Sarie

Sunday, 25th of October, 198 A.C, 00:27

“A reminder to all units to maintain caution while dealing with the Veiled. Although the vast majority of students coming out of Veridian Academy are model citizens, it cannot be denied that there has been an uptick in rogue squads that are taking advantage of the leeway they are afforded by the law. A few of these squads have even gone so far as to actively work against corporate and governmental interests. Your orders are to stay on the lookout for these squads and to report any suspicious activity directly to the Protectorate.” - Announcement by the Protectorate to the Watch.

Alcove had such a lovely aesthetic. A small dive bar, tucked away in the jungle of high-rises a short walk south of Central. Despite the surrounding developments being covered in lights, the warm glow escaping from it refused to be drowned out.

Casey swung the door open and strolled inside. Darren and I ushered the teens in after her.

It was a pretty simple setup. A dark, glossy bar counter started from the left and ran along the back. A few tables sat to the right, past where the counter curved off into the back wall about two thirds of the way along the room. The bar area was awash in purple light, while the seating area’s lights were yellow.

A voice came from behind the bar. “Ah, Casey! How’s my favorite perennially-masked regular? Looks like you brought some friends.”

Casey smirked. “What’s up, Jackie? We’re celebrating a successful job. The newbies did well, so we thought we’d let them tag along.”

Kai and Beck each hopped up onto a bar stool. Beck started spinning around in circles until she got dizzy and had to stop.

“Ooooh,” Kai exclaimed, “We’ve got a nifty hideout *and* a cool, seedy bar to be regulars at? Being Veiled *rules!*”

Jackie chuckled. She was heavyset, with dark skin and a beautiful head of dark, curly hair.

She started mixing a drink while she spoke. “You’re gonna have to be a bit more careful than that if you want to last long in your line of work. Very quick way to give away your identity.”

Kai was deeply embarrassed. “Oh, yeah. Guess I should work on holding my tongue..”

Jackie poured a pink liquid into two glasses and slid them over to Beck and Kai. “Don’t worry yourself too much. I don’t plan on telling anyone and neither do any of my regulars. Don’t care too much what your background is as long as you play nice here.”

The teens eyed their drinks.

“Go ahead,” said Jackie, “Try it. You’ve still got a few years before I can serve you anything alcoholic, but that doesn’t mean I’m out of options.”

Beck gave it a tentative sip. Her eyes widened with surprise.

“Wooooaaahhhhh! That’s sooo good!”

Jackie gave a proud grin. “A good ol’ Neon Wave. It was a tricky one to emulate, but I put the finishing touches on it just a bit ago. Don’t want non-drinkers to feel left out, so I put a lot of time into crafting safe versions of everything I serve.”

Darren took a seat at the bar. “You *also* really like talking about the fact that you do that whenever you get the chance.”

Jackie nodded lightheartedly. “What can I say? I’m a businesswoman, gotta market myself.” She walked over. “Speaking of… still no boyfriend, huh Darren?”

Darren looked down, clearly embarrassed. “Jackie, please.”

Jackie laughed. “I’m just messing with you. You’ll find a good one someday. In the meantime though, can I get you the usual?” Darren nodded. “One Antihero coming right up.”

I took a seat of my own and glanced around the otherwise empty bar. “Slow night tonight, huh?”

Jackie served up Darren’s drink and got started on mine without even having to ask what I wanted. “Nah, just a lull. People usually criss-cross in and out, you just happened into a bit where nobody happens to be here.” She slid a purple drink in across the bar to me. “You look like you need a bit of a pick-me-up, and I know you enjoy a good Jump Start.”

I sipped the drink gratefully. “Thanks, Jackie. Just what I needed.”

“Hey, getting old over here!” Casey had put her feet up and pretended to yawn. “Need a Nut Shot stat, or else I’m gonna fall asleep on the spot.”

“Oho, you are, are you?” Jackie reached under the table and brought up a shot glass with a clear liquid in it. “You should’ve asked sooner! Prepared it as soon as you walked in.”

Casey downed the drink, then slammed the glass back on the table. “HOOOO BOOOOY! You never get used to that kick!”

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Jackie leaned on the counter. “So, a job well done, huh? I hope you didn’t get the newbies *too* far in over their heads.”

Casey slapped Beck on the back. “Us? Get them in over their heads? Do we look like the kind of people who would do that?”

Jackie chuckled. “Well… Do you want me to answer that one honestly?”

I took a sip of my drink. “We had a close call or two, but nothing we couldn’t bail them out of. Gonna be *pret-ty* sore for a bit though.” I looked over to the kids. “Sorry, don’t mean that in a mean way.”

The setting had loosened Darren up enough for him to openly joke. “I’m sure I could fix them up anyway, as long as you brought me back, say, 70% of them.”

