The Heist
We were known as incognitos. I knew little about where the word came from. I knew that it originated from the Cybers, the reason my city was a place of technical mayhem—was, being the optimal word. Now it’s in ruin. I don’t worry about that part. The rest of the world could come and save the city. No, what I cared about was my brother and me.
We are incognitos: no name, no home, and no future.
And now one of us was nowhere to be found.
Aria watched the dead city below her spark with bursts of electricity before dying out. She was sick of waiting for the right moment. It had been hours on a cold rooftop and although she had done more in worse conditions, she hated it. Was it honestly too much to ask a person to be on time? Were they too dumb to read a digital clock? She knew they were not, but she also believed idiocy was part of human nature.
Just as she sighed in frustration, her target came in sight. She moved into the shadows before sliding down the side of the broken building, her non-friction magnetized shoes (a personal invention; no copies) made her glide down smooth. She slipped onto the ground easily, blending in with the crowd. No one saw her, as usual. Aria easily moved around the people that still walked around the broken city.
The city was nothing but ruins with constant sparks going off at every open outlet and broken cord. The Tech Bomb had everyone panicked. Some found it hard to believe their own homes were gone. She recalled her father long ago comparing technology to a body with its connections always looping back to a brain and a heart. He would probably tell the city got its heart ripped out. For a moment, she wished she could remember his voice but all she had left was the impression of it. She forced herself out of nostalgia back to the real world.
A lot of people still came here, holding on to their denial. For most, it was a loss of lifestyle. For Aria…she didn’t let herself finish the thought. Her target was straight ahead.
Aria moved until she was walking side-by-side with Fox. Fox was tall, blonde, and the heir of a once-prominent diamond company. Aria once brought down the entire company in a single night before returning it the next morning, every diamond gone without a trace. To get the job done, Aria had to become Fox’s best friend. Neither would admit it but some of that friendship still lived.
“Oh joy,” Fox said, looking over to Aria, “My old thief.” Aria smiled at her.
“At your service.” Fox rolled her eyes, a smile playing on her lips. They played this game every time Aria came to visit. Aria allowed herself to laugh but quickly turned serious.
“Turn here,” Aria told Fox as they approached a bend in the road. Fox nodded. They walked down a less crowded street until they reached a building where the last bits of electricity had faded. Perfect for a quick chat. They walked up the use-to-be automatic stairs, soon reaching a high enough floor for privacy. Fox walked over to a stable part of the floor before facing Aria with a blank expression.
“I can’t help you, Aria.” Aria narrowed her steel gray eyes. So, Fox knew. She stalked towards Fox.
“What do you mean you can’t help? Of course, you can help me,” she hissed, her voice ringing bouncing off the walls of the collapsed room. “Honestly, does being a powerful heir of a diamond empire with 3 billion dollars mean nothing?!”
“Of course, it means nothing! None of it means anything! I have nothing!” Fox screamed back. Aria took a step back, not use to Fox looking so angry. She usually was a girl of no worries. Even the big theft Aria pulled off didn’t send her screaming. Her dad was smart; the small set back was just that, small. Now, there were bags under Fox’s eyes, and she wasn’t wearing something Aria could only dream of touching. Fox looked tired.
“The Tech Bomb ruined everything,” Fox said, interrupting Aria’s thoughts. “Nobody cares for diamonds when your entire building is short-circuiting. Nothing we had mattered after that. Once everything crashed, we became poor. Nothing we had has any value anymore. We used to own this city and now we have nothing.” Aria rolled her eyes at the dramatic speech.
“Well, I’m sorry you were reduced to normal like everybody else,” Aria retorted, vaguely waving her hand as if shooing away Fox’s words. “I don’t care that you lost everything that had some type of ‘value’ because right now I need your help with something more important than your pride and stupid mansion.” Fox’s shoulders sagged. Aria stood there waiting for her to speak.
“I don’t know where they took him,” she said. Aria turned away from her. Of course, she didn’t. She couldn’t have. But the lack of information stung, nonetheless.
“I don’t need that. I just need a link. I know you can find that,” Aria said over her shoulder. Fox instinctively stretched her hand out to comfort Aria but thought better of it. If nothing else, Aria suffered silently. Pity is for those who are ignorant of where they are and those who can afford to be horrified, Aria told her once.
