Io prowled quickly through the convoluted streets and alleyways, sticking closely to the shadows to limit any potential exposure. Even with it being pitch dark, it'd only take a glimmer of someone lighting up who knows what, for it to reflect off her silver scar. It had happened often enough in the five years since she'd been marked.
Io paused in the shadow of an alley and waited while a group of three or four hunters passed by. This was why she had wanted to leave to begin with. The library was only about an hour away from where the hunters searched for 'wastes' and, truth be told, they were on the money with this. For the young children, even if they escaped the Standard Elite Learning Facility or S.E.L.F., the exit opened up here and they'd unsuspectingly walk into a secondary catching point for Phials.
She hid in a nook and waited for a couple of passersby to move on. She needed to be quick, and it was taking too long as it was. What if the child didn't hold on long enough? No, she couldn't think that way. She did not go through all the trouble of finding the perfect person to be her family, only to lose them. Io's eyes glinted with determination as she snuck around various checkpoints for illegal contraband and foreign residents that did not go through the proper protocol for entering the outer city.
Thirty minutes later, Io finally reached her destination, The Tart's Pie. It was a raunchy place filled with unsavory people. Io carefully kept to the shadows, making sure her hood was up over her face, blocking the light from reflecting off the silver scar that ran over her face. She had heard that the reward for runaway 'wastes' was substantial enough for one to have a decent living for two or three years.
Io scaled up the side of a building, wincing when a bawdy group of five men came outside with a young woman and man. It was a disgusting sight to see. The vacant look in the couple's eyes as they worked to please left Io's stomach-churning, and memories of her brief captivity with the cannibals threatening to overwhelm her. Io shut her eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to focus on why she was here.
She continued until she got to the fifth story of the building. She pushed gently on a darkened room window, hoping that she'd guessed right. The window didn't budge. Io cursed silently in her mind and she judged the leverage she had and if there were any other footholds that she could use to get to another window for this level. Nothing.
"That child had better be alive when she gets back," Io mumbled to herself as she climbed to the sixth floor. Her right hand was killing her as it was hard to grip and hold her weight with the two fingers she had, while her left arm was sore because of having to overcompensate for the weak grip her right hand offered.
She knocked on another window and let out a sigh of relief when it opened ever so slightly. With her right hand, she nudged the window open, listening for any activities that may go on inside. She sighed with relief when there were none and quickly climbed in. Io crouched down low immediately, left hand gripping her bone sword as she waited, just in case. No signs of movement. Io relaxed, moved towards the vanity, and opened the drawers.
Inside were flimsy bits of cloth. Io bit her lip. But for her new family, she'd made her choice. She closed the drawer and slipped off her clothing daintily folding and laying it on top of the dresser. The contrast from the shadows dancing over pale smooth skin and horrific scars created the illusion of a wraith manifesting into existence.
Io plucked a silk robe off the hook and wrapped it around herself. The wrap was too big and dragged on the floor, but luckily there was plenty of room to overlap the edges and to tie that belt around her waist two or three times. Io then loosed her waist-length braid, twirled it up into a bun- aside from a few key pieces, and slid a fine bone needle from her bracer to hold it in place. Next, Io grabbed a small packet from the shorts she had set aside when she had folded them. If she was going to do this, she needed to go all out. The last step, her appearance modifier, lasted only two hours, but it was the only thing that could cover the silvery scar that stretched across her face.
She had paid dearly for this. The jobs she'd taken to get the cash. Io shuddered. For these pieces, she had had to hunt in The Tunnels. Never again did she want to go back, but survival came first. That meant adapting and not letting your trauma be your downfall. On the bright side, she left quite the trail of carnage on her way out.
That child had better be alive when she gets back otherwise… Io paused as her chest ached. Strange. Anyway, Io pinched her cheeks to add some color to her alabaster complexion and made sure the modification was in place. Once her last check was complete, Io left the room, hips swaying gently as she sauntered down the hall, an alluring yet delicate flower drifting on the wind. Full of promise, yet so little time to enjoy it.
In the hallways, men and women roamed, hands gliding, caressing, or tearing at clothing. The decadent sounds of hedonism drifting through the hallway. One man attempted to pull her into a writhing mass, but Io shoved a scantily clad woman who had been walking by into his arms. Io smirked at the man as she swirled playfully away from the group, giving him a playful wink, while inwardly she shuddered.
