"𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋 𝐇𝐀𝐒 𝐀𝐋𝐖𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐄𝐍 𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐅 𝐆𝐎𝐃𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐒, 𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐅 𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐋"
❝ Delphinium Tesla is anything but the innocent citizen she pretends to be, especially not with the power of telekinesis behind her fingertips. Laying low wi...
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Most inhabited parts of Kybeshi were so overwhelmed with pollution that it was perpetually nighttime. But the cities were so bright that Delphinium could have mistaken them for daylight if not for their unnatural colors. Blurs of green, pink, blue, purple smeared across her line of sight, staining her vision even when she closed her eyes. The juxtaposition of the glowing signs and moving projections against the blackness of the sky made the city nearly disorienting.
Linked metro cars sped by on the street, narrowly avoiding unbothered pedestrians who swarmed the sidewalks. They were a more modern, streamlined version of the Eloch locomotives, which Delphinium had ridden in to her targets many times. Though they were somewhat rare on the continent in lieu of public transport, a few vehicles on the streets honked for crossing tourists to quicken their pace.
With Delphinium's injuries, it took some time to find shelter. In the eastern, poorer end of the city, they finally uncovered an abandoned store with a room over it. The windows were smashed in and Delphinium saw a rat scurrying out of it, but it was still better than being pushed around on the street, nothing but sitting ducks to be robbed or spotted by Needles. When Delphinium shut the door, sounds from passerby were still very audible via the open windows.
Flicking on the dingy light to the upstairs apartment revealed a shabby sitting area populated by mismatched chairs made of cigarette-burned fabric. In select places, there was a thin dusting of white powder on the floor. Drugs. Delphinium moved to the second room, leaving Jake to prop himself on the back of a comically small couch as he counted their money.
The only other area besides a half-kitchen-with no cutlery-was a bedroom with a rickety cot and an empty closet. This place looked as if it had been abandoned for years.
After checking the two round windows were sealed shut and covered by drapes, Delphinium sat to clean her wounds. The antibacterial alcohol stung horribly when it meshed with her raw skin, but she merely bit her tongue through it. Understandably, there had been no needles for sewing wounds shut at the gas station, so she made do with tape and bandages, being sure to dress the entrance and exit wounds equally well.
The pain was a fraction more tolerable when Delphinium held her weight on her other foot, but still enough to significantly weaken her. And this was the worst possible time to have even a sliver of vulnerability.
Delphinium went to the hallway and waited in the threshold. Jake sifted through the sheets of silver money with his back to her. Her switchblade was low in one hand, ready for use.
Kill him, kill him, one half of her mind chanted. Be rid of the threat. Corinthian can't kill you for taking his prize if you belong to someone else.