Fox contemplated her unorthodox friendship with the girl in front of her. Aria didn’t care about her. She didn’t care about anyone but her little brother, Gabriel. If Fox were dying in a fire, Aria wouldn’t put it out. Perhaps, that was a good thing.
Aria didn’t care about Fox’s status or money. As long as Fox was honest with her, Aria was willing to stay around. Fox liked that. She needed that. So, she thought about all the people she knew, anyone she could contact, that could help. Suddenly, it hit her. The person who was stupid enough to give Fox a way to find them. A person ignorant of her best friend.
A smirk grew on Fox’s face. Aria looked back to just in time to see Fox’s expression and held back a breath of relief. She knew Fox wouldn’t let her down.
“I know just the guy.”
Fox stood in the basement of what used to be the World Congress Center. It was the largest ruin in the city, standing in the middle of it like a beacon. Even in its deteriorated state, it held a certain elegance. A shadow walked out of the dark halls, the flickering lights above her revealing the person’s face. Fox smiled at the tall male who happened to be her last visitor before the Tech Bomb, a thief just like Aria.
“Good to see, Alek,” she greeted. He smirked at her, taking her hand, and kissing the back. She held back a scoff. Chivalry was so dead.
“I knew you couldn’t resist me,” Alex said. Fox laughed at his comment. He was puzzled until he felt a weight crash into him from behind, getting pinned to the ground with his arms behind him and a knee digging into his back.
“Thank you, Fox,” said the assailant. The voice sounded familiar to him…oh no, he thought. He knew exactly who it was. Fox just smiled before exiting. So, they were friends…go figure, he thought. Aria stood up with her foot on the center of his back and her hand gripping his hair tightly.
“Aria,” Alek wheezed, “nice to see you again.”
“I need answers.” He was afraid of that. “Where is Gabriel?”
“I’m not-” Aria put more pressure on Alek’s back, making him wince as he heard and felt a couple cracks.
“Think carefully before answering this question,” she warned. “Where is he?” Alek sighed under her. She waited, her patience wearing thin.
“Okay,” he told her, “but you brought this on yourself.” Alek wiggled under her foot. Aria lifted it and he stood up, dusting himself off. He didn’t run from her. Aria knew his pride wouldn’t let him…at least not at the moment.
“How exactly?” Aria asked him.
“Boss wanted you to do a job, remember? You refused,” he explained. Aria rolled her eyes, tilting her head as she remembered her last time in her old boss’ office.
She remembered the job he asked her to do. The boss wanted her to steal a king’s military designs. She wasn’t stupid. The plan screamed, “get caught.” She may be a genius but if she had gone through with it, she knew there would be more than one genius to trying to catch her. Her boss knew what would happen, the level of risk. Yet, he still insulted her intelligence and “suggested” it. After she refused the job, she quit, watching her back ever since. Turns out she didn’t watch it well enough.
“After that,” Alek continued, “Boss was furious. He wanted to take you down. But he said none of us were good enough to find you if you didn’t want to be found.” Alek scowled as he admitted this. “So, he thought of something on a grander, more creative scale.” Aria thought about what could be so grand that it would throw her off badly enough for him to get her brother—then it hit her.
“The Tech Bomb…” she trailed off, not sure whether to be impressed or horrified by the revelation.
“All the tech you stole for him over the years helped give him everything he needed. He figured if he could just find a way for you to lose sight of your brother, for thirty seconds, then he could do it. You should feel flattered; it took a whole city crumbling down for us to outsmart you.”
Aria felt so stupid. She should’ve known. The second she let her brother run off to the playground, she knew she something was wrong. But he had begged her to let him have some fun and she couldn’t say no. He took so much crap because of what she did, she thought he deserved a break.
After Gabriel was out of sight, the bombs went off, throwing not only her but the entire city off balance, making it more difficult to find Gabriel. It took her a year just to get to this point. She closed her eyes, rubbing her temples.
“So where is he now?” Aria asked calmly.
“Not telling,” Alek told her. Her eyes shot open, the gray turning into steel.
“What?”
Alek didn’t answer before running. Aria raced after him. He climbed the stairs quickly towards the roof. She took off in another direction, knowing a better route to get to him. Alek smirked when he looked behind him. He lost her. He knew he could rid of—Aria jumped down from a beam over him, her hands grasping his neck. They tumbled back down the stairs, her hands squeezing air out of him the whole way down. Even when they came to an abrupt stop, she was still choking him.