Eventually, Io reached the first floor after dodging what felt like a thousand hands, trying to pull her into various lascivious activities. She went to the back of the building on the first floor, careful to keep up the appearance of an almost ripe night flower. There was no exit from this part of the building, hence all the acrobatics. Not to mention the rowdiest of the building's populace was at the front of the building, and management as well. She'd have to scrub a good layer of skin off before she got back, Io thought to herself as she jimmied the lock. One quiet snick later, the lock popped open and Io silently sauntered into the office at the back of the establishment.
The office was the epitome of gross between the ads for craven pleasures and the toys. Io curled her lip in disgust at the distinct lack of sanitation. She shut the door behind her. Now, if she remembered correctly from overhearing that braggart, his 'woman should hold it.'
Io could feel her eyes narrowing. This scum wasn't rich enough to afford a woman, and while he was in management, he was more of a gopher. Upper management worked on floors ten and eleven, leaving the mundane day-to-day dealings to this dirtbag. She looked through the office carefully. Amidst the filth in the corner, she noticed a large doll dressed in a lace teddy.
Bingo. Io strode over and pulled the bone needle out of her hair, creating a contrast between her long white hair falling around her red-clad form and the look of indifference on her face as she slashed the doll open. Her eyes darted and her right hand grabbed the tiny vial. 'Mend' was always a hot commodity in The Ruins. It couldn't cure you if you were dying, but for sealing up a wound? This was the best you could find. So it was only reasonable that it was so highly sought after, even more so, well guarded. Except for this idiot, that is.
Io had been in the right place at the right time when that deal between Garren and an illegal dealer, Snip, had gone down. Even luckier that no one noticed her. Io slid the vial between the braided pieces of the bracer on her right wrist and turned to leave when the lock let out a soft click. Io hopped onto the desk, arranged her red robe sensually, and finger-combed her hair, creating a juxtaposition between a seductive flower of the night and an innocent girl.
"Hello, Garren."
The greasy man stared at Io. Inwardly, Io rolled her eyes. Jeez, this man was a little slow on the uptake. She shifted enough to cause her robe to gape ever so slightly, almost providing a glimpse of what lay beneath. Io licked her lips sensuously, her gaze dropping suggestively while she re-crossed her legs.
"Garren, you're going to make me shy if you keep staring at me." She coyly said as her finger twirled through a white lock of hair. The man straightened up his sloppy posture and stuck his chest out in a prideful manner, and ran a hand over his greasy hair.
"What's yer name, lovey?" He asked as he swaggered into the room. It was quite sad that the man was too arrogant to think that she had alternative motives, but it benefited her. Who was she to complain when things were going her way anyway? Besides, this bastard stood between her and her family, and that was a decidedly unhealthy position for anyone to be in.
"Eris," Io responded, making her voice sweet and sugary with an almost wolfish smile. "I've been waiting for you for so long, Garren." This man was not the brightest lightbulb, and she didn't have time for this bull. Io thought to herself. The man proved her point a moment later as he leered at her.
Io spread her thighs wantonly and as she slid her hands leisurely up and down her body to push him further into stupidity. She'd get the Mend home to her… Io wanted to smack herself. Great. She didn't even know if she had a brother or a sister, some big sister she was. The girl slumped. Just add this to her mental scoreboard of failures. Her new sibling would be disappointed.
Io had to tear her thoughts away from this additional problem. Focus on helping them recover and make sure that they can see the sickly one. This should smooth out any issue. That way, they'd start off being a family with no problems, at least as soon as she dealt with this idiot.
"Could you help me with my problem?" She questioned huskily as if she were on the verge of perishing if he did not fulfill her desires. She let out a little moan and reached out and tugged the stupid man closer. Then she ran her hands over the man's chest and paunch. Io shoved a shudder of revulsion as memories of her captivity surfaced. She'd lose a couple of layers of skin after she took care of her new brother or sister back at the library via one serious scrubbing.
