The girl moved first.
Her patience was already gone. The moment the parcel came into view she shifted her dagger and her body lowered ready to lunge.
The man smiled.
"Already? You're a feisty one, aren't you?"
She dashed forward.
The strike was fast. Faster than the one she had used on Vayne. Her blade cut through the rain and drove straight toward the man's chest, but he leaned away with just enough movement to make it miss. He did not step back fully. He only turned his shoulder, letting the dagger pass close enough to brush his coat.
The girl clicked her tongue and followed with another slash.
This time he raised his short blade and caught the edge. Metal rang through the alley. The parcel stayed in his other hand, dangling loosely between his fingers like he had forgotten it was important.
"You really want this money huh?" He said.
"Shut up."
She shoved against his blade, trying to force him off balance. He gave ground on purpose, sliding back across the wet pavement with an easy step. It made her press forward harder.
Vayne watched from a few steps away. He didn't attempt to reach for the parcel, he just stayed still watching the situation unfold.
The man noticed that.
At first, he only glanced at Vayne from the corner of his eye. Then he looked again while dodging the strikes of the aggravated girl.
The boy was standing in the rain with blood darkening his side, staring at the fight. He didn't show fear with his face. It felt as if there was no hunger in his eyes when he looked at the parcel.
That was strange. The man's smile shifted slightly.
Either he had no ambition at all, or he kept it buried so deep it looked the same. That was the conclusion the man reached.
The girl drove her knee toward his stomach. He caught her by the wrist and turned with the motion, guiding her past him instead of stopping her outright. She stumbled one step, recovered, and slashed backward. He ducked under it.
"Careful," he said.
"If you keep fighting so sloppily, you're just going to tire yourself out."
She spun toward him, breathing harder now.
"I said shut up."
She came in low this time, aiming for his legs instead of his chest. The wet ground worked against her, but she used the slide to close the distance. Her dagger slashed upward the moment she got near him.
The man simply deflected her slash and took a step forward.
"So there's a brain behind all that flailing after all." He mocked.
"But too bad, you're still too weak."
He kicked at her side, sending her straight into the brick wall near them.
The impact knocked the air from her lungs, and her boots scraped against the wet ground before she caught herself. Her body dipped like it wanted to collapse. She forced it back up anyway.
The man tilted his head, then slid the short blade into its sheath beneath the back of his coat.
"You're good enough to be annoying, I'll give you props on that."
The girl pressed one hand to her side. Her dagger stayed in the other.
"Keep talking."
The man scoffed at this response.
He stepped forward without drawing his blade. That annoyed her more than anything he had said. She pushed off the wall and came at him, slower than before but still sharp enough to be dangerous.
Her dagger aimed for his arm that was holding the parcel this time. The man noticed the change and his smile returned.
She ignored him and slashed toward his wrist. He pulled the parcel back, but she followed the motion instead of chasing his body. Her free hand reached for his coat, trying to grab hold of anything that would keep him close.
Her fingers caught the fabric of his coat. For a moment she held onto him
The man looked down at her hand, then back at her face. His smile widened.
"Nice."
She pulled hard, expecting his body to come towards her.
Instead, his body sank. The girl's eyes widened.
His coat slipped through her fingers like it had turned weightless, and his feet disappeared. The shadow at her boots stretched upward, swallowing him into the ground.
He was gone.
The girl stumbled forward.
Vayne's gaze sharpened.
The spot where the man had stood was empty. Rain struck the pavement without interruption. The parcel was gone with him.
Vayne finally understood how he'd seemed to appear out of nowhere.
The girl looked down at her own shadow. A hand rose from the darkness behind her.
The man stepped out of her shadow with the parcel still dangling from his fingers. He leaned close to her ear like he had been there the whole time.
"Boo."
She spun instantly. Her dagger flashed toward his face. The man leaned back, laughing as the blade missed by a breath. He lifted the parcel above his shoulder when her other hand snapped toward it.
"Whoop."
The man laughed harder and shifted his weight back, clearly enjoying himself now. For that one moment, his attention stayed on her. His posture opened. His wrist loosened. The parcel hung just far enough from his body to be taken.
Vayne saw it. The opening was small, but it was there. He moved quickly. It was not like the girl's attacks. There was no anger behind it, no force wasted on the motion. His body surged forward through the rain with sudden precision. One step put him close. His hand shot out, fingers catching the cord around the parcel before the man's smile had time to fade.
The man's eyes shifted ready to move.
Too late.
Vayne twisted his wrist and pulled. The parcel came free. For the first time, the man's expression went still.
The girl froze with her dagger half-raised, her eyes locked on Vayne's hand.
Vayne stepped back before either of them could reach him. The movement was smooth, almost careless.
The man looked at his empty hand. Then he looked at Vayne. A slow smile returned to his face.
"That was smooth. Here I thought you were just standing there because you had no nerve, but you were waiting for the cleanest moment to rob me. Well done."
The girl stared at the parcel in Vayne's hand for a moment, then let out a quiet breath through her nose. Her dagger lowered, but only slightly. She acknowledged that she wasn't gonna get anywhere with these two, and concluded that she wasn't good enough to obtain the parcel.
Her crimson eyes shifted from the parcel to the man. She stared at him like she was carving his face into memory.
"Tch."
Clicking her tongue, she turned and left the alley, her footsteps swallowed by the rain.
Vayne looked down at the parcel in his hand. He didn't actually expect to be able to take it. He leapt with instinct.
"Are you not gonna try taking it back?"
The man scoffed.
"Try? You think you could actually keep me from taking it back?"
That was true. The man had stepped out of shadows, slipped through them, and treated the entire fight like a game. If he wanted the parcel back, Vayne doubted distance would matter.
"Why let me keep it then?"
The man pointed at Vayne.
"You seem useful. I'll take my chances on you."
Vayne looked at the finger pointed at him, then at the man's face.
"For what?"
The man's smile stayed relaxed, but something behind it felt less playful now. He lowered his hand and glanced toward the far end of the alley. Past the streets that twisted deeper into the Lowline.
"People down here will tear each other apart for a chance to climb one step higher. Most of them don't even notice who put the step there."
His gaze returned to Vayne and pointed at the parcel.
"I have undeniable proof that you have a possibility of getting out of here."
The man lifted his wrist slightly, letting the watch catch the pale light from above.
"Recovery missions are not normal. They do not open for everyone."
Vayne's eyes moved to the watch.
"How do you know that?"
The man smiled.
"I'm very smart."
Vayne stared at him blankly.
"That's not an answer."
The rain dragged silence between them for a moment. Vayne looked down at his own watch, then at the parcel in his hand.
"What is the requirement to receive a recovery mission?"
The man replied.
"A veilbreak."
"What is a vei—"
"Get to Highspire," the man said, cutting him off.
His shadow stretched across the wet ground and touched Vayne's.
"Turn in the parcel and follow what they say."
"Why don't you go there yourself?"
The man responded.
"Too many eyes everywhere, I'd rather use you for my purpose."
Vayne looked down as the man's body began to sink into the darkness at his feet. The man's grin was the last thing left above the ground.
"Try not to step into anything bright."
Then he slipped into Vayne's shadow and disappeared.
Leaving Vayne puzzled.