“Where is he?!” she yelled, enraged. He shook his head a bit and she started slamming it into the hard ground. He let out a squeak of pain before he attempted to speak. She loosened up a bit to let him.
“Underground—labyrinth. He—he went to the Labyrinth,” he wheezed. Aria smiled in satisfaction and got off him. Alek sat up coughing, thankful for his life. Aria turned back to him, grabbing a knife out of her pocket. She hurled it towards the center of his back. Alek’s back bent from the force of the hit, not even able to force out a scream before blood started to fill his mouth. He slumped forward on the ground, Aria paying him no mind as she left.
Fox stared across the fire at her friend at a sanctuary they found right outside the city. It was another ruin but this one was more stable with less technology than the last. Fox believed it used to be a church, one made of stone instead of the VR ones they had now.
Fox knew the moment Aria stepped out the Congress building that she had the information she needed. Still, something felt off. Fox never asked Aria what her job entailed but she could imagine, and she could tell bad nights from good nights. There were little things she remembered: the way her fingers twitched when she sat still, how her eyes would shift a bit more than usual, the flecks of red under her nails at times—all signs that her adrenaline was running high and something bad was either going to happen or already did. Fox also knew nothing that could be done to stop it. She could only hope it wasn’t too terrible.
“When are you going to go get him?” Fox asked.
“Three days. I’ll need to gather a few items, maybe stop at your family’s vault,” Aria explained. “It’ll take 12 hours to get there. I’ll get my brother, kill him, and go.”
Fox’s head shot up. It was the first time Aria had her told her she planned to kill someone. She usually preferred to keep the details of her life vague. If she was willing to admit it, she was sure.
“Aria,” Fox said carefully, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“He’s going to pay for what he did. He should’ve let me walk away.”
“Then let him walk away. Get your brother but don’t risk anything trying to get revenge.”
Aria looked at Fox. Her only friend. One of two people in the entire world that actually cared about her enough to be worried. The only person she talked about her dead parents and Gabriel. The one person that didn’t use the weakness against her. She respected that and appreciated it but that didn’t change her mind.
“You obviously don’t know him well,” Aria said, her voice grave as she remembered the cold man she once worked for.
She turned around getting comfortable in her sleeping bag, waiting for sleep. She wished Fox were right, that she could just let him go, but Fox didn’t know any better. And the last thing Aria could risk was being found. Not again.
“Do you know the story behind the labyrinth?” her boss asked as he paced back and forth in front of Aria. She shivered violently as the air passed over her body, her clothes wet from an earlier trial. She could feel her feet growing numb in her boots. She looked at the piece of bread the boss had tossed in front of her moments ago. She wanted to grab it but was wary of his presence. Boss wasn’t the present giving type. He matched his name perfectly: Stone.
“It is an ancient story,” he told her. “Told by the old Cirenites. Back then, it was a place called Greece and the story came from an island named Crete. It was about a prince who was sent into a maze with the mission to kill a beast, one that drank the blood of innocent boys and girls as payment for unjust killings against another city.”
Aria didn’t care although it reminded her of one of the old stories they were forced to read in school as an example of classic American literature. Something to do with hunger and games. Speaking of which…her eyes barely moved from the piece of bread.
“Long story short, the prince succeeds but fails to tell his father, who thinks he died, and the father jumps off the cliff. The prince goes home and becomes king.” Stone knelt in front of Aria, forcing her to look up. “Happy Grecian ever after.” He let her go and stood back up.
“I hardly care for the story behind it,” Stone continued. “but I am rather fascinated by the idea it brought. Life and death tangled up in one area, how fear can turn into strength and will. Now, I know you’re tired and ready to get out, but we made a deal. You pass my test; you secure a future for you and your brother. It’s too late to complain about the difficulty. Think, instead, of all the strength this will give you.” He smirked down at her. “I have a feeling that you have been stopped by very superficial obstacles until now. Believe me when I say this one is worthy of you.” She watched him walk out of sight, the haze around them obscuring which way he turned.
As soon as she could no longer hear his steps, she snatched the bread from the ground. She opened her mouth to take a bite when she noticed a solid, clear bead on the outside. She paused, looking at the inside of the bread. There is a thin, barely noticeable milky film covering it. She tossed the bread away quickly. Stone had poisoned the food. Aria felt tears sting her eyes as she looked at the solid walls around her. She wondered if they were always that high.
