From Rags: A Thief's Tale

Prologue

     Sirens. A sign that he didn't have much time left before he was caught, but as always he was prepared. Blue quickly put the last of the money into the black backpack he had brought with him. What a way to spend your 21st birthday. The sirens sounded closer now, he didn't have much time left. He hurried to the exit but found he was too late, two police cruisers had just landed in the street outside. Running back into the safe room, he got against one of the walls, then reached into his bag and pulled out a special tech cloth, he quickly threw it over himself making sure to cover himself completely. Moments pass, soon two police officers enter the room, their guns out. They scanned the room quickly and didn't seem to see him, it was the cloths job after all, to cloak anything it covered making the object near invisible. The officers looked around continuing their search. They inspected the metal boxes that once held thousands of credits that were now lying on the ground empty. Blue decided to make his escape now, while the two men were distracted. He eased out of the room making sure not to make a single noise in fear of alerting them. He made it into the lobby, almost there he thought to himself. Continuing on quickly to the door quietly as possible he pushed it open. After looking around for a moment, scanning for any other officers, he bolted down the street as fast as he could, stuffing the cloth back into his bag while he ran, ran until his feet were sore. Soon he was several blocks away, he was in the clear. He turned down into an alleyway avoiding anyone who happened to be out this late. In the alleyway he caught a glimpse of something on the old brick wall. Someone had wrote The Ghost is Real! on the wall. The Ghost was a name given to him by the common folk of the Outer City, because of his style of thieving. He didn't mind the extra attention. But it didn't distract from his main goal, to keep himself alive and help those who need it. The money he had gotten from his recent heist was enough to feed himself for several months, and he would still have leftover money to help any beggars he met along the way. He continues on down the alleyway and finds a nice little spot behind a dumpster to rest, he was always looking for places to hide for the night. Stuffing the bag behind the dumpster and lying down on the cold ground, he prepared to sleep. His eyes were closed and he was almost asleep when he felt something cold hit his neck, then again on his arm. Looking up at the night sky he saw gloomy clouds hanging overhead, soon the pitter patter of rain could be heard all around him. He had to find a hotel or somewhere soon or he would have to sleep soaking wet for yet another night. Standing, he throws his hood up to keep himself dry, he started to walk down the street scanning for any hotels to find refuge in for the night. After walking for an hour or more he finds himself at the door of a small hotel. Heading inside he looks around finding an older lady at the front desk. She seemed deep in thought but upon seeing a customer quickly put on a smile. "Can i help you with a room?" She asks politely. "Yes, i need one just for tonight" he answered. She puts something into her computer and a small keycard slips out of its side. She hands the keycard to him. "That'll be 25 credits please". "Here" he says handing her a few of the credits from his bag. "Enjoy your stay" she smiles as he walks away to find his room.
He finds the door marked with the same number as the one on the keycard and uses it to unlock the door. Stepping inside he closes the door behind him, locking it. He walks over and drops his bag and sits on the bed against the far wall and takes a deep breath. Living the lifestyle he lives is hard, its a constant struggle to stay alive and keep moving. Soon he will run out of places to hide, and then-. He shakes his head not wanting to think about what might happen if he's caught. Noticing how soaked his clothes are he starts to undress completely and throws his clothes over some chairs to let them dry while he sleeps and also hides his bag under the bed in case any nosey people come in. He looks out the window and into the night sky. If only there was another way he thought to himself. If only. He gets into bed and gets comfortable in the soft sheets and pillows. Soon he slowly starts drifting away, falling asleep in a matter of minutes. He dreams of running in a field, running as fast as he can.