Thousands of years after Earth became uninhabitable, humanity colonized other planets and moons around the solar system. Amid rising crime rate, the Galactic Space Force (GSF) set up a legal contract where registered bounty hunters (known as Coyotes...
Moon Colonies News:The annual two-week orgies on Phobos and Deimos will start this week in correspondence with Blueline. Former winners of Blueline will be there to celebrate. The first-week sex party will be on Deimos, and then it will end on Phobos the following week. All those invited are reminded to attend.
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J leaned back on the sofa and crossed his arms, the smell of incense filling the compact living room, making his throat itch. Family pictures of Monica with her parents and grandparents lined the blue walls, the smiles on their faces showing happier times. In front of him was a yellow couch with colorful pillows, end tables holding lamps and candles beside it, and a rug on the floor.
"You like?" Monica asked after returning to the room with a cup of hot coffee, catching the detective staring at the metallic table made from scrap between him and the yellow couch. Wrenches, bolts, screwdrivers, and nuts formed most of its ugly bronze shape.
I like it a lot. "Did you make it?" J asked.
"No. My grandparents did." She sat on the couch and placed the cup of coffee on the table.
Its tantalizing aroma made J's tongue salivate before his thoughts drifted into a magical world of brewed beans where he drank an unlimited supply without diminishing returns. He hadn't had any in a while after becoming addicted to it and spiraling out of control when he didn't have a cup for a day.
The cries of 'yes, yes, yes' followed by moaning and a bedframe hitting the wall behind Monica took the J out of his coffee trance. Just my luck.
Monica chuckled nervously. "Sorry about Sarah."
"Sarah?" J raised his brow.
"Sex worker living next door."
Of course. "Is sex all everyone does around here?"
"Mostly. It's easy credits."
There's nothing easy about selling your body. "Is it enough?"
"The poor get money from other poor people while the rich hoard theirs."
Nothing new about it. "That's life."
"It's capitalism." She grabbed the cup and took a sip while watching J. They sat silently, listening to Sarah until she finished her work. The sex worker argued with her client for paying her too little before a struggle ensued, someone or something thumped to the floor, followed by muffled crying and the banging of a door. "She always fights them and loses."
Damn. "And that's Ok?"
"Around here, you survive by minding your business. Otherwise, people will start minding yours."
"I see." A warm relief washed over his chest, thankful Oli hadn't grown up in these parts. "Where are your grandparents?"
"They went to the junkyard to look for more scrap. They like making things." She crossed her legs. "That aside, you must have many questions."