She didn’t even contemplate the option of lying down, eating the bread, and making this all go away. She pushed herself off the ground and shuffled forward, remembering she had someone to live for. Someone Stone would use as her replacement if she failed.
Aria held back another shudder as made her way through the twist and turns of the misty halls. So many years or surviving these walls, Stone’s personal hell of a training ground. It was still dark and foreboding as she remembered, years of experience being her only flimsy map to the place. The only light was the lamps hung every few feet, doing little to cut through the ever-present fog. Stone’s soldiers lingered in the pockets, always patrolling or training Stone’s new victims. She forced herself not to jump when she heard a scream pierce the quiet.
She walked slowly, using the haze to fool as many guards as possible. She knew if she looked bulky from far away, they would make their own assumptions. Stone never put the best ones on the front lines. She could tell she was getting close to the end by how the tunnels getting dimmer as she went along. She couldn’t be more than a few minutes away now.
Aria continued along noticing more guards with each turn. There were more than she expected, too many to hide from and each one ready to attack anything that passed them. Aria figured if she could get towards the end, she would only have to fight through half of them. Creeping along the wall, she took a misstep, kicking a loose rock.
As expected, the guards charged at her.
Oh crap, she thought.
She ran towards them getting enough momentum to flip over the first two, pulling out her daggers. She moved swiftly through them with ease. Some attempted to attack her from behind, but she was always a step ahead. She literally cut her way through them, grateful not for the first time that Stone insisted on her specializing in the blades. Once the last of the movement stopped, she looked back for survivors. None. She let out a relieved sigh before seeing a door at the end of the tunnel. Aria threw her shoulders back, blades in hand, and walked in. Just like she pictured, Stone was sitting on the edge of his desk ready for her.
He always was.
“Cute display,” Stone said, “Thank you for taking out the trash.”
“Give me my brother, Stone,” she demanded. “I’m not leaving without him.”
“Now, now, Aria. You know it can’t be that simple,” he told her calmly. “Surely you understand there must be an incentive on my side of this deal.”
“You have no side because if you think I’m walking out of here just to give a chance to hunt me again, you don’t know me,” she growled. She always hated his wordplay.
Stone just smiled and stood up. He was dressed in a tailored designer suit that showed hints of his muscles. His form, without question, was better than most. He was not like the mafia bosses in the old movies Aria saw once. Those bosses let someone else protect them. Stone preferred to fight his own battles and was particularly good at it. He shrugged off his blazer, unbuttoning the cuffs of his shirt, rolling them up as he spoke.
“You always were too honest. But I can see why. Your brother certainly shares your spirit. Strong, stubborn, and a taste for revenge.” Stone’s eyes sparked with mockery. “He’ll make a wonderful replacement.”
Aria charged at him. Stone sighed before grabbing her neck easily. She didn’t panic. She merely struck him with a dagger in his arm. He howled and let go out of instinct. She landed on her feet before punching the side of his face with enough force to make him stumble back. She raised her hands to attack again when he pushed her to the ground with more force than she was prepared for.
She banged her head hard on the floor, her ears ringing. He grabbed her leg and swung her into the wall. Aria tried to regain control futilely, but Stone was just like her. Always a step ahead of every move. He avoided her ill-timed attacks easily and delivering blows to her stomach, her ribs, and her head. He let her drop to the ground after a while, Aria almost unconscious from the injuries.
“And here I thought you would be a better fighter,” he said with a grunt. She heard a clatter on the floor, figuring that it was her dagger. “Guess you’re just like the rest, a waste. A disappointment.” Aria lifted her head up. Her breathing was irregular; her heart was pounding too fast to be good. She could feel the adrenaline building inside her, hiding the exhaustion she felt from the maze.
“Oh well,” Stone decided, “better dead than taking up space.”
He turned ready to stomp on her. She rolled out the way and quickly grabbed her weapon again. Stone was about to strike her again but this time she sliced through the back of his leg, making the cut as deep as possible. Stone let out a scream of agony. He dropped his knee. She quickly recovered, trembling as she got to her feet. Aria enjoyed the look in his eyes as he fell hard against his desk, scrambling for a hold. She made her way over to him, ready to savor the last minutes he had left. She lifted his head up until they were seeing eye-to-eye.
“I win,” she told him.
He smiled before laughing, loud and obnoxious in her face even as blood trailed down his lips. She tensed at the sound.
“Have you now?” he rasped. “Even with your heart ready to break out of your chest?”
