Oil and Water | Arcane | Silco | Sevika

Safe With Me

Mayve brings out a large bin of glass bottles out to the alley of The Last Drop. The glass collector usually comes in the mornings to redistribute the bottles for their refill and resale. There isn't an endless supply in the Undercity.

She pushes the bin up against the wall, listening to the bottles clink together. She heads back inside to get the second bin. As Mayve pulls it out the back door, she overhears a conversation between two, deep male voices.

"There she is." One man says.

Mayve's ears perk up. She senses the increasing volume of approaching footsteps. They echo off the alley walls. She turns her head, her braid swinging gently behind her back. Only one man is familiar. He is the trader who came into the bar during her first week resuming work at The Last Drop.

"We were hoping we might get the chance to talk to you." The man who isn't the trader steps forward. He crosses his large biceps over his muscular chest. His shirt appears too small on his body.

"You couldn't have waited to talk until I was in the bar?" Mayve glares between them, her annoyance growing by the second. She has a job to do and they are wasting her time.

The bloodthirsty grin on both of their ugly faces causes Mayve's stomach to drop. She is unarmed and unknowing of their intentions, although understanding they will not be of the good kind. A minuscule seed of fear has planted itself into her heart. The music is too loud to call for anyone. Maybe the bouncers will hear her.

The trader shakes his head. "We wanted some privacy."

A swift punch is delivered to Mayve's jaw. It knocks her into the side of the building. Stars shoot into her vision, the edges nearly going black. She should have expected it, but this man's speed is something of a surprise.

     Mayve hastily rights herself, pulling a glass bottle out of the bin by its neck. She breaks it across her attackers face. The end shatters, some of the shards cutting into his skin. She stabs him repeatedly in the chest with seemingly endless reserves of strength and speed. Some of his blood sprays across her body. It is warm and sticky. He falls to the ground, clutching his abdomen in pain.

     "You want some of what he's having?" Mayve stalks towards the trader, the remaining piece of the bottle clutched in her hand. Blood drips from the jagged bits. "Because you've caught me in a sharing mood."

     He sprints down the length of the alley, hoping to put enough distance between himself and Mayve. Fear seeps into his gut, knowing very well what she can do to those who cross her. He hears smaller footfalls nearing at a pace significantly faster than his. The trader gets tackled to the ground, yelling for help.

     The bouncers standing outside The Last Drop see the commotion, doing nothing to help the trader. One of them enters the bar.

     Mayve pounds her bleeding fists into the trader's face. The sound of his flesh squelching under her knuckles is nearly music to her ears. She is glad to have worn her hair up tonight.

     She grabs his throat between her hands, pulling him up to her face. "What do you and your friend want with me?"

     "What friend?" A deep female voice asks from behind Mayve, sounding furious and fully murderous.

     A brief feeling of calm touches her rage-filled body. It washes over her like a cool wave. "He's in the alley, Sevika." Mayve turns her attention back to the trader. "If you don't give me the answers I want, I'm sure Silco will be less forgiving."

     The trader remains silent. He stares up at the furious bar owner through swollen eyes. They grow increasingly more purple as the seconds pass.

     "Hm." Mayve pulls him up from the ground, tossing his body towards one of the bouncers. "Tell Silco to expect gifts from me."