"Sorry dove, if I'da known yer were here, I'da come sooner." The man chuffed at his pun as he rubbed his groin in anticipation. A moment later, he was on her, roughly grasping her pale, soft thighs as he ground himself against her. Thank goodness he was dressed. It didn't change the fact that Io wanted to stab him in the eye right then, but the barrier of clothing helped her stay in control of her own tumultuous emotions.
"Now ya be a-needin' somethin' from me, and I've got exactly whatcha' be needin' right here." He gasped out as he ground his body between her thighs. Finally, Io thought as she wrapped her thighs around his waist while her hands played with the greasy strands of hair at his nape. She let out a sultry moan and arched her back, driving her hips against him as if desperate for his touch.
While he fumbled with his zipper, Io rolled her hips against his groin and whispered into his ear "Mmm yes make me feel good!" as she arched her small delicate body against his. Due to his repeated failures with the zipper, Garren ended up just shoving down his pants.
"Aye, little whore I be makin' ye feel good alright. Just needed a real man, didn't ya." Garren pushed Io's milky thighs wider. Just as he was starting to slide closer she slid a bone needle from the bracer on her right arm, twirling it expertly between fingers.
Garren slid his hands up her soft pale milky thighs pulling the robe upwards with it. He then grabbed her hips in a bruising grip. "Oh yes ya little tart, I be making you feel good right soon. Desperate needy little thing. Imma' make ya scream- " Just as his hips started to slam forward, the man stopped, his face going from lecherous to shocked. Io looked at the man, making sure her facial expressions were perfect.
"Why Garren, what's wrong?" She asked coquettishly. Her fingers gently, almost lovingly, pulled out the bone needle from the back of his neck.
"Why Garren, you said you were going to make me scream." She sulked, her lower plump lip sticking out almost playfully as she pulled her arms away. The man stiffened and his eyes rolled in the back of his head. Io dropped her legs from around his waist. She watched coolly as the man crumpled on the ground with an ungraceful THWUMP!
"Touch me huh." Io sneered down at the corpse.
"Only if you want to die."
She then giggled, a light girlish sound as she hopped down, the red robe fluttering around her pale form like a flower budding in the spring. Madness swirled at the back of her mind. She stared at the corpse, as her mind drifted amid the horrific memories, each bite mark on her left shoulder and every scar the cannibals carved her on her stomach, back, and thighs throbbed.
Fury and anguish erupted and Io dropped to her knees next to the corpse, stabbing it over and over again. It was all the more perturbing as not a sound escaped her. Over and over the needle fell, blood splattering through the air as Io lost herself to the madness within.
It wasn't until with a clink the vial fell out of her bracer landing in the corpse's body. Io's hand flashed into the man's intestines and pulled out the little treasure. Io she wiped the blood and shreds of flesh off and peered at it dazedly for a moment. Her maddened gaze slowly found rationality as she gazed obsessively at the vial. That was right. She needed to get back. Her little brother or sister needed her now and Io wouldn't allow her shortcomings and nightmares to get in the way of that.
Io stood up, her long white hair falling around her in waves, her robe disheveled, and blood decorated her skin. She pulled out another bone needle and walked towards the door. She didn't have time to get back up the six floors, climb down the side of the building, and leave. Through the front door would be the quickest way.
From that point on red bloomed violently and repeatedly. Screams of terror, anguish, and anger sounded in The Tart's Pie and didn't stop until an hour later when a young girl that was drenched in lazy red rivulets sauntered out of the building. The streets were empty, but light reflected off the many pairs of eyes within the shadowed recesses of the neighboring buildings. Tongues would wag later about a bloodied she-demon that had massacred half the building's residents. They'd whisper in hushed undertones that she used to be one of the working girls. A ghost that had found her lover in the arms of another and came to exact her vengeance for his follies.
Io left, hips swaying hypnotically as she slowly disappeared into the darkness. Aside from making sure that she didn't have any tails, the only thing in her mind was getting back, and anything that stood between her and her goal needed to die. The breeze swept the dust up, giving her the appearance of a wild monster that left its cave to feast. She glanced around, alert for potential obstacles, before she broke into a run, vial clutched securely in hand, as she went back into the alley she had come out of when she first arrived. Io would need to loop around a couple of times to be safe, but she'd be home within the hour if she pushed hard.