lost cause
powder ran as hard—as fast as she possibly could.
she could hear him behind her, chasing after her and she was definitely not a track star or anything but in this moment she was pretty damn close to one.
when she thought she lost him, she wasn't in the undercity anymore. she stopped, pausing to finally catch her breath.
now she hid, between boxes and crates scattered across the narrow alley she was in, heaving and shaking, heart in her ears pounding loud.
then footsteps, slow, deliberate footsteps that edged closer to her at every step.
"powder." he called out.
his voice wasn't too far away, to her horror.
"come out powder. i just want to talk that's all." yeah right, sick fuck.
a beat of silence, then he laughs. the motherfucker is laughing now. he's just ruined my life and he's laughing?
"you know, i didn't think you had it in you," he spoke like they were old friends catching up, "that—that spark! like a firecracker! always lighting fires, hurting people and stirring pots." his voice became vicious at the end.
more footsteps, closer. "though i guess i should've known, you are a weapon after all. a good one too, do you even know all the deaths you are responsible for?" powder listened to him quietly, listened as he twisted his tongue to perhaps say something she'd lash out at. something to make her reveal herself but honestly—she just wished he'd shut the fuck up.
"every bomb you make has the power to take lives, powder, lots of lives. i've counted the death toll, 58 total," a beat, a pause, "62 now." powders breath left her body, what did he mean? what did that mean?
"it's like, everything you touch is sure to explode. from bombs, people, and men," he chuckled evilly, "you are destruction, a jinx!"
"i'll make sure to tell everyone in the lanes that the person responsible for your family's death was you." family's death? what? her family was dead? she thought only silco was dead, he died protecting her.
she resumed breathing, remember, he wants to draw you out.
"you'll have a handsome bounty on you, a murderer, a pyromaniac, an arsonist—there's really so many ways i could spin it." footsteps were nearer, right above where she was hiding in fact.
"or," he pat the crate in which she was hiding under, "you come back with me, i'll explain everything and clear your name. if you have an issue with what happened earlier, i'll take you as my wife. this is quite common in the undercity, dear." powder felt bile rise in her throat, she needed a plan or escape route but her brain was empty, filled with his heinous voice.
why does he want me?
"powder. i'll never hurt you again, today was a one time thing," he sighed, "it's just, the way you look when you build, when you're talking about things you're passionate about, when you drape yourself on me—you're irresistible to me. and then i got you wrapped around me and you were so perfect, like you were made for me. we were made for each other." she heard pleading in his voice, all the more disgusting. he uncovered the crate, revealing powders messy blue hair and swollen eyes.
her heart was in turmoil—too many things at once, but looking upon him again, her guts became iron again. i've already blown up my whole family to bits, it can't be for nothing.
powder stood up, only reaching to his shoulders. he reached down to grab her face between his thumb and fingers, forcing her head back so she was facing him.
he was waiting for her to reply, "powder."
she smiled at him cynically.
"didn't you hear me before?" he smiled, intrigued.
she moved her face sideways, "i said; i'd rather fucking die." in that moment she took his finger holding onto her face in her mouth and bit down. she snapped his finger in half like a carrot, blood seeping in her mouth and face immediately.
morte was shocked, screaming in agony and crouching down, desperately holding his finger—or where it was.
powder spit out his finger like it was a vile piece of shit in her mouth, she took off sprinting again.
he was right behind her, this time screaming hysterically, obsceneties and threats.
"i'll fucking kill you bitch!"
powder didn't look back once, sprinting nonstop—he was determined and stayed on her trail but fell behind from his lack of stamina.
powder felt herself caving to her own fatigue, he was far but not far enough.
in her tired step she crashed against a soft—hard?—surface, knocking the wind out of her. she fell back, before she could process what happened she was held against someone, a man and her mouth was clamped shut with someone's hand.
powder was apprehensive about men since the events from earlier today, and also her current situation. she felt the man against her and her skin wanted to peel off her flesh from the goosebumps it gave her simply being so close to one.
powder thrashed against them and kicked and tried to speak but she was held tight.
that went on for a while before the man turned her around, looking into her eyes before lifting a finger to his lips, be quiet.
powder obeyed quick, she figured her odds were better with a man she'd never met, than morte—a man that had already hurt her and was planning on doing it again.
she was pressed against this new man—she was seriously sick of being in this situation. she wanted to push him away and scream to get the hell away from her—but she couldn't, not until morte was gone.
so they stayed like that, in silence.
morte's screaming and shouting for her died down after he'd searched for a long time, when powder felt it was safe she unstuck herself from the man behind her, and he seems very willing to comply, he didn't linger—only followed her lead.
