GOLDEN AGE | ON HIATUS

IV | NARCISSA

[ 04 ]

ONE OF THE REASONS WHY Narcissa liked Semper City as much as she did were its streets. To most, they would appear ugly, even grotesque, with their grey concrete and grey streetlamps and grey skies. Some of the alleys seemed to twist into nowhere, making tourists stay only to the main roads. Even in those, it wasn't safe, but for a milder threat. It was always pickpockets, whether they were hooded men or women in puffer jackets or children with little pockets all over their trousers. On more than one occasion, Narcissa had witnessed someone reaching into another's pocket and pulling out a phone or wallet before sprinting away or slinking off with the flow of the crowd.

Sometimes, someone else would notice as well, and alert everyone in the vicinity, screaming and shouting. That way, it was increasingly becoming easier for her to spot the country idiots, bumbling and wearing their money around their belts, from the city ones, who kept their wallets in zipped up pockets inside their jackets and never wore earphones, to make sure they had time to run before the bullets rained down. It wasn't that gun laws were any more lax than in any other city, it was to the contrary  - but rather it was because there were so many.

They wanted to stop crime, but instead of putting more police officers on the streets, they threw more people in jail. People rarely walked the streets unarmed, but they would get home, they'd find their apartment ransacked with an address on their counter. Those addresses listed the places they could give themselves up, or their weapons. If they did neither, soon Crux agents would be at their doors, dragging them away. Narcissa had seen it happened before - it wasn't that rare of an occurrence.

That was why she'd been separated from her family, to fulfill their legacy. Nearly two decades before, they'd done the exact same. There'd been five of them, back then, geniuses and prodigy - the cream of the crop. With that crop, the harvest failed. The heroes, the supposed saviours of Semper City, turned against the vigilante society known as Crux that fancied themselves as the kingmakers. Privately, Narcissa knew that they were weak, weaker than most, but they wouldn't ever say it publicly, and she had no voice to say it. The Viper's hiss was brushed off by most as secrecy and lies.

They were perfectly right.

Narcissa was a great liar, and an even better thief. It wasn't that she told lies - no, she became them. Her feet crunched on the gravel as they trudged through the street. Releasing a bitter laugh, she watched Finn as he effortlessly scaled the wall at the back of the alley, landing with a slight thump on the ground. She narrowed her eyes, and let her smirk broaden as she slipped through a hole in the brick, hidden behind a dumpster that she'd nudged with her foot. Next to Finn, she appeared so composed that it was almost laughable. After all, she hadn't expected much from him, so it was no shock for Narcissa.

It had, however, provided a great source of entertainment as she watched Semper City's greatest superhero stumble and stutter. Crux hadn't raised them to find inconsistencies, to analyse and plan. Their purpose had always just been to fight, conquer, attack and defend. Considering it all, it was a wonder that Narcissa had managed a whole ten years with them, really.