Prologue
Walking through the tunnels when everyone was supposed to be asleep, was not exactly the smartest thing to do. The wide shadows from low lighting concealed Alana as she sneaked through undetected. But, the constant slow drip on the muddy ground made it difficult to cover the footsteps she made. She was lucky the patches of mud overgrown with moss assisted her stealthy movements. One wrong move and she'd crash into the uneven rocks of the floor.
Alana DevCanys had long passed the point that took her the farthest she'd ever been from her home on Level Eight of the underground London network. She prayed that staying in the shadows ensured no one would recognise her and inform her father. At least until she got her job done.
She took a deep breath of dusty air and stepped around the strong beam of light that burned holes in her path.
It was times like this that made her curious if life on the surface was really as horrifying as living in the Tunnels.
That was why every time she passed advertisements of the old world, she paid extra attention. Her eyes fixed onto the poster, the mouldy ink lines barely legible as the edges peeled away from the rocky wall. They promised such luxurious places to visit that Alana knew they were nothing but lies. Down in the Lowers, levels Nine through Five, there was no room for such extravagance.
Footsteps approached on her left. The poorly constructed tunnels of the Lower were only big enough for three people to pass. There was no way Alana could continue to be unnoticed.
A red hue glistened against the moisture on the walls, it slowly bobbed as the stranger casually strutted towards her. A tall man, dressed in a long black jacket and a crimson glowing bionic eye came into view.
A Colonist.
"What's a young girl like you doing out of bed?" His voice was laced with concern, but Alana smirked coolly as she turned toward him. The deep scars across his nose and mouth made her shiver, but she was glad she got to her target before her younger sister, Tesa, did. The little childhood innocence Tesa had left was already challenged enough. No one needed to have perverted Colonist's around.
"I'm waiting for someone." Alana tried to appear small, putting her hands behind her back and luring him in.
He stalked closer to her, his footsteps heavy with his metal legs.
He towered over her and lifted her chin until their eyes locked. Leaning one arm against the wall and the other placed softly on her cheek, he asked, "And who is this someone? He must be a very lucky boy." A smirk crawled over his face. His single human eye gleamed as his metal one scanned her for weapons. "You must be cold in that little get up."
Alana had made sure to wear the skimpiest outfit she could find under her jacket. The black corset top she'd discovered outside the brothel was too big to fit her chest, but the pink miniskirt that hugged her waist held it enough that it didn't slip too much down her hips. The bold colours didn't complement her own pale skin and brown hair, neither did her combat boots and ripped socks.
The key was to show him that she was an easy game. No underwear always did the trick.
"He's a little late. Maybe you could keep me warm while I wait?" She ran her hands along her collarbone, dropping the jacket lower with an exaggerated shiver, encouraging him with big doe eyes.
He took a step closer, pushing against Alana as his arms wrapped around her waist and his lips brushed her ear. "I can please you far better than any boy." He attempted to purr the words while his hands slowly made their way up her thigh.
She twisted him to the wall, her thumbs pressed firmly on the tender connection between his flesh arm and a mechanical upgrade, keeping him in place without causing too much pain. The Colonist winced, eyes wide as he reoriented himself before quickly returning the smirk on his lips.
"Let me make it easier for you." Lifting one of her legs around him, she pulled her skirt higher for him to catch a peek.
"So you like it rough, little girl?" Groping her waist, he left dirt marks against her skin before unzipping his pants.
Alana was thankful that his hands were mostly flesh. The metal upgrades would have given him the same strength his legs had. Stabilising herself on the floor, she moved her hands from his shoulders down his arms, and held him back.
As his smile widened, she quickly wrapped her hands around his exposed cock and yanked it with all her strength. This was for Tesa. This monster would never get to her.
He screamed like a pig, stumbling to the floor. As he tried to cover himself, she stomped her boot between his thighs.
"Oh, don't you like it rough, Mr. Hollinger?" The ominous echo of Thadius McAlane's voice filled the tunnel. "Pathetic. You let the amateur win within seconds." As Thadius approached, the Colonist's eyes widened, shining a bright red light from his metal eye onto the wall. Thadius' footsteps crumbled against the uneven surface, but his cane made clear taps before he knelt next to the snivelling Mr. Hollinger.
"Why-?" Hollinger gritted his teeth and writhed on the floor, trying to wiggle away.
Thadius smiled, his eyes twinkled menacingly as he chuckled. "You raped my sister."
Alana was thankful the conversation was not about Tesa.
"You can't prove anything," Hollinger whimpered, squirming as Alana increased the pressure on her boot.
"How many girls have you raped, Mr Hollinger?" Thadius stood, the handle of his cane shining as much as the polished buckles on his boots.
Predator taunting prey.
"It's a simple question," Thadius pressed when Hollinger didn't answer, getting closer, his crazed eyes made Alana shudder.
"I don't know! Please! I won't do it again."
Thadius sighs. "You're right, you won't."
With a click of the handle Thadius' cane, a blade propelled out of the bottom as he lifted and thrusted it though his flesh eye. His skull cracked against the floor as Thadius twisted the cane and yanked it out.
Mr. Hollinger was dead.
His blood, nothing more than a few drops on her boot. The rest pooled into the dirt.
"Are you all right, Ali?" He extended his hand, holding a handkerchief.
"Lot of good that'll do." She grumbled, festering the tiny piece of material.
She took a deep breath, staring into the shocked face on the floor.
This was the first time Alana had helped commit a murder.
Thadius wasn't much older than Alana but any move against his sister was a death sentence.
She did it for Tesa.
A rapist was off the streets.
"I'll be better when you pay me. And don't call me Ali." She didn't look at him. "It's Alana to you." She couldn't tear her eyes from the unresponsive face. Her foot still between his legs, she quickly jumped away and tried to shake the image away.
He hands over an envelope. It wasn't as thick as she had expected it to be, but she also hadn't handled this much Trade before. The gems rattled against the small, gold hoops as she looked inside before scrunching it into her pocket. At least this would leave enough to feed Tesa and herself for over a week. She pulled a few of them out of the envelope and felt them land in her pocket lining.
It seemed unsurprising that the price of a life was so low now that selling body parts was the newest way to make Trade fast.
"Is this the first dead body you've seen?"
Rubbing her temple, she answered. "No." She turned back the way she came, blood still splattered on her boots.
"Why don't you come for a shower? Wash that disgusting man's filth off." Thadius gestured toward the Lower levels below his feet, where she doubted the water would wash away anything.
"No thanks," she rasped, as she sprinted away.
Letting Thadius' silhouette get smaller, she rushed to somewhere safe, leaving him and the body behind. He was right though. She wanted to wash those disgusting hands off. Looking at her watch, her factory shift started in forty minutes, and she needed to get changed. Fast.
She ducked into the tight alleyway and slid her body in between the rock faces. The darkness engulfed her as she moved farther from the lit tunnels. Coming out the other end, she found the abandoned cavern she was after. She raised her dirty hands to the sole flickering light bulb attached to the rock face and sighed, rubbing them on the backside of her skirt. Looking up, she felt the small breeze against her skin. With one final glance at her bare hands, she cursed herself for forgetting her gloves and she started the climb to the Upper. Placing her boots knowingly, she pulled herself up the rock face that connected the Lower to the Upper.
Uppers never used it.
They only ascended using the elevators, but it was the pride of every Lower to teach their children to climb the steep rocks between the levels.
Her hands ached and she lost grip multiple times as she tried to reach Alex's house in record time, without being noticed. If she was caught in the Upper without a permit, the Enforcers would lock her in isolation and take her Trade.
As she got closer to the top, her skin rippled with goosebumps reacting to the cold air. The coolness felt foreign against her nostrils no matter how many times she visited.
The Upper was a complete opposite to the Lower. Walls were routinely...
