Mali wandered around the market, enjoying its energy and noise. She remembered when she was six years old: Mrs. McCruley, the head mistress of the orphanage, ordered her to start begging for money like the other older kids. It was time she started to earn her keep, she said, after all, she gave Mali a roof over her head, didn't she? Mali tried, she tried hard, but at first, she couldn't beg any money off of anyone. The first couple nights she begged Mrs. McCruley to let her in at night, but Mrs. McCruley slapped her and pushed her off the doorstep. "You can't stay if you have no money for me, she sneered, when you do, then come back, but until then, don't bother.
"Can't I have just a little food?" Mali asked, desperate, "I haven't eaten all day, I promise to work it off!" Mrs. McCruley looked down at her sprawled on the pavement from when she had pushed her.
"Them that works, eats," she said simply, "and you, have certainly not worked." And then she slammed the door in Mali's face, leaving her alone in the dark. Mali soon learned she must try her hardest, to please the good mistress.
She learned how to manipulate people, to play on their emotions. She learned to lie, and pickpocket. Anything that would help her earn money, she learned it; countless nights of hunger had taught her that she couldn't be picky with where she got money. But she wasn't like the other kids, who enjoyed tricking and playing people, whenever she could, she would genuinely try to help people. Mali excused herself as she bumped into someone in the market, lost on memory lane. A certain stall caught her attention, and she stopped and stared at it, it held so much sweetness, yet so much pain. It sold hot rolls for twenty-five proshe, or one-sixth of a credit chit, and it had been, for as long as she could remember. One of the first credits Mali had earned, she had spent all of it on six rolls, and had stuffed herself. The sight and smell of the stall triggered another memory.
It had been about a week since Mali had been thrown on the streets to beg, and she hadn't earned a single chit. But as she woke up to the frosty sunlight kissing her tear-stained cheeks, she knew today was the day. The entire morning, Mali trotted around the market, asking if anyone needed help, pulling on clothes, asking if they could spare a little money for her. Most took in her knotted hair, thin ratted clothes, and mud caked face, and sent her packing with a swift kick or elbow.
One man grabbed her by the wrist as he caught her trying to steal credits from his purse. He slapped her face hard, making her eye's smart. Mali pulled with all her strength, and stopped on his foot, making him release his grip from the pain. He grasped at the empty air that she had just occupied and cursed under his breath, he looked around wildly for her, "If you ever try that again, you she-devil, I'll cut your arm off!" he yelled, his face turning red with the effort. Mali ran as fast as she could from the market, sobbing from fright of the man, her cheek stinging like mad. She had not yet run far from the market and was turning a blind corner, when, because of the blurriness of her tears, she did not see the asari until it was too late, running head long into her legs. "Oh!" The asari exclaimed in surprise, as her soft blue eyes took in the sobbing human-child, her hands automatically catching the girl before she could hit her too hard. Mali, disoriented and scared, sobbed even harder in fright of this woman, twisting and jerking to try and get out of her grasp. "Lemeego, Lemeego! I won't steal from you, I promise." Mali pleaded as she twisted and sobbed.
But the asari firmly held her in her grasp, bending onto one knee so they could be on the same level. As she faced the girl, she was surprised to see such a sweet and innocent face. Her big blue eyes were red rimed from crying, tear tracks had scoured their damp paths through the grime on her cheeks. The little girl's small nose was red and running from crying. Small fists were pressed against her small mouth, in what the asari recognized, as fear. The small girl's blonde hair fell, severely knotted, down her back, and the asari could already tell that someday it would be beautiful. From the girls tattered clothes the asari gathered that either the girl was homeless and living on the streets, or was dangerously close to becoming so.
It had only taken seconds for the asari woman to take it all in, but in that time Mali had realized that struggling was useless under her firm grip, and had submitted to just standing quietly, staring at her through fear filled eyes, a hiccup breaking passed her fisted hands every one and awhile. The asari reached up to wipe Mali's tears away, but hesitated when fear crossed Mali's eyes and she flinched away from the touch, scared the asari was going to hit her. The women's heart broke into a thousand pieces. "I'm not going to hurt you," she reassured her, "you have nothing to be afraid of."
