AMERICA:2008

(New York)

The kid sat in the blood of the two men, looking at the sky, becoming clearer and sunnier.

His heart pounded against his ribs—half triumph, half horror at what he'd done. The warmth spreading through his clothes should have sickened him, but instead it felt like a baptism. He wanted to vomit. He wanted to laugh. 

A whirring sound cut through the air behind him—the unmistakable chop of helicopter blades. 

The kid tried to stand up, but his legs betrayed him, buckling under the weight of what he'd done. Half of him screamed "run, run," while the other half whispered "stay, face what you've made."

His body, slick with The White-Eayd man blood, couldn't decide which voice to obey.

The helicopter hovered directly above, its downdraft pressing him into the bloodied earth. Two figures dropped to the ground—a hard-faced blonde woman with eyes like cut emeralds, and beside her, a girl barely his senior.

Before he could move, they had positioned themselves on either side of him, blocking any escape. 

The blonde woman drew her weapon in one fluid motion, its barrel finding the kid's face with practiced precision. "Those two men," she said, her voice flat as the horizon. "Your work?"

The girl let out a sharp laugh. "Seriously, Ivy? He's just a kid." 

The blond woman's eyes narrowed, her voice cold."Look at his hand, Selina."

The little girl's gaze dropped. The Kid's fingers curled tightly around an axe, its blade drenched in fresh, dripping blood. Her mischievous smile hardened, twisting into rage.

"You… how dare you kill 7?" she spat, her voice trembling with fury.

In one swift motion, she pulled two knives from her belt, the steel flashing in the dim light. "Give me the order, and I will kill him now."

"Not yet," the blond woman replied evenly, her tone sharper than the knives.

The Kid only grinned, His voice, low and menacing,: Spoke, "If you're with a white-eyed man, you will die like him."

Selina stepped forward, blades raised. "Let me kill him," she snarled, teeth bared like a wolf ready to strike.

The blond woman closed the distance, her boots echoing on the Ground. Without hesitation, she lifted her pistol — then swung hard, striking the Kid across the jaw with the back of the gun.

Crack.

The Kid's head snapped to the side, blood spraying against the Tree. Slowly, almost too slowly, he turned back toward her, his grin wider, sharper. The axe trembled in his grip.

"Try it, Kid," said the blond woman. Her voice cut like steel.

"Selina knocked him out"

Selina didn't hesitate. She lunged forward, her leg snapping upward in a sharp strike that connected with the Kid's jaw. His body crumpled to the ground, the axe slipping from his hand. His eyes rolled back, and darkness swallowed him whole.

When the Kid opened his eyes again, the world had changed. He was lying on a beach, waves crashing against the shore, the salty wind stinging his face.

What happened? he thought, dazed.

A scream tore through the air. The Kid turned his head to the left — another figure, another Boy, was charging toward him, yelling, his mouth wide with rage.

"I… I recognize him," the kid whispered, voice shaking. At those words, the screaming stopped as if someone had cut the sound from the world.

Then, cold water slammed into his skin. He jolted awake, coughing, sputtering. His hands and feet were bound tightly with rope, the coarse fibers cutting into his flesh.

Blinking through the sting of salt water, he lifted his head. Selina stood over him, a bucket still dripping in her grasp.

Her golden hair caught the flicker of firelight from somewhere unseen.

Behind her, two tall, shadowy figures lingered, their faces hidden, their silence heavier than chains.

Selina's eyes burned with fury. She crouched low, knives glinting at her hips, and her voice came out like a blade pressed to the throat.

"Now, kid," she said, tilting her head ever so slightly. "Who are you?"