The streets of Cinradin were as always crowded at midnight. Cinradin was the red light district of Peninsuria, the capital of the 5th Empire. By 2300 the earthlings had discovered a planet capable of harboring life. But it was already inhabited and allied with other planets. This is how the 1st war started. It had lasted 100 years. The earthlings after allying with the Orrakkians and the Orresians had succeeded in bringing down the capital. The 1st Empire was born and the capital had been renamed Peninsuria. But the history of the Empire was strewn with Wars of Conquest. Many emperors had been assassinated. The fifth emperor Barus, was a frivolous and epicurean man. He had built a harem of women and men and enjoyed the sumptuous pleasures his title afforded him. So it was no wonder that under his rule brothels proliferated. Soon a third of the city had been replaced by a district reserved for pleasures of all kinds. In the shadow, gangs fought over territory. It was no wonder that a brothel went from owner to owner in a week. But what was the emperor doing in the face of this violence? Nothing. The ties between the empire and the criminal families were strong and disguised as a sham. A deal had been made. The mafias remained autonomous and controlled a third of the city, in return they paid tribute to the emperor and served as his last bulwark in the event of a rebellion. Outside of their neighborhood any criminal activity was punishable by law. But prisoners regularly disappeared or were released for lack of evidence. I had been working in Cinradin for a year now. When I reached 18 the orphanage that took me in had thrown me out on the street. I was given enough money to rent an apartment in Cinradin. It wasn't much. A small room, equipped with a D22, an old model of artificial presence that managed my home. He took care of cleaning, picking up my deliveries, cooking, and managing my bank account. I had nicknamed him Lyr. He had a warm male voice that reminded me of my older brother. Bren was not my biological brother, but he had protected me until he had to leave the orphanage. Since that day I had not seen him again. He had promised to contact me when he got an apartment and even offered to come and live with him. He lied to me.

“Mistress Anya, you have 30 minutes left before your next shift. "

"How much money is in my account right now Lyr. 5000 Terrons »

Terron was the currency of the Empire. The currency had survived five emperors. 5,000 was little today. This would allow me to pay the 4000 Terrons needed to rent my apartment. The rest would be used to feed me and if I was lucky to save some money to move to another neighborhood. I didn’t want to become part of the statistics and become the victim of an unsolved murder.

I took my bag in which I carefully kept my uniform. The manager always told us to show ourselves in our best light even if our work was nothing special.

I imagine some would think I was a prostitute. After all I lived in the capital of vice. But it wasn't.

I was in front of the silver whip in twenty minutes. The brothel was less than ten minutes from my house, but that didn't mean I would survive the most direct route. So I had cleverly planned my trip so as not to have to cross the fragile border between the Red Pelican and The Golden Hat. These were two gangs that clashed regularly to gain territory. Yet they were ants in the face of groups like the Royal Stallion and the Smart Grain who had the emperor's benevolence. The Silver Whip was deep in the Golden Hat territory while my apartment was in the Red Pelican. The price of rent was taking its toll. But at the moment I didn't have enough money to leave this precarious situation. In a matter of hours, the Silver whip earned me more than a job as a waitress in a restaurant. An orphan had little choice in Cinradin.

The silver whip was represented by animation, of course a silver whip. When a visitor was detected, the whip would approach and whip the customer's buttocks. I had been embarrassed in my first few days, then a colleague of mine explained to me that there was another door for staff at the back of the building.

As soon as I pushed open the door, the scent of perfume, tobacco and sex assailed me. I ignored them and walked over to the locker room to put on my uniform.The changing rooms were in a narrow hall, surrounded by numbered doors.

I stopped in front of door number 20. I put my hand on it and a red light engulfed my hand. A few seconds later it turned green and the door opened.

I undressed quickly, and put on the black dress and white apron.

"Activate, beauty level 1" I declared.

A female voice was then heard.

"Beauty level 1 starts in 3 seconds, 2, 1, activated"

I stopped to let the mechanical arms do their job. I didn't know how to apply my own makeup and nowadays only the makeup artists hired by the court were experts. Most of the population used an artificial presence to beautify themselves. But Lyr didn't have that kind of job, so I had to do it at my job. It had its benefits, I drew less attention in this neighborhood where every woman in makeup was mistaken for a renegade prostitute. Indeed, it was forbidden to sell her body outside brothels and the practice was severely punished. The few prostitutes who were allowed outside advertised their establishment and always wore a pin to identify them. Their job seemed precarious, but they were protected by the various gangs because you could fight and kill each other but you shouldn't touch their livelihood. So the brothel workers didn't really feel the changes in power.

I had always found it ironic that a prostitute in the neighborhood was safer than a woman returning from work in wealthier neighborhoods.

“Beauty, finished. "

I turned to the standing mirror and observed myself intently. I didn't want to be berated for a crease or runny mascara. I wasn't the most beautiful of women, but I loved my eyes. It reminded me of the color of a stormy sky, and the makeup made them more striking.

"1 minute before the start of your shift"

There were two doors in the locker room, one leading to the hallway I had entered, the other to my workspace.

Above the second door was a timer. The red numbers scrolled until the countdown was over. A discreet bell rang and the door opened. A metal baton hung against the wall, next to an armchair and a table on which a tablet had been placed.

The stick was not a weapon but a cleaner. He turned into a broom, vacuum cleaner, mop.

“Your shift has started, you have 14 minutes and 59 seconds left. "

I grabbed the stick quickly and pushed open the door.

The dungeon was surrounded by black walls. It was dotted with white marks in places. Chains hung from the wall, as did velvet benches. I knew that with a flick of my hand, shelves full of accessories would appear.

I suppressed a sigh when I saw a woman sitting in an armchair with her legs crossed. She was dressed in black leather pants, a corset of the same color and boots that stopped at the top of her thighs.

"Mistress Danica, I said, tilting my head slightly as a mark of respect"