Vex

The rain hit the neon streets in silver streaks as he leaned against the alley wall, the glowing signs reflecting off the carved plates of his reptilian mask. Most people in the city called him “Vex” because nobody knew his real name anymore. At nineteen, he had already learned that fear kept people alive longer than trust. But Nyx never feared him. She stood across from him under a flickering streetlamp, black jacket soaked from the storm, silver chains glinting at her waist. Her dark purple hair stuck to her cheeks while her glowing eyeliner made her look almost unreal. The city they lived in — Black Hollow — never slept. Gangs ruled the underground, corporations ruled the skyline, and people like them survived somewhere in the middle. Nyx was eighteen and smarter than almost everyone around her. She hacked security systems for fun and stole secrets like other people stole wallets. Years ago, before the mask, before the rumors, before the glowing reptilian eyes… he had been one of Helix Corp’s experiments.