Vania had finally completed the surgery. Being a former nurse helped her hands move with practiced precision but it would never make her dull in her every operation. She had once taken an oath to not harm, to heal, and to protect those in need. But now, she found herself complicit in the ruthless exploitation of innocent lives. Her skills as a healer had been twisted and perverted for profit.
Shaking her head, she reminded herself that she was now a grafter, and this was her daily life—a never-ending cycle of butcher and... desperation. In the cutthroat world of this station, there was no room for sentimentality or moral qualms. Survival was paramount, and the former nurse knew that she had to do whatever it took to stay afloat in this unforgiving universe.
No matter her experience though, she still couldn't help but feel a pang of disgust at the sight before her. The man lying on the operating table had been sliced open, his body laid bare as she extracted his implants one by one. His skull was cracked, his chest, and even his limbs. All of them were inspected and taken apart. The man's body was riddled with implants, each one more valuable than the last as she pulled them up. But beneath the surface, she knew that he only had this much cybernetics due to his organs being diseased and unhealthy to the point of dependency on these implants. A testament to a life lived on the fringes of technological society.
As she removed the last of the implants, she paused for a moment and took a deep breath as she wiped the sweat from her forehead. Another catch is that could make a tidy profit selling the implants to their client. In her mind, numbers were already rolling in. She has already gotten used to exploiting the vulnerable for their gain. This was her reality, a world where morality was a luxury she could ill afford.
She went to the sink and washed the bits of flesh and blood from her body. Then turned back to prepare the disposal of the man's remains. Then she heard a voice complaining.
“It’s still a waste to throw them all out.” Her current companion in this schedule was a man named Georgel. He too was a former nurse but was laid off from his job due to his age and stimulant addiction.
“You can try to sell these then by yourself,” she replied.
“Yeah right. The last one who did it did not get the profit she wanted.” George laughed as he was also tucking the remains of a woman, he just finished with into the dump bin.
She also set about cleaning up her operating room before she added another body to the table. It was a grim reality, but it was the only life she knew. In the operating room of the grafter's hideout, the former nurse meticulously went about her grim task. With practiced hands, she worked with a precision born of years of experience, her face a mask of detached professionalism as she dissected the lifeless body before her.
The naked body on the table was a woman who seemed to be breathing but barely, but Vania didn’t care anymore and proceeded with the surgery. Her patient in the table is just another victim of the grafters, her body was now being harvested for its valuable implants and organs. But as the former nurse made her incisions, she noted with a grimace that her organs were far from healthy. Years of neglect and abuse had taken their toll, leaving behind a patchwork of diseased tissue and scarred flesh.
The same with her previous ‘patient’, despite the poor condition of the organs, the implants were another matter entirely. Embedded within the woman's body were a plethora of cybernetic enhancements, each one a valuable commodity on the black market. With a sigh, she decided to pull herself away from this reality and had her thoughts drift back to her daughter, a bright and inquisitive girl who had captured her heart from the moment she was born. The memory of her daughter's innocent request for a reward in exchange for completing her homework brought a bittersweet smile to her lips.
Her daughter's request was simple yet poignant—a chance to see the passing Viszenya Comet, a rare celestial event that would grace the space around the station next month. It was a small wish, but one that held great significance for her daughter and one that she had been eagerly anticipating for weeks. A childish reminder of the beauty and wonder that still existed in her world despite the darkness that surrounded them.
Her daughter’s smile was what made her continue through all of the mess that she was currently in. And she made a silent vow to herself, that she would find a way to escape this life of crime, to provide her daughter with the future she deserved—a future filled with hope, love, and the promise of better days to come. A new life. In another station. Or perhaps, if fortunate, maybe on another planet where they could start again.
Numbers started piling up on her vision after she summed up what she scanned from the salvaged cybernetics on her end. This made her sigh in relief as she had finally reached her quota that would give her a profit margin. She smiled as she once again disposed of the cut-up body parts of a woman. Her thoughts swirled back to her beloved daughter that perhaps she could use some of her earnings to spoil her daughter later. Then the curtains that divided their workplace were opened and Georgel decided to take a break and started smoking.
“So… how’s your end there?” Georgel asked, leaning back to the table that he was operating with earlier.
“I had a good catch this time.”
