two really became friends. They were the only people in the world that Niq still trusted. Even if they were hard-headed idiots and immature disasters.
“Trust me. I planned for this just in case. Mum wasn’t worth a dalm, but she sure as hell taught me how to be prepared.” Niq calmed, setting their hands on the desk, a determined look in their eyes. There was a tense moment in the office before Loner and Selna simultaneously gave a sigh of reservation.
“Just be careful you big idiot.” Loner smiled weakly, resting his hand on Niqs’ shoulder. “And if you die i want your jackets.” He added with a playful shrug.
Selna stood up silently, her face tense for a moment before it relaxed. “I’ll tell Lance that your little date his postponed.” She said at last, before raising her hand and waving Niq away. “Alright, get outta here, and take a shower before you come back!” she added as Niq made their way towards the door.
They glanced back with a smile as their hand rested on the dented doorknob. With a swift motion, they reached into their pocket and pulled out a small card of metal and plastic, and tossed it towards Selna. It landed on the desk with a light thump as the I.D that had gotten Niq into this mess was now out of their hands.
“See you.” They smiled as they opened the door, and stepped out of the small, cozy office.
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