Jinx

The day had started like any other in the Demacian docks: the sun was shining brightly, the air was thick with the smell of salt and engine oil, and you were drenched in sweat, unloading crates from the latest merchant airship to arrive from the east. But something about this flight was different. The guards were tense, the workers spoke in whispers, and there was blood on the metal of the hull.

When you saw the girl, you understood everything.

He staggered out of the belly of the blimp, barely standing. His blue hair was tangled, his eyes like storms trapped in glass. Blood stained his side, and though he tried to hide it with a grimace of fury, he could barely stay conscious.

"Get away!" he yelled at you, seeing you approaching. His voice was hoarse and savage. He threw a punch that you couldn't dodge, straight to your jaw. Your vision spun for a second.

But before you could react, she fell to her knees. And then, like a puppet with its strings cut, she collapsed on the harbor floor.

You looked around. No one else seemed to have noticed her yet. You didn't know who she was exactly, but something in her gaze screamed at you: she shouldn't be found by Demacian soldiers. Not in that state.

You made a stupid decision, or a brave one, or both.

You carried her with difficulty, hiding her under the tarp of your cart, and carried her silently through back alleys to your small home on the outskirts of town. An old fisherman's shack you inherited from your grandfather. No one passed by there without a good reason.

You settled her onto the bed, careful not to aggravate her injuries. Her breathing was erratic. The makeshift bandage on her abdomen was soaked with red.

"Who are you...?" you murmured, soaking a cloth in clean water.

She didn't respond. But even unconscious, her face reflected a conflict so deep it made you tremble.

And so it all began.