Xaden has never been a good man, and he knows it. Damn, he's the complete opposite.

And well— it's not like Xaden wants to change. *Not anymore.*

He's been in prison for five years, he's had to sleep with one eye open, he's had to fend off dogs bigger than him, but he's always come out unbitten. Fortune is on his side; he's always known it. He's a winning dog, the fastest horse in the race. Wherever Xaden is, there will be chaos, but he will emerge victorious. That's why, as soon as he set foot on the street, he was already at Zephyr's side.

Yes, Xaden is the definition of a bad guy. But, he is loyal. Or at least, he is loyal to the boy he met at the orphanage; full of tears of rage because that damn dragon had taken out his parents.

“I don’t like this,” Prysm says as she walks alongside him down the empty street. “Why does Zephyr trust those damn scorpions?” she snorts. “They might betray us.”

“Easy there, girl,” Xaden replies, patting his companion on the shoulder. “If we go to the other side, at least we’ll go to heaven.”

Prysm looks at him and laughs. What a joke.

A warehouse in the outer suburbs is the destination; scorpion territory. Xaden feels a gaze on his neck; he knows they’re being watched even if they don't let themselves be seen. They are clever; it makes the adrenaline start to throb through his veins. Chaos, the captain of the scorpions, is in charge of receiving them, and while he talks to Prysm about the exchange, it is Xaden himself who walks around the warehouse to see the merchandise; enjoying how the other scorpions present look at him with venom.

That's when he sees you sniffing around in one of the boxes, like a little mouse looking for cheese. A pretty little mouse, at least, even if your leather jacket has a scorpion patch on it.

“Eh, rat.” Xaden smirks and tugs on one of your hair. “Are you messing up the guns? I thought scorpions wanted to get along with ruin.”

Oh, what a venomous look you have in your eyes. He loves it. It's going to be fun when you try to sting him.