"what the fuck?" those were her first words to him ever.
he rubbed a hand over his face, "listen i—i don't know what you're running from but, i can tell when someone's running for their life." he spoke.
"you were...following me?" he paused.
"yes, but you looked like you were in some—serious trouble, i mean, that guy is...sheesh i don't know what you've messed with but it's bad news." he spoke softly, but not. his words weren't soft but his voice was, like he was afraid morte would appear out of nowhere.
powder didn't reply, what could she say to that? this guy was a stranger, whose to say he wasn't exactly like morte? morte pretended to be her friend before he raped her, too.
the man stood up, and offered her his hand to help her up too.
upon looking at his hand in the light, he'd realized the wet blood on them. his hand that was covering her mouth was stained crimson, and in that split second he faced her in the light.
he was shocked, she was devoid of color, aside from the blood covering her mouth and chin.
he'd never seen someone so—white. but he didn't have time to admire her further because the sight of blood on her seemed to make the situation look even worse—just what the hell was going on with her? he'd started to think maybe he should've minded his business.
powder didn't take his hand, her thoughts about morte stalling her trust in yet another man, even though he just saved her.
"i have a place you can crash, for tonight. if you need..." he offered.
oh, hell no.
powder thought, and shook her head, rather violently.
"then, do you have a place to stay?"
powder shook her head once more, then shrunk away further into darkness, just a bit back so the light didn't reach her.
ekko seemed to have figured it out, she didn't trust him. not one bit.
"i'll stay and keep you company for a bit, you can...vent...about that guy. my name is ekko." he reached out his hand, intending to shake her hand and form some type of friendship—or truce.
powder flinched at his outstretched hand, she didn't take it. he awkwardly took it back.
"so, what's his deal? he a psycho?" he paused, "why's he chasing you?" and why are you covered in blood?
powder didn't reply for a beat, thinking.
"his names morte. he wants me to be his wife." she ended up replying with a half truth, he did say he wanted her to be his wife so that was the truth—what she hadn't said was that he raped her earlier and when he tried again she blew up her house and ended up murdering her entire family and is now ostracized from the only place she'd ever called home. seemed like too long of a sentence.
either way, what she said got ekko to still in his movement. that information paired with the state she was in; bloody, shaken and fucking terrified, appearently he found that unforgivable, and he suddenly felt grateful to janna that he intervened. he didn't know anything about her, but she looked young and that man was clearly a grown up.
and the fervor and sheer determination she held while she ran gave it away, she needed help desperately—it turned out she ran from a pedophile.
"you can tell me about it when we get inside my house." powders head snapped to him.
"i'm not going to your house." there was an edge to her voice, a scratchy-ness that sounded like it hurt her vocal chords.
"i know you don't trust me, but if you stay here that man might come back."
"..."
"okay look. my name is ekko, i'm 17, i live with my dad, i go to school and im not gonna leave you here."
powder stayed silent, but she stood up.
hearing that she was dealing with a boy about her age eased her a bit, and that he'd have his parent in the house, too. also the imminent threat of morte finding her.
so she followed him, it was already too late and ekkos dad was asleep, so he simply guided her to his room where he pulled out a cot to sleep on, while she would have the bed.
she felt no guilt taking the bed, if he wanted it he shouldn't have offered it to her.
powder slept horribly and she only truly slept for three hours.
she kept thinking, after today, she has nothing.
far away from home and family and anything she once knew.
she'd become a statistic; she was lost, like everything was, in the undercity.
lost innocence, lost family, lost spirit, lost dreams.
lost causes.