“What?” Georgel was confused.
“The rest were above average this time but the most valuable that I got was a D2-X2DG Heart.”
“Holy shit.” Her companion was impressed.
“Yep.” she had managed to extract an implanted heart that was only available to the very rich or those who are connected to corpo suits—a rare and valuable commodity in the black market. Her mind raced with calculations, assessing the potential value of such an implant. The demand for organ implants was always high, especially for vital organs like the heart, lungs, and eyes.
He also knew about this and quickly realized the immense value of such an implant then congratulated her fellow grafter on her success.
“Did that come from the woman earlier?” Georgel pointed at the dump bin where she disposed of the several body parts of her last ‘patient’.
“Yeah, she’s probably a corpo suit or someone related to them. Either way, I’ll take a break tomorrow as I need to buy some stuff for my daughter’s birthday.”
"But what about on your end?" she asked, her tone laced with genuine curiosity.
Her fellow grafter nodded enthusiastically, a glint of excitement in his eyes.
"Yeah, you won't believe it. The first one today had implanted vision aid, practically brand new. It's going to fetch me a pretty penny," he replied, his voice tinged with satisfaction.
The former nurse's eyes widened in realization as she grasped the significance of his find.
"Wow, that's also incredible! Vision implants like that don't come around often. You really lucked out," she exclaimed, genuinely impressed by his good fortune.
"Thanks, yeah, I couldn't believe my luck when I scanned it," her colleague replied, a hint of pride evident in his voice.
"And how’s your family lately? Any news?" she asked.
“Me and my wife are planning to have a child. We need credits fast, especially in this station. But we've been saving up for a while now, and we're determined to make it work. We want nothing more than to start a family of our own."
"That's a big step," she replied, her voice soft with understanding. "Starting a family is no small feat, especially out here in the vacuum. I heard that they are going to increase the tax on the oxygen again."
Her colleague nodded, a wistful smile playing on his lips.
"Yeah, it's a big decision, but we've been saving up for a while now. It's just... implants for a baby are so expensive, you know? And with the survival rate for newborns being so low in space, we want to make sure we're prepared for anything."
"I can imagine," she replied, her voice tinged with empathy. "But it sounds like you're doing everything you can to give your child the best possible chance at life."
Her colleague smiled gratefully at her words, a glimmer of hope shining in his eyes.
"Yeah, we're trying our best. Hopefully, everything works out for us."
The Vania felt a pang of sympathy for her colleague. She spoke of the challenges they faced in starting a family. It was a harsh reality of life in the unforgiving expanse of space—a reality that she was all too familiar with.
As they chatted, the conversation turned to their families, a rare moment of camaraderie amidst the grim reality of their work. The former nurse shared stories of her daughter, her face lighting up with pride and affection as she spoke of her dreams and aspirations. Then their conversation drifted to lighter topics as they shared stories of their childhoods and the dreams they had for their future families.
Then Vania hesitated for a moment before deciding to share her true plans with her colleague. The former nurse leaned in closer with her voice lowered just in case someone else was eavesdropping.
"You know, I've been thinking a lot about my daughter’s future lately. And I think I've come up with a plan to get us Terran citizenship," she admitted, her voice tinged with fear and anxiety.
Her colleague's eyes widened in surprise.
"Terran citizenship? But isn't that practically impossible to get these days? I heard they stopped providing it years ago," he replied, his tone laced with skepticism.
Vania nodded, acknowledging the difficulty of their endeavor.
"You're right, it's not easy. But we've been doing some research, and we found out that they still offer it as a benefit after finishing two years of military service in their navy."
Georgel’s eyebrows shot up in astonishment.
"Military service? But that's a huge commitment! Are you sure you even wanted to do that? Or even prepared to take such a risk? Where will you leave your daughter with if you get called for duty?"
The former nurse nodded solemnly, her eyes shining with determination.
"I’ve thought long and hard about it, and I believe it's worth the price. Terran citizenship would open up so many opportunities for our future."
“Really?”
“Wait, no. I will not be applying for military service. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. The best we could apply for military service under UGTR would be as part of the Auxiliary Navy and that doesn’t even give a benefit for citizenship.”
“Then how?” he asked.
She went quiet for a moment before answering.
"Fixers," she replied, her tone tinged with uncertainty. "They can get you almost anything if you're willing to pay the price. But with the expansion of Terra's sovereign territories, corruption has seeped in. Getting a fake citizenship document is possible but it's expensive and the demand far outweighs the supply."
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
"So, you're saying you could buy your way in?"
The former nurse nodded grimly.
"It's not ideal, but it might be our only chance. The problem is, it's prohibitively expensive. We'd have to save up every credit we have and even then, there's no guarantee we'd be able to afford the process after buying the first set of documents."
“How much?” Her colleague frowned, his brow furrowed with concern.
She took a deep breath, her voice trembling slightly as she continued.
“785 million credits.”
“Sev… what the fuck?!” Her colleague's eyes widened in disbelief, his jaw-dropping open in astonishment.
"I know it seems impossible, but I've been saving up for years now. And with the recent increase in demand, I managed to secure enough credits to buy forged documents." she frantically waved her hands to calm him down.
"785 million credits? That's... that's an astronomical amount! How on earth did you manage to save up that much?"
The former nurse smiled faintly, a mixture of pride and disbelief shining in her eyes.
"It wasn't easy, that's for sure. I had to sacrifice a lot and work extra shifts, but I was determined to make it happen for my daughter."
Both got a silent moment as her colleague absorbed the new shocking information she had just given.
“Then do you have someone you know that was a fixer?”
“I got to know this guy over a drink who knew how to forge documents that we needed to become a colonist, then be transported from place to place until we arrived at a UGTR planet. Then we could apply for citizenship.”
"I've heard stories of people getting caught with fake citizenship papers and ending up in even worse trouble. So even if you could find a fixer, there's no guarantee they'd be legitimate. And if you get caught…" his voice barely above a whisper, continued. "You could end up in prison, or worse. You’re putting everything at risk here. There’s no telling where you’ll end up if this fixer of yours is lying. Maybe one day, I’ll just find your body or your daughter’s lying on my operation table instead.”
"I know it's a risky move, but it could be our ticket to a better life. With Terran citizenship, we'd have access to better healthcare, education for my daughter, and opportunities for her future. I just cannot let her rot in this station. And… if worse comes to worse, I won’t let her suffer. I can assure you that."
Seeing Vania’s grim implication, he started to regard her with newfound respect, a sense of admiration shining in his eyes.
"Wow, that's something. I never would have guessed you had such big plans in store. I wish you and your daughter all the best in achieving your dreams."
“I actually told you because I thought you wanted to be part of this... if you want to. You and your wife could have another life. Better than this… life.” she looked him directly in his eyes.
Georgel realized what she was implying and smiled gratefully, touched by her support.
“Thank you. That meant a lot to me. But I don’t think I could do what you planned to do Vania. This station may be chaotic, bloody, and violent. But it's… it is our home. My wife and I were born here. We know it won't be easy, but we're willing to do whatever it takes to make our dreams a reality and for us, it is not impossible in this station."
She smiled and nodded at his soft rejection of her invitation. She knew what he was talking about. Sometimes people like him had become fearful to see a change in their life due to how dangerous life had become for them. They’d rather live in a station where they know which things would kill them rather than go to an unknown where they couldn’t predict anything.
“By the way, how much did you save already?”
“…”
“What?”
“T...wo...” she once again, hesitates to fully answer but she doesn’t want to hide anything from her trusted colleague.
“Two million?”
“Two Billion.”
“What in the fuck. Where the hell did you get that many credits?!!”
Her colleague's eyes widened in disbelief as he processed her words. "Two billion credits? How... how is that even possible?" he stammered, his voice tinged with awe.
The former nurse chuckled softly, a hint of pride in her voice.
"It wasn't easy, that's for sure. But over the years, I've managed to save up a significant amount from our operations. And with a little luck and some smart investments, it's grown into almost two billion credits."
Georgel could only shake his head in amazement, his mind still reeling from the revelation.
"That's... that's incredible. I had no idea you had saved up so much."
The former nurse smiled modestly, a sense of satisfaction warming her heart.
"It's been a long journey, but I've always had my eye on the prize. And now, with just a few more operations, I'll have enough to afford the trip to Terra for me and my daughter."
"I don't think I've ever met anyone as determined as you." He smiled and then pointed his scalpel at her. “You should remember that and keep yourself that way. The only thing that keeps us walking in the underworld is our guts and will to live. And yours is much stronger than mine.”
“Thanks.”
“By the way, I thought you had just finished the day,” Georgel yelled behind the curtains of the bathroom as she was checking the dead or dying bodies.
Vania made her way into the dimly lit bathroom with her mask on. The stench of blood and antiseptic assaulted her nostrils, a grim reminder of the grim reality of her profession. She scanned the room, her eyes darting from one unconscious body to another, searching for her next victim that would be laid on her operation table. Silence greeted her, broken only by the faint hum of the ventilation system.
“I’ll just get this one last patient then I will be out for the day.” She yelled back as she entered the bathroom, her eyes scanning the room for any signs of movement on the bodies. Silence greeted her, broken only by the faint hum of the ventilation system. But when she inspected and searched the unconscious bodies lying on the floor, she realized that one of them was missing.
Before she could react, a sudden movement caught her off guard—a grotesque arm spewed out from among the bodies, its fingers wrapped around a gleaming blade. Vania barely had time to react as the razor-sharp edge of the blade sliced across her throat, cutting off her scream in a gush of blood with deadly precision. Searing pain soon exploded in her throat. She immediately collapsed to the ground, clutching desperately at her neck in a futile attempt to stem the tide. Her hands were slick with crimson as she struggled to endure the inevitable. The world spinning around her.
"Please... no..." she pleaded, her voice cracking with desperation as she thought of her daughter. She wanted to scream for help from their umpires below, but the words caught in her throat, choked off by the blood that gushed from her wound.
Her male companion, sensing what was wrong behind the curtain that separates his workplace from the bathroom, investigated and found himself facing two naked women, bodies wet with cold water and his companion bleeding on the floor. His eyes widened in shock and fear.
"What the hell?" he exclaimed, his voice trembling with disbelief.
But before he could react quickly, the two figures were upon him, their movements swift and precise. One of them kicked him in the face, giving him a broken nose while the other one restrained him on the ground with her legs clamping on his head she also slit his throat as she covered his mouth.
Vania could only let out a watch in anguish as she watched her colleague also bleeding profusely from his fatal wound. She watched in horror as the assailants descended upon her male companion with brutal efficiency.
Now their two attackers’ naked forms were illuminated by the dim light which both Georgel and Vania quickly recognized to have been the very victims that their umpires had taken from the streets. Vania was now asking numerous questions about who they were in her mind. Her senses dulled by the pain throbbing in her throat. With each labored breath, she struggled to make sense of the chaos unfolding around her, her mind reeling with fear and confusion.
She watched with growing dread as one of the women dragged her male companion into an adjacent empty room. The scene unfolded before her in a haze of pain and confusion, but through the fog, she noticed something peculiar—the two women were twins, identical in every way.
Before she could dwell further on the revelation, the other woman turned her attention back to Vania after they made sure that they did not alert other grafters. Her eyes alight with curiosity and malice.
As Vania lay on the floor, her strength waning and her breaths growing shallow as she choked on her blood, the woman leaned in close, her voice low and menacing.
"We know that you won't die from that wound. You grafters have ways of avoiding death after receiving such fatal injuries. So stop pretending to be dying or I’ll cut off your head instead."
Vania's eyes widened in surprise at the woman's words. They knew about their cybernetics that allowed them to cheat death. Their implanted insurance was also salvaged from their past victims. But even under this saving card, she has no way of overpowering these women. Her companion could have his combat implant but it seemed that these women were also able to cut him off from using it. Her last sight of him was his shaking head, confirming her thoughts of their situation.
"How... how do you know about that?" Vania managed to croak out, her voice barely above a whisper as she struggled to comprehend the gravity of her situation.
The woman's lips curled into a cold smile, a glint of amusement dancing in her eyes.
"We know more than you think," she replied cryptically. "And now that you know that we know you won’t be dying, we have all the time in the world to find out everything we want to know. So, what's your name?"
Vania hesitated for a moment, her mind racing as she weighed her options. But in the end, there was no point in hiding the truth. Her life was now practically on their hands. Her implants started working, injecting her body with stimulants that accelerated the regeneration of her body. She coughs blood as her bodily implants start working their magic.
"Vania," she replied, her voice barely above a whisper.
One of the twins nodded, a cruel smile playing at the corners of her lips. Then Vania saw how her eyes suddenly went cloudy and could see digital data being scanned upon her.
"I... I didn't mean to hurt anyone," Vania stammered, her voice trembling with fear and desperation. Trying to gain sympathy or even begging to be allowed to live. She was sincere in her pleas as she couldn’t allow her daughter to live alone in this rogue station without a parent. "I was just trying to survive, like everyone else here. Please, you have to believe me."
"So you’re Vania. 58-year-old woman, of Fruscan descent, born in the Telafid System. Parents unknown. No family name. Former employee of the YGRA Pharmaceuticals. Terminated due to embezzlement case. Hired by Tutler Run for his grafting operations. Offspring, Fotan. 12 years old female. Homeschooled. No registered father. Tell me, Vania… why should we not kill you?" they were not affected by her pleas, however.
Vania’s eyes widened in shock and fear as she struggled to comprehend how much these women knew so much about her. Her mind raced as she struggled to come up with a plausible reason for them to spare her. The woman gave a look of amusement dancing in her eyes.
"We know who you are, Vania," the woman whispered, her words sending a chill down Vania's spine. "We know about your beloved daughter. I wonder what will happen to her once her caring mother disappears from her life."
“I will tell you everything I know. I also have credits. But please…. I don’t want my daughter to be alone.” Vania rasped, her voice trembling with fear and desperation.
The woman's smile widened, her gaze cold and calculating.
"I want your cooperation," she replied simply. "You do as we say, and maybe, just maybe, we'll let you live. But if you don't... well, let's just say your daughter will have a new owner."
Vania's heart shattered at the thought of her daughter being sold into slavery, forced to endure a fate worse than death. With tears streaming down her cheeks, she nodded in desperate agreement, her resolve crumbling under the weight of her maternal instincts.
"Please..." she pleaded, her voice barely a whisper as she fought to hold onto hope.
"Good. That's what we like to hear. Now, let's talk about how you can be of use to us." The woman's lips curled into a cruel smile, satisfaction gleaming in her eyes.
"Tell me, Vania," she hissed, her voice low and menacing. "Where is Client #500021? And who are they?"
Vania's mind raced as she grappled with the woman's demands, her thoughts clouded by confusion and fear. She knew of Client #500021—a powerful figure in the underworld, rumored to be involved in illicit dealings of the highest places. But she never knew if this was even a person or a group. Their leader would always be the shadowy figure controlling vast resources and networks.
But how did these women know about Client #500021? And more importantly, why were they so desperate to find them?
"I... I don't know," Vania gasped, her voice barely audible above the rush of blood in her ears. "I've never met them. I swear."
The naked woman's eyes narrowed in suspicion, then her twin interrupted her.
"That guy is also a no-go. He doesn’t know anything. What about your end?"
"It seems that she also doesn’t know. But we will see."
The twins were about to interrogate Vania further, but suddenly received a communication from their contact. Their expressions shifted as they processed the new orders. They were now directed to prioritize gathering information about a specific ship. The image displayed was unmistakable—it was the massive ship that had recently docked at Banedog’s Backyard.
The twins exchanged a glance of realization and then looked down at themselves, remembering their current state of undress.
"Where are our clothes?" one of them demanded, her voice sharp and commanding.
Vania, still reeling from the interrogation, pointed weakly toward a pile of clothing near the corner of the room. The twins moved swiftly, retrieving their garments and dressing with practiced efficiency. As they clothed themselves, their professional demeanor returned, and they turned their attention back to Vania.
"You're coming with us," the first twin stated, her tone leaving no room for argument.
Vania's heart pounded in her chest. "Why? Where are you taking me?"
"We need someone familiar with the station. You’ll help us find what we’re looking for," the second twin replied, her voice icy.
With no real choice, Vania nodded reluctantly. The twins, now fully dressed, led her out of the room and into the bustling corridors of Banedog’s Backyard. Vania's mind raced with a thousand questions and fears, but one thing was clear—she was now entangled in a dangerous web of intrigue, with no idea how she would find her way out.