Kai gave Darren a mock worried look and the assembled group had a nice laugh.

Beck had gone quiet though. Her eyes were downcast and she was twirling her straw absentmindedly around her drink.

Suddenly, she looked up at Jackie and asked, “Hey, I think I’m gonna get some fresh air, if that’s okay.”

Jackie nodded. “Yeah, of course.” She gestured towards a door by the left of the room. “There’s a set of stairs over there. Take it and there’ll be a balcony. Feel free to hang out there as long as you’d like.”

Beck thanked Jackie and headed off, leaving her drink on the counter. We sat in awkward silence for a second.

Everyone’s eyes turned to me. I downed my drink, then smiled and said, “I know, I know. I’ll give her a minute to herself, then I’ll head up.”

Darren sighed deeply. “Thank you. Sorry, you know Casey and I aren’t the best at that sort of thing.”

***

I gently opened the door and stepped out onto the balcony. It was a brisk night, especially now that the wind had picked up.

Beck was sitting on the ground at the far end of the balcony, knees tucked into her chest. She was silently watching the city through the bars of the balcony’s guardrail. Her eyes were red, but she wasn’t crying at the moment.

I tried to walk over to her quietly, but my heavy step made her look up.

She studied me for a second, then turned back to face the city, shivering with the cold.

I took off my jacket and crouched down, hanging it over her shoulders. She said nothing, but wrapped it tightly around her.

I stood back up and leaned on the guardrail, following her gaze and trying to ignore how vulnerable I now felt. “The city always looks weird from above. We’re just a floor above the ground but it seems so far away.”

Beck sniffled. “Feels isolated, yeah. All these different people with their hopes and their fears, and here you are picked out from it all.”

“Yeah, that’s a good way of putting it.” I extended a hand to her. “But hey, I’m here, right? ‘Picked out from it all’ too. Want to watch the city with me for a bit?”

She took my hand and I pulled her up. She crossed her arms on top of the guardrail and put her chin down to rest on them.

I studied her face for a second. Her eyes had an intense sort of curiosity about them. They would stare at something intently, mulling it over, and then dart over to something else with just as much scrutiny.

Her gaze still shooting around the city, she said, “Why me?”

“Why you?”

“Yeah, why me? Why did you all pick me in particular? I’m not strong, I get tired easily, I’m still in high school, I don’t know the first thing about Veils, and compared to Kai I can’t imagine you think I’m that interested in them.”

I pondered the question. “Well, why us?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why have you stuck around? Why are you here right now, at a sketchy dive bar celebrating a job you helped us with?”

Beck looked over at me, deep in thought.

Suddenly, she spoke. “My dad *hates* Veiled. Like, really hates them. I hate them too, I think. But… but I saw you all at the warehouse last week, after Lily and Darren had saved my life, and I got confused. I was surrounded by people who defied every definition I had of what it was to be Veiled. So I thought I’d stick around for a bit, see if that was really the case or if you were deceiving me.”

“And?” I did a sort of joking wiggle. “Are we *cool*?”

She grinned softly for a second, then went back to roaming the cityscape with her eyes. “I dunno. I *think* you’re alright, but I dunno. I want you to be.” She paused to sniffle. “I guess there’s your answer. I want to be wrong about Veiled. So by being Veiled myself, maybe I can prove myself wrong.”

I ruffled her hair. “If it’s any consolation, I think you’re doing a great job of that so far.”

Beck wiped her eyes. “Heh, thanks.”

“I don’t have a big, thinky brain like Sable or Darren do, but if I had to guess I’d say that’s exactly why they want you on Impulse. You’ve got a good head on your shoulders. And you can’t put a price on that.”

Beck started tearing up. She turned and hugged me tightly.

“Thanks, Sarie,” she said, her face buried in my shoulder, “That means a lot.”

I winced. “Gahhhg- you’re welcome. Sorry, that shoulder’s not doing too hot right now.”

She recoiled back. “Oh no! Sorry! Sorry!”

I laughed. “No, you’re fine, you’re fine.”

A movement in the nearby alleyway caught the corner of my eye. “Hey, how about you head back downstairs and finish up that party we were having? I’ll stay up here for a bit, catch my breath.”

She was already halfway through the door. “Sounds good! See you in a bit!”

“Hey wait! Could I get my jacket back? It’s pretty cold out.”

“Oh, right!” She tossed it over, then disappeared down the stairs.

I looked over the balcony into the alleyway. A Veiled was advancing on a family of three, two fathers and their son.

The Veiled had a dark red aura around his hands and was brandishing a nasty looking knife.

I flipped my jacket inside out, changing it from a dark grey to a brilliant white. I shoved a hand into my pocket to make sure my badge was still there. It was.

I’d have to shoot Darren a message. Looked like I’d be starting my shift early.