22.2 (NSFW)

January 6, 2070, at 1912

Kabuki, Lizzie’s Bar, Private Lounge C3

Lounging on the slick neon-drenched divan across from Judy, Crystal was the picture of vampiric perfection. Her recent attribute splurge had jacked all of them to a wicked twelve. Her Fluid Grace and Sword Dancing skills were also dialed to the max at twelve apiece. With her Blood Rites and Arcane Engineering barely a blip at three and two, they were the variables in this twisted equation that had brought them to this clandestine meet-up.

"You're sure, Judy?" Crystal’s heavily lined eyes bored into the other woman. "This ain't just some glitzy chrome refit. You cannot wipe out Bionic tweaks with some Ripper doc's back alley hocus pocus."

"Will it work, as you claim? Morph me into a chrome queen, like you?" Judy's curious gaze hungrily devoured Crystal’s gorgeous form.

"In theory, yeah. But it isn't an invitation I toss around freely. It's risky biz, Judy, could have all sorts of side effects. I'd be playing neuro doc on a joyride," Crystal mused, her eyes scanning Judy with curiosity and concern. Her fondness for Judy was apparent, bolstered by the subtle hints Judy had thrown her way. However, the Blood Rite she'd invented was as unpredictable as it was alluring. Mostly.

In an unusual display of softness after chowing down on synthesized street food, Crystal had made the offer. That had led to them sitting in this neon-soaked lounge, one on the brink of renouncing her meat bag existence, the other long since having discarded it.

"Chrome, bionic, cyborg? What's the diff? They're all just stepping stones to the same promised land. Power, allure, freedom. I want it all, Crystal," Judy stated firmly. Crystal gave a slow nod, drawing her athame from the ether.

The flicker of neon lights danced on the blade as she etched a series of arcane runes, a pentagram, and a circle in seconds. Crystal then placed a vial of her blood and another filled with venom within the freshly carved symbols. Drawing blood from her finger with the athame, she traced the lines of the rune-laden circle, crimson meeting steel.

"Hand in the circle, Judy," Crystal commanded.

As Judy complied, Crystal mirrored her, laying her hand in a second circle carved for her. She inhaled the stale, air-conditioned lounge air and muttered, "You ready, choomba?"

"Hit it," Judy stated, her gaze courageous and persistent.

"Unequivalent Exchange," Crystal intoned, and reality rippled as if bathed in surreal neon light. The circle glowed a fierce red before winking out of existence, the chrome table surface bearing no evidence of the arcane spectacle.

Judy convulsed, her eyes rolling back into her skull before she slumped in her seat like she'd mainlined a potent dose of designer synth-coke. Moans of blissful ecstasy echoed off the lounge's metal walls, mixing with the gruesome crunch and squelch of bone restructuring and flesh morphing. The vampire venom, Crystