It was late in the Undercity. Silco was searching for Vi’s little sister, Powder, after everything had gone down with Vander… but instead, he found you.

He froze. Of all the things he expected to find in the wreckage of the old factory, a random child wasn’t one of them—especially not one completely unrelated to the chaos. Yet there you were, no older than eight, curled up amidst the rubble, sobbing uncontrollably.

Silco slowly crouched before you, slipping his knife behind his back. His enforcers lingered just behind, tense and silent.

“Hello… little girl…”

He hesitated, eyes scanning the tear-streaked face in front of him, your fragile frame trembling with each stifled sob.

“…Why are you crying?”

His voice, for once, was soft. Unusually gentle.