Corruption and Ascension in the Underworld (Skeith & frightorflight)

It was a wonder how the criminal underworld had swelled so greatly so quickly. Illegal genetic modification, prostitution, substance dealing, and violence. What was worse was money and fear kept law enforcement at bay. Many politicians and law enforcement officials were completely bought off by criminal organizations. Curiosity and a desire for recognition had led one woman to enter the seedier part of the large metropolis in search of answers. She was young and naive, convinced of her ability to get to the bottom of it. She had a romanticized view of the criminal world. Doing what she wanted when she wanted without concern for authority. Still, she was wise enough to know it was dangerous and wanted to expose it.

She was a tall and slender beauty, her hair dyed a deep crimson color with white streaks. She wore appropriately anti-conformist attire to better help her disappear into the crowds of the city's underworld. It included tattered jeans, knee high boots, a fishnet shirt with a loose fitting tee-shirt over that. Goggles rested on her forehead, and a gas mask around her neck. She walked as casually as she could threw the crowded streets, careful to keep an ear out for vendors selling things of interest. She knew to get deeper she would have to partake of some of the illegal activities down there. Perhaps starting small. Some genetic modifications, maybe? Perhaps purchasing a firearm to protect herself... She continued to wander without a real goal. Slowly engrossing herself in the overwhelming underworld.

Many people watched her. They could tell she didn't belong here. The way she dressed was one thing her cloths were knew, no ones cloths were knew down in the under-city. Her skin had a little color, so far down, beneath miles and miles of city above, many people had never seen the sun, or hadn't in so long they forgot what sunlight was like. She was clean to, cleaner than anyone ever bothered to get in the under-city, even if they could. She looked like easy prey.

"Hey girl." One man called, a tall bulky alien with dark green skin. He beckoned her over. "So what are you after, whatever it is I'm sure we can help you find it." He was being sincere, and had no intentions to extract money or sex from her. To say he was a good samaritan was far form the truth though. His interestes were just better served this way.

She almost didn't react at first, when the man tried to get her attention. She paused, looking around the area before settling her eyes on him. Now that she saw him she was surprised at first. She was taken a back by his scale and color but chose not to reference it. She approached him quietly before stopping just out of his reach. He didn't seem to be trying to trick her or manipulate her, but men in general made her uncomfortable. "I'm looking for a reliable gene-modder." She said, attempting to sound confident in her decision. "I've been thinking about getting some work done." She folded her arms across her chest as she looked about the area.

"Then maybe a weapon." She said with a nod. She certainly hoped she would never have need of a weapon but she knew that carrying a gun would do her a lot of favors in avoiding confrontation. She looked back to him, crossing her arms again. "What's in it for you?" She asked suspiciously.

He smiled, "Your a perceptive one. I get payed a little something by certain dealers if I send customer there way, call me a sales representative." He reached into a cargo pants pocket with a big, three fingered hand and came out with a fist full of cards. He looked through them and handed her two of them. "Just tell them old Chaffey sent yea, they will hook ya up. And there as fair a dealer as you'll find down here, not to say you wont be cheated but not as badly at least." He smiled again, like a dog. He might very well be one too, but the card were for legitimate business at least.

She eyed the cards for a moment before taking it slowly from him. "Well thanks, Chaffey." She replied with a nervous smirk. She examined the cards briefly, pleased to find addresses on them. At least she would have an idea of where she was headed. She gave Chaffey a nod before heading back on her way. Her stuffed her hands in her pockets. She breathed out a sigh of relief that Chaffey seemed at least semi-honest. But if he could pick her out of a crowd that easy, getting some modification to better blend in was going to be necessary. Still, she would feel safer with a gun. She decided first on purchasing a weapon.

She continued on through the city streets, careful to avoid eye contact of some of the more suspicious figures. At least until she found where she was going. She re-examined the card before checking the street address. "Hey, Chaffey sent me this way. I need a weapon." She asked after entering the building.

"Your an upper city girl aren't you?" said the wiry, weaselly man behind the counter. He could tell by her wording. No one ever said I need a weapon down here. If they didn't use some slang term they were specific I need a Kalash, I need, an AR, I need something in .45. "Well right this way." He left the shop with an assistant and took hr to a back room were an assortment of firearms had collected. "So what are you looking for, something discreet perhaps?" She didn't look like the type to carry around an Assault Rifle, or carry at all for that matter. In fact he questioned if she even knew how to shoot butt shooting lessons was not something he offered. He only sold gun and ammo, how it was spent wasn't his problem.

She silently cursed herself when the shop keep called her out. She was clearly nowhere near as prepared for this place as she thought she would be. How obvious she must have seemed. She nervously followed the man back into the back room. She was immediately astonished by the quantity of fire arms that they had. A great many she wouldn't even know how to hold properly, much less fire. "Something simple, but with stopping power. A holster and ammo as well." She said, looking around the room again before settling her gaze on the man. Her glance occasionally shifting from him to his assistant.

She was very happy that she had run into Chaffey. She could have easily been assaulted by now if it hadn't been for him pointing her towards people with a focus on money and little else.

"This should do, a 10mm snubbed pistol, small with a seven round magazine, and concealable, but reliable and with knock down power." He stuck the pistol and an extra magazine in a holster, than he grabbed a twenty round box of ammunition and went to the front counter. He sized her up, wondering if he could get the factory price out of this girl. He probably could but decided to give the poor girl a break. "$450 for the lot, that's nonnegotiable." A break was one thing, but he wasn't going to give his goods away. Besides if she haggled he would probably convince her to pay more, it was for her own good.

The weapon certainly looked like something her size. At least as best as she could figure. She'd never even handled a gun before, much less fired one. "That should do nicely." She said with a nod. She was certainly surprised by the figure that the man quoted but it didn't dissuade her. In normal circumstances, she would have argued this point with a shop keep. However, under these circumstances she didn't dare. She shook her head free of her surprise before fishing the cash out of her pocket. She counted it out on the counter before sliding it back over to him.

She stuffed attached the holster to her side, stashing the box of ammo in her bag. She patted the gun a couple times. It would take time to get used to the weight of a weapon on her side, but it would certainly help her to get around. At the very least to be taken more seriously. She gave a nod to the the shop keep and the assistant. She was quick to make her exit however, not keen on being indoors surrounded by strangers. She continued on her errands, her next being the biggest and the scariest for her. She had to trust a stranger to alter her on the genetic level.

She once again examined the card, before venturing to the clinic in question. She felt a little more confident walking the streets with a firearm on her side. Still, knowing how obvious she was among the under-city's inhabitants did little to settle her nerves. She would never get the story she was looking for like this. The people gathered at the location were immediately off putting. She looked about at all the different people. She'd seen aliens, mutants, machines. Nothing like this. These were deliberate modifications these people had made. She felt out of place walking through the crowd towards the door. She pushed the door open before entering the building. "Hey, uh..." She cleared her throat before speaking again with more confidence. "Chaffey sent me." She announced quietly as she approached the counter.

The nurse, who had the nose and eyes of a cat, and the ears to match, smiled at her. "Please take a seat, and fill this out. The doctor will see you shortly miss." She handed her a tablet. than went bck to work, shortly after he got it back the nurse led her to a small examination room. The nurse took her height and weight, and her vitals, than a few minutes after she left the doctor came in.

A female of an insectoid species. She had a mixture of skin and chitin covering her, all of it midnight black. She had four arms, a normal sized pare, and a smaller pare below it, with human like hands tipped with tiny chitin claws. She had a beautiful figure and a medium sized bust, underneath her cloths though she had a wonderful rear and even better legs. She had hair but it was cut short, and pale white, like spider silk. Her appearance wasn't perfect though. On her right side both of her arms were steel silver protects, they were obviously made for her race but were the lower grade kind that were highly functional but obviously cybernetic. two of her eyes were cybernetic a well, they were blue and had a pale glow.
"My name is Doctor Vresh," her voice had a predatory, seductive edge to it, like a black widow whispering sweet nothings. "You can call me V. What can I do for you today?" Still she smiled kindly, and managed to seem almost friendly, not off putting at least.

She took the clipboard and filled out the necessary information. She was honest in most regards. Save for her name, she was careful to put down an alias to protect her identity. Genetic modification was illegal after all. When she was led back into the room, she sat nervously in silence. There had to be a reason why this was illegal. She looked up from her thoughts at the sound of a female voice. While she was at first surprised by her appearance she immediately relaxed when she continued to speak. "Hi V." She replied softly. "Nothing overt today. Maybe something for my vision to better adjust to the lighting down here? I would like to be paler as well, with smoother skin. I kind of stick out around here." Despite her attempt to sound confident she was quite visibly nervous about the idea of genetic modification. This was certainly the point in her decision to explore this place that meant no turning back.

"Well I can't help with the skin, that will have to bleach out on it's own, I can do something for your eyes though. That's a relatively simple modification. How well do you want to see, I can modify it to cut adjustment time in half, or I can completely remodel your eyes to improve your vision under any conditions. That will make them more sensitive though, of course."

The options available to her surprised her, although she supposed it shouldn't have. She gave her options some thought for a few moments before glancing back up at the doctor. "I like the second option. It seems like it would come in handy down here." She was nervous about the procedure, especially now that she had made her decision. She had no idea at the time just how often she would be engaging in genetic manipulation in the future. For now, it was her first real illegal act in her life, save for occasionally violating curfew. It was both exhilarating and terrifying. "How much will the procedure cost, V?" She asked softly, trying to choke down her nerves while her hand reached for her wallet.

V smiled and looked her up and down, examining, or maybe admiring her body. If it was admiration it was the kind that a sculptor had for a beautiful block of marble. She was a beautiful campus for the perfect sculpture. "For you? You can have it for free if you promise to come back, or you can pay two hundred." She wanted this girl to come back. If V could get this girl hooked she could make her perfect, she could mod her into her perfect creation.

She blinked a few times, unsure if she had heard her correctly. Free? But only if she came back? That was certainly suspicious, but it seemed like her opportunity on figuring out what was going on down here. V could certainly become a reliable source of information if she played her cards right. She had to have known there would be sacrifices to get that far. She slowly slid her wallet back into her pocket. "Well, sure. If this mod works out, I don't see why not." What did she really have to lose? She was already breaking the law, how much more trouble could she really be in for further modification?

A part of her, her entire adult life, had been curious about genetic modification. The idea of becoming exactly the creature she wanted to be, but it being illegal and fear had kept that at bay. Now with her eyes set on journalism, it seemed even more important to stay clean, but it was hard to deny the temptation.

V smiled "Perfect, I will expect you back soon." She took a pair of syringes from a cabinet and a small bottle. She took a very tiny amount into each syringe. "Hold still." She injected the small amount into each eye. "It will take about a hour to take effect, you will feel some pain and might experience some spotty vision or very temporary blindness. I would suggest you stay here until the modification takes affect in case there are any complications. If you need anything just ask the nurse." V patted her cheek then left the room.

It was incredibly nerve wracking to have to force herself to sit still as a syringe was inserted into her open eye. The initial pain of that alone was more than she was anticipating, especially when it happened twice. She leaned her head back when the injections were finished, her heart beating wildly as she nervously waited for them to take effect. She nodded quietly in response to V's voice when she asked her to wait there until it was over.

When the pain took hold she bit her lip, clenching her eyes shut as she bore it. Whimpering quietly as she tried to endure it. Her hands clutching tightly over her eyes as she grit her teeth, moaning softly in agony. As the pain faded, it was replaced with silent anticipation. Coming off of the forced adrenal high from pain to the excitement of what her new found modification would bring was intoxicating. When she finally opened her eyes again, her vision was blurry for the first several seconds. She squinted as she waited for them to come into focus. As they did it was an overwhelming experience causing her to gasp. The lighting in the room didn't seem to matter. She had an all new appreciation for depth, texture, and color. She blinked several times as she slowly began to stand. "This is... Whoa..." The emotion that came over was something she hadn't really experienced. Like the first time someone finished getting a tattoo, knowing that they just had to experience that again.

After about an hour V returned. "Well lets get a look see." She checked out her eyes. "Everything looks good, now." She turned oof the lights for a moment. "Great, I'm glad your satisfied with your modification. I just want to remind you that we can perform any modification you wish, for the right price. I've made woman taller, made their assets bigger, I've given them the traits of a dozen or so animals. I even gave one woman a penis bigger than the rest of her body." She giggled a little. "feel free to ask any of my clients, there were all satisfied. Here," She handed her a business card for a hotel. "It's run by a good friend and client, he can tell you. Don't forget to come back soon."

The young woman had a hard time not glancing around the room, appreciating the whole new way the world looked. When V mentioned more modifications for the right price, she came to realize that she would need to find work while she was down here. The swarm of possible modifications she could pursue was tantalizing. She shook her head free of her thoughts after a moment. Looking down at the card she offered her. A hotel? She really didn't blend around here at all. It was that clear that she didn't live here. Obviously her change of clothes did her no good. She sighed quietly as she accepted the card. "Thanks, V. I appreciate it." She put the card in her pocket before heading towards the door. "I'll be back very soon, I promise."

She left the building, stopping outside to take in how different the world seemed. "Whoa..." She mumbled quietly before shaking her head. "Hotel then..." She reconfirmed for herself. She kept her hand hovering over her handgun as she cut through the alleys to get to the hotel. Assuming she didn't get killed down here, finding work was going to have to be a priority. Otherwise she'd find herself living in the gutter without food, and certainly no way of returning to V for more modifications. She pushed to door open to the hotel. Approaching the counter. "Hey, Dr. Vresh sent me your way. I'm looking for a room for the next little while." She added, pulling out her wallet.

The woman at the front desk had cat ears and tale. Then she turned around and put her elbows on the counter. Her furry forearms terminated in paw like hands. She had cat whiskers, nose and eyes, though her eyes had a strange blue glow to them that suggested they were actually cybernetic implants "O, one minute madam."
She brushed aside a curtain the concealed a back room and moment latter came back with another woman, strikingly modified. She looked like a thin, sexy, elephant woman, with a short trunk and purple hair. "Hello Madam. I'm Brie, this is my hotel of course. Now to rent a room here I'm going to need some collateral. It's nothing personal, Its just most people down here would love to cheat an honest business lady like myself and I have to look after my interests." Her trunk half curled and uncurled as she spoke. Her purple eyes matched her hair perfectly. And they had a a strange, motherly quality about them that just made you want to trust them. "Don't worry, as long as you pay your bills you will get it back without any fuss."

The young woman did her best to mask her surprise when she saw the woman behind the counter. Certainly not as surprisingly modified as V, but it was clear that being surrounded by people like this was going to take some getting used to. Then she met the own of her the hotel. She was once again surprised by the modification. How much would she really be able to do to her own body if these were the adjustments other people had sought? She looked up when she spoke, nodding her head quickly. "Yes of course. I understand." She opened her bag, looking through her things for something she may be able to offer as collateral.

She sighed as she reached into the her bag, pulling out an expensive locket on a chain. "Do you accept gold?" She asked setting it down on the counter. She wanted to take Brie at her word, but it was quite possible that she was the one being cheated down here.

"It will do nicely. I will let you know how many nights this will cover tomarrow. I'll send a note up with your breakfast. Let me know if you need anything, anything at all." There was a hint of innuendo in that last part.
"This way miss." Said the cat girl, who led her to her room. It was not the nicest room she had ever scene. The paint was fadded. Their was no hello display, only a phone to contact the front desk. The blanket on the one double bed was frayed. The bathroom had deraplast floors and a vibro shower, no actually water. There were no windows either, it was clean though. "Here is your room key. The maid comes around 11. Breakfast is at 9, lunch is at 1 and dinner is at 8. Simple press the blue button above the door handle of you want not to be disturbed. Any questions?"

She closed her bag again, looking up at the lady behind the desk smiling softly and nodding. She turned her attention to the cat girl again before nodding. "Thank you." She followed her back up the the bedroom. She wasn't expecting anything special from a hotel room in the underbelly of the city, but she was surprised by just how sparse it was. At least it was clean, the lack of a window was also quite relieving. Less chance for her to have to deal with unwanted company. She set her bag on the bed before turning to face the woman who lead her up. "No, I don't think I have any questions about the hotel." She thought about asking the young woman if she knew about anyone hiring, but she decided against it. It would be unwise to reveal to the hotel staff that she didn't have stable income yet. She reached into her wallet, pulling some cash out for the young woman. "I appreciate you showing me to my room." She said quietly, holding out the cash to her.

The woman smiled, "Thank you." Several hours later the girl came back. Dressed in lime green lingerie with a fluffy green collar. She silently opened the door, than glided across the fall on all four of her cat like limbs, her tale gently swaying. She silently climbed into the bed with hr and slid one hand down into her pants, and with the other hand he played with her breasts. Her rough tongue began to lick at her neck. "Ready for some fun?" She purred.

It had been a very long day. Soon after the cat girl had left her alone, she had turned to taking care of her notes. Writing down everything that she had learned form her first day down here. As soon as that was done, she tried to get some sleep. It was going to be a busy day tomorrow. She was going to have to find work. Something that got her closer to one of the criminal organizations without being too dangerous. Perhaps smuggling illegal goods? She was confident in her ability to stay out of sight at least.

When the cat girl had returned, she was already drifting off to sleep. She didn't hear the door enter, nor feel the mattress shift as someone climbed up with her. She was already becoming wet before even waking. She was convinced at first that the sensations she was experiencing was a dream, at least until the out of place rough tongue licked her neck, and the familiar voice stirred her. She woke with a start, gasping loudly as she saw the scantily clad cat girl nearly on top of her. "What are you... Uhnn..." Her question was cut off by the moan that fled through her throat. She was immediately aware of the hand on her breast, and the one dipping below her pants. "Why are you..." Her face was a deep red, awash of both embarrassment and arousal. Her breath growing heavy.