Dread raced through Aria as she realized her heart was still beating too fast, her chest pinching as she breathed.
“Did you not realize it as you traced your way through the halls? Or did you really believe it was adrenaline? You always were shaky when it came to poisons.”
She reached out and grabbed Stone’s neck.
“Which one?” She gritted her teeth.
“Powdered arson,” he answered smug, laughing at the look of horror on Aria’s face.
Powder arson had two stages: the heat up and the cooldown. The heat up could take 5-7 days unless there was something to speed it up, like a fight through a hallway of guards. The cool down was a lot quicker, 24 hours at most, but it needed an additive to be triggered. She calculated that she had two days before she burnt out. She had a chance to fix this…but she didn’t see Stone reach into his back pocket until it was too late.
He blew power into her eyes, making her drop her grip on him. She felt the effects immediately. It burned her eyes, and she could feel it seeping into her skin until it reached her blood system. It was the finalizing agent. No, she thought as she looked at Stone. His smile was still in place, even as blood dotted his lips.
“Now,” he inhaled, “it’s a tie.” He closed his eyes and slumped on the ground, falling eternally silent.
Aria stumbled back until she hit the wall. She could feel her heart slowing down immensely already. It was too late to stop the poison. She had only 24 hours. It wasn’t much but it was enough.
She looked around cautiously, listening to a sound that had been overshadowed by her fight until now. A soft crying sound from behind a door on the other side of the room. She gathered her strength, steeling herself, before opening the door. Inside was a thin, wiry kid sitting tied to a chair. The kid looked up. Aria let out a breath of relief. She could spot Gabriel’s eyes anywhere.
“It was terrible,” Gabriel told Aria that night, shuddering at the thought of his year underground.
He finished telling her the whole story of his capture. She listened to it all. She didn’t show any weakness or signs of poison to him, only stumbling or slowing down a couple times when the pain was unbearable as they walked back to Aria’s hideout. Fox was waiting for her, looking extremely relieved to see Aria with Gabriel in tow. He was currently lying down in her sleeping bag, finally safe. Aria could see Gabriel getting sleepy and made the decision she’s contemplated the walk home.
“Well, I got something to make you feel better,” she said. His eyes lit up.
“Really?” Aria nodded. She pulled out a necklace she often wore, a chain with their parent’s wedding bands. Gabriel loved that chain, always begging Aria to let him wear it. She never let him keep it for more than an hour, but today was different. Gabriel’s jaw dropped when he saw it.
“You mean…” he trailed off.
“You deserve it. Think of it as a birthday present. Or a symbol of strength,” Aria told him.
“Or you,” he said as he slipped the present over his head, “You’re strong.” Aria’s heart ached at the statement. Why did this have to happen to him? Why did he have to lose her too? She forced a smile and nodded.
“Yeah, I am. But you’ll be stronger. You always will be.” She took his hand and squeezed it, hoping he would take her words to heart. She hoped they would help him survive in this cruel world. She pulled out her final gift.
“You also get a gift from Fox,” she added. Fox perked up at the mention of her name. Aria pulled out a ring with a blue diamond. Fox gasped.
“Here you go. Don’t lose that. You’ll need it someday,” Aria instructed as she slipped it on his middle finger. Gabriel awed at the diamond.
“For what?”
“You’ll see.” Aria winked. Gabriel nodded before his eyes started to droop. Aria forced him to lie down in the sleeping bag. She placed a comforting hand on his face.
“Good night, Gabriel,” she said softly. She started to stand up and walk towards Fox when she heard him.
“Aria,” he called. She turned back to him. He was staring at her through sleepy eyes. “Love you.” The lump she’d been ignoring threatened to spill over and she forced herself to smile.
“I love you, too,” she reassured him. Gabriel smiled tiredly before drifting to sleep quickly.
Aria moved across the room, spotting Fox. Fox motioned for Aria to follow her. Aria looked back to make sure Gabriel was asleep before nodding. Once they were on another level of the ruin with a clear view of Gabriel, Fox spoke.
“That was my family’s ring,” she said quietly, “Why are you giving it to him?” Aria sighed tiredly.
“He needs it.”
“It’s a sign of guardianship! Giving him that ring means my family means he’s a part of my family!”
“I’m well aware, thank you,” Aria told her.
Fox was confused. Why would Aria do that? Why would she give her guardian of her brother in any way? It’s not like…no, Fox thought. Aria would never do that. Not unless that was her last and only choice. The only way for that to even be an option is…
“No…” she whispered. “No, Aria, no. You are not leaving me with him—” Aria covered her mouth, looking back down. Gabriel was still fast asleep.
“Will you shut up?” Aria hissed.
“How could you do this? He can’t stay with me!”
“Yes, he can. I know you’ll take care of him,” Aria insisted. Fox felt helpless. Why was this happening?
“But I don’t understand,” Fox said. “How…”
“Poison,” Aria explained. “Stone didn’t want to die alone. So, he decided to take me with him.” She hung her head, ashamed that she even had to do this.
“I won’t last past morning,” Aria said sadly. Aria suddenly grabbed Fox by her shoulders. “Fox, please, you’re the only one I can trust. Please! This is his only chance.”
Fox tried to process Aria’s pleas. This was the first time, ever, that Aria has asked her, begged her, for anything. The last time she ever would. Although it didn’t seem like it, Fox owed her friend this…so she nodded. Aria relaxed, moving her hands back to her side. Neither Fox nor Aria spoke as the night started to pass, both keeping their eyes on the young boy below.
“You do realize that you’re my only friend, right?” Aria murmured, the first words she spoke in hours. Fox felt tears coming to her eyes. She sucked in a shaky breath. Once again, she was forced to realize she was about to lose her best friend in the entire world in a matter of hours. Aria looked at her.
“Please save the tears till I’m gone.” Fox laughed shakily. She took a deep breath to calm herself. Aria sighed looking out to the forest near them, then above at the sky. Dawn was breaking. Gabriel wouldn’t be asleep for much longer.
“Well, I better go dig that second grave,” she joked dryly.
A sob broke out Fox’s throat. She walked over and hugged Aria. Aria went stiff before hugging back. She usually didn’t do physical contact, but she would give in this time. After a while, Aria pulled away. She gave her friend one last smile before walking out the building.
Once Aria was far away enough from the ruin, she began to run. She let the pain overwhelm her. She ran faster, increasing it. The poison sped up, circulating quicker in her blood, killing her faster. Suddenly, she slowed to a stop, the pain making her stumble. She was soon crawling on the forest ground, her heart slowing too much and making her too weak to move. She could feel her last heartbeats and started counting down.
Ten…
She breathed in vain, the pain was unbearable. She felt like she was being frozen, her veins becoming ice.
Five…
When will it be over? She thought weakly, a small part of her trying to hold on. She pictured Fox, crying her eyes out now so she could put on a brave face for Gabriel. I’m sorry, she thought as the sun peeking out over the trees. This would be the first day he would have to live without her.
Three…two…one…
She let out her last breath, her brother’s gray eyes her final thought.
Miles away, under the dome of a ruin, a young boy woke up to the sunset. He reached out towards the rays. It was the first time in a year he’d felt the sun’s warmth. It was a glorious feeling and he wanted to share this amazing moment, this tiny victory, with his favorite person in the world. He looked around for his sister, but his eyes only found her friend. He didn’t worry though; his sister was probably out finding food or something.
“Fox,” he called. Fox jumped at his voice. “Is Ari gonna be back soon?”
He couldn’t really see her expression since she was so high up but as she got closer, he noticed her eyes were red and tears streamed down her face. She attempted to wipe them as she got closer, but Gabriel already knew something was very wrong.
“Gabriel,” she said cautiously. “There’s…something happened when Aria went to get you.” Gabriel didn’t need to hear any more; he knew what that meant. He looked down at the ground as Fox placed a hand on his shoulder. “She wouldn’t want you to blame yourself. It’s not your fault.” Gabriel ignored the lie and looked at the rings that hung around his neck.
But you’ll be stronger. You always will be.
Don’t lose that. You’ll need it someday.
She already knew.
Tears streamed down Gabriel’s face silently. Fox tried to soothe him, but he couldn’t hear a word she said over the two statements that repeated in his head. Under the warm sunlight, under the dome of a ruin, he and his heart grew cold.
We were known as incognitos. I knew little about where the word came from. I knew that it originated from the Cybers, the people who would change humanity’s definition of reality forever and paved the way to the technological zenith that was once my city. It’s now ruined because of my family, attacked by a man I could no longer seek revenge after because my sister killed him to save me. She, too, was ruined, all because of me.
We were incognitos: no name, no home, and no future. One of us is gone. Now I have one goal, one mission she left for me: survive.