The asari desperately thought about how she could earn the trust of this girl, her mind scrounging for ideas. Reaching into her back pocket, the asari pulled out a credit chit. She knew she had struck gold when the girl's eyes grew as big as saucers. Smiling, the asari placed the credit into Mali's grubby palm, and closed her small fingers over it. Mali had had enough of this strange woman, so with her prize in her hand, she made a sudden dash to get around the woman. The asari sensed the intention before it happened, but decided against restraining the child, it might frighten her. So instead, she let her go, she had another plan. When she felt that the child had run a sufficient distance, she stood up. "Wait!" she called out, there's more where that came from!"
Mali turned around, and looked at the solitary coin she held in her fist. The lady had more? How much could she make? Slowly, she trotted back to the woman, stopping at what she felt was a safe distance. The asari suppressed a small smile, for her ingenuity, that threatened to creep across her mouth. "Do you need help?" Mali asked, interested. Even at the young age she was, she could see a business opportunity when she had one.
"In fact I do", the asari replied. You see, I am quite new to this city," she said, making a general gesture of the area. "I am an archeologist, I was on my way to a dig site when unfortunately most of my luggage was stolen at the last station I was at. All my equipment is fine but my clothes, and my toothbrush are gone. I find myself in need of a guide who knows this city, and I'm willing to pay for their assistance Do you know anyone who could help me?" The asari raised an eyebrow, trying to look convincing. Mali's eyes lit up as she pointed to herself.
"I could, I could!" She said, excited. "I can take Yah anywhere you need to go!" Mali bounced up and down, elation sweeping her small body. What followed was the best day of Mali's young life. She showed the kind stranger around through the market, proudly exclaiming what each one sold and how much it was worth, even though the asari could clearly see. While they were walking from place to place, Mali would steal glances at the asari walking beside her. She had never been this close to an alien before. The asari's skin was a light powdery blue, almost teal, and she was wearing light plate armor. Mali could see that under the armor she was well muscled and fit. The armor was mostly white, with some blue strips outlining the individual pieces.
The insides of her thighs and armpits, and small parts around the pelvis went unprotected, instead, covered with a gray material, her shoes where build into her armor, and were armored and white. It was all very impressive to Mali, and when she thought that the asari wasn't looking, she briefly touched the armor, somewhat in awe, wondering what it felt like. The asari wasn't the tallest she had ever seen, but she walked with a certain grace that the others hadn't, almost like she was gliding when she walked. Despite her armor, she was extremely feminine looking, the armor could not hide her substantial breasts and hips, nor the gentle curve of her waist. Mali thought she was the most beautiful creature she had ever seen.
Suddenly a sweet smell wafted into Mali's nostrils. She curiously followed the smell to a vendor who was selling hot rolls, under a clean, red and white striped tent cover, with a wooden stall set beneath. She looked longingly at the rolls, but she didn't want to spend her credit and not be able to sleep in the orphanage tonight. The asari saw Mali looking at the buns, practically drooling where she stood. She flipped Mali another credit chit "Knock yourself out." Mali went up and spent her whole credit, getting 6 buns total. She devoured the first two so quickly that the asari wasn't sure if there had ever been 6 rolls. The others followed almost as quickly, but by the end Mali was stuffed to the brim. It was the most full she could ever remember being.
Too soon the day was done, by the time they finished it was early evening. The asari had no more errands to run, and she couldn't think of anything else to stall them. In fact, most of the stuff that she had bought she didn't even need, only buying it so she could spend time with this little bundle of joy. It interested her how quickly the little girl had brushed off and forgotten the earlier episode. She acted like she'd known the asari for years, taking and holding her hand while they walked, giving her a quick hug now and then, which the asari was glad to receive. Earlier in the day she had bought Mali a thick coat and a pair of socks and shoes, simple and plain, so that Mali would not get mugged for them, because later on in the day she had noticed Mali didn't have either.
Mali led the asari back through the maze of streets to the lower cities docking bay, where her ship was parked. As she walked, Mali stuck her hand into her pocket and jingled it around, hearing it make a satisfied clinking noise. She still couldn't believe she had made 5 credits and gotten a new coat and shoes, in one day! She checked her left pocket to make sure that she hadn't mixed up her first credit chit that she had gotten from the lady with all the other ones she had been given, she didn't ever want to part with it, it would serve as a token to remind her of this day forever. At the docking bay, the asari had all of her bags transported to her ship. While she was making the arrangements, Mali quietly wandered around, careful not to go too far, but curious to see how the docks worked. The asari turned and watched her for a while, and smiled. The girl reminded her of herself a little bit, with her desire to need to know things. She admired the girl for the strength she had shown, the asari doubted that she could ever live, and survive, like the girl had. But like all good things, they must come to an end.
As she watched, she noticed a woman following the girl. She wore a dark, worn old dress with an ugly brown shawl wrapped around her shoulders. Frizzy orange hair poked out underneath an ugly floppy hat. But the ugliest feature about this women, the asari noted, was the greedy gleam in her eye as she watched the child skip around the docking bay floor. Actually, unbenounced to the asari and Mali, the women had been following them around for quite a while, and she had seen their tentative friendship blossom. She was determined to see how much Mali's rich new friend was willing pay to save her life. As the asari started to stride toward the woman and child, she watched in horror as the lady darted out at Mali and grab her wrist. The asari broke into a run, glittering blue waves of biotics enveloping her.
Mali screamed as Mrs. McCruely came out of nowhere and grabbed her wrist, restraining her from leaving. "Where have you been girl? I've been lookin' for you all day!" Mrs. McCruely brutally bent Mali's arm behind her back, making her cry out in pain. None of the passerby stopped to help, it was the way of the lower levels. Mali vainly looked around for the nice asari woman, but could not find her in the crowd. "I was worried you'd run off on me, you little gitt. You owe me money, Mali, lots of money for taking you in off my doorstep." Mrs. McCruely started pulling Mali toward the docking bay exits. Mali screamed for help, from anyone, her little heart played a symphony against her chest, she searched for any sign of blue in the crowd. She desperately fought Mrs. McCruley, but she was too strong. She sobbed her little heart out as she was being pulled toward the exit, it had been such a nice day and the lady had been so kind. They were passing through the exit, and Mali had almost lost all hope, when a familiar voice cut clear and strong across the buzz of the terminal.
"That's far enough, old crone." The asari was leaning just ahead of them, on one of the sides of the large exit doors. Her blue biotic power shimmered and twisted around her, and her irises glowed with a silver light. Because Mali had been facing backwards, desperately trying to go the way she had come, she had not seen the asari who was in front of them. As she caught sight of her, Mali tried to break from Mrs. McCruley's grip and run toward her, but Mrs. McCruley stopped her by putting a knife to her throat. "Mrs. McCruely, please." Mali pleaded, holding back a sob. The asari suppressed the feeling of panic that threatened to take over, as she saw the knife. She did not show any hit of the fear that she was feeling inside, she acted cool, and in command.
The old woman ignored her, and instead addressed the asari. "How much are you willing to pay for this girl's life?" Mrs. McCruely demanded. "You better think quickly, because I am not a patient woman." She accented the word "patient" by pressing the knife harder to Mali's throat, making her stand on her tip toes to avoid being cut. Mali whimpered in fright, anger filled the asari's eyes.
"Here is your bargain, you witch," the asari spat, "your life for the girls. Walk away now and I won't kill you. I could do it so easily. So decide now. That's all the bargain you will get from me." Mrs. McCruley sighed, obviously disappointed with how things had worked out.
"Well, it was worth a try." The old woman pouted, releasing Mali, who ran into the asari's arms. Ms. McCruley disappeared into the crowd. Mali sobbed into her shoulder, the asari picked her up and took her outside the docking bay, where she sat on a bench with Mali in her lap. Mali clutched at the asari, desperate to feel her comfort and safety. She buried her tears into the asari's shoulder, heaving sobs raking her body. The asari wrapped her arms around the girl and rocked her back and forth as Mali continued to cry, more from shock than anything else. "Shhhh, she murmured, it' all done. Everything is ok." She stroked Mali's hair.
When Mali was done, the asari put her down so she was standing in front of her, and leaned in so she could look into her eyes. Mali looked at her with new found awe. "Yo- You-can use biotics!" She exclaimed, her voice still thick from crying.
"All asari can, we are taught from when we are but a few decades old." The woman replied.
"What's a decade?" Mali asked, confused. "Where you six, like me?" The asari chuckled and shook her head no.
"No, a decade is ten years. I am one-hundred and ten years old." The asari smiled at Mali's look of awe, but then confusion lit her eyes.
"Is that more than six?" Mali asked. This time the asari laughed for real. She threw her shoulders back and really, really laughed. Mali decided she liked the asari's laugh. "Why weren't you scared?" Mali blurted out. She was nervous to ask, but wanted to know.
"I was, I just didn't show it." The asari replied.
"But you couldn't have been, you were so brave." Mali persisted.
"There is something I want you to know." The asari looked deep into Mali's eyes. "True bravery is when you sacrifice yourself for the expense of another, everything else courageous is just a product of strong will and enough courage to do the right thing." Mali tried to wrap her head around it, but she couldn't understand.
"I don't get it." Mali said lamely, disappointed she had let the nice lady down. She let her chin drop and broke their eye contact. The asari went to lift Mali's chin, but Mali instinctively lurched back to try to avoid the pain she thought would come. But none did. She lifted her eyes and saw the asari smiling down at her.
"We will have to work on that." She smiled a dazzling smile. "We never got around to introducing ourselves, so I'll start. My name is-," She never finished. A knife suddenly protruded from her chest, the asari's muscles spaseming around the knife, and then she fell limp to the bench, her arms dropping from Mali's sides. Mrs. McCruley's greedy eyes burned from behind the asari, with a smile she withdrew the knife from the asari's chest.
"I didn't want to have to do that, but you didn't bargain. And I don't want you running off with my bread and butter, now do I?" Mrs. McCruley cackled, a bit insane. She stepped up from behind the bench. "Now come here, you worthless gitt, we are leaving." She said, motioning to Mali.
"Run, girl….run." The asari whispered, grimacing in pain. Dark purple blood was welling up from the stab wound. Mali looked into the asari's blue eyes, there was no pain in them, only bravery.
"Run!" The asari said with as much force as she could muster, pressing her hands against the wound spilling her blood. "And don't look back."
So Mali did. She ran and ran and ran. She cried the whole way, for the nice lady who had bought her a coat, with her blood splashing the pavement. That was the last she ever saw of her, and also Mrs. McCruley. That was the day that Mali ran away from the orphanage, far away. She traveled as far away from that district as she could, and when she couldn't run anymore she collapsed onto a garbage heap, exhausted. Ever so slowly, Mali was forced to use the credits the asari had given her, on the days that she didn't earn enough money. After she ran out of credits, she just didn't eat when she didn't have money. Two hungry years passed like this but Mali refused to use her special credit, no matter how starved she was becoming. And that was how Yane had found her, shivering and on the point of death, but clutching a credit chip in her hand.
Mali pulled herself out of the past, surprised to feel wet tears slide down her cheeks. She hadn't realized she had started crying. Getting up from where she had collapsed onto a sidewalk, she approached the vendor selling the buns. She passed him a credit, and packed six rolls into her small basket. As she turned to leave she caught sight of a small, scruffy boy, staring at the vendor with big, hungry eyes. Mali approached him, and he started at her, not saying a word. She reached in and pulled out two buns from her basket, and gave them to the boy, thinking of the asari woman. "Knock yourself out." She told him, quoting her, and he ran off with the two buns. Mali straightened and finished her shopping, and checked the time. She was fifteen minutes late for her appointment!
She rushed out of the market and ran toward Finnick's pub, where she had been the night before. Finnick was a slippery business man from the higher levels that owned many of the bars and brothels in New Chicago. He mainly employed street children to do his dirty work, because they were so expendable and asked for less. That's why many of his pubs on the lower levels were run, and populated, by children hoping to win Finnick's favor, and money. Mali worked as a fighter in Finnick's favorite pub, the Green Dragon. As she approached the door with the sign above it she could see, Dietrich, her "manager" pacing outside the entrance. He was a little scrawny for his age, sixteen, but he was one of the cleverest people Mali had ever met. He was in charge of setting up fights for her, and recording her wins and losses. He stopped pacing as he lifted his head and saw her approaching. "Where have you been?" He demanded, anxious.
"I'm sorry." Mali trotted up, resting her basket against her hip, "I was in the market and lost track of time."
"I had to set up the deal without you!" Dietrich shouted. "And Finnick has been asking after you all day, he want's you in his office right now!" He was almost exploding with stress. "I had to tell him that I didn't know where you were, or why you hadn't come. So thanks a lot, you made me look bad." He finished. Mali handed him her basket, and planted a kiss on his cheek. Dietrich was one of the only people Mali liked on the planet.
"Thanks Dietrich, I owe you one." Mali rushed up the back stairs toward Finnick's office door. Two merc guards stood on either side of it.
"State you're business, wench, or turn and leave." The guard on the right demanded.
"I'm Mali, Finnick has been asking to see me." She lifted her chin and looked the guard in the eyes. "If you know what's good for you, you'll tell him that I'm here." The guard hmpht and stuck his head into the door.
"Sorry to disturb you, boss, but a "Mali" is here to see you." He said.
"Good, let her in." A smooth voice answered. Mali smiled in triumph at the guard as she walked in. The door was closed behind her. The office was dim and stuffy. On the left wall, tinted glass windows stretched from floor to ceiling, showing the whole pub beneath them. A large oak desk sat on dark carpet, with many data pads strewn across the surface, their many screen's glowing, casting Finnick's shadow across the ceiling. He sat in a large chair behind the table, the glowing stub of a cigarette fixed in his mouth. "Welcome, Mali. I believe that we have never officially met, I am Finnick." He didn't move to shake her hand. Mali stood awkwardly in front of his desk, shifting from foot to foot.
"Thank you sir. I am pleased to meet you. Thank you for what you did at the wager table the other day, you really helped." Mali's voice came out clear and strong, despite the nervousness inside her.
"Oh, it was nothing." He answered, waving it off with his hand. "Ralphie is an impudent boy with too big of a head on his shoulders." Finnick stood up and walked to the windows, looking down on his pub. The windows light made it possible for Mali to see his profile better. He had slicked back black hair, which gleamed softly in the light. His eyes were dark too, they shone with a cold light. He wore a dark suit and tie over his pale white skin, she guessed he didn't get out very often. He was very tall, maybe 6'2", and around forty-five years old. He was trim, but Mali could tell he was unaccustomed to hard work. "I didn't just bring you here to introduce myself." He stated.
"Sir?" Mali questioned, keeping her guard up, remembering what Yane had told her.
"I am pleased with your work as a fighter, you are popular with the crowd and bring in cash for my pub." He started. "No doubt I have your friend Yane to thank for your skills." Mali tensed at the mention of Yane's name. "Depending on how your next fight goes tomorrow, I am willing to make you an offer. I want you to join my personal guard and protect me from my enemies. It is a well-paid job and you get lots of respect and perks, I may even throw Yane into the deal too." He turned from the window and looked at her, waiting.
"Excuse my impedance sir," Mali started, "But you are not a man, I think, to just throw jobs around to kids like me. What's the catch?" Finnick smiled a cold smile and returned to sitting at his desk, he crossed his arms.
"I'm impressed, Mali. You are not like most children I come across. I have learned that Yane has come across some valuable items. I would like to strike a deal, those items, for a well-paying job in my guard." Mali tensed. This is exactly what Yane said would happen. Finnick would try to butter them up to get his slimy claws on their goods.
"I'm sorry, Finnick, but I can't speak for Yane. It's his haul and so if you want to speak to him, you can." She said, curtly, her anger making her speak sharply.
"This is a good deal Mali, don't pass it up. Can't you see it's a once in a lifetime offer?" He pressed.
"No thanks." Mali replied, and walked out the door, not looking back. Finnick stared at his office door, which had just closed. He would find a way, no one said no to Finnick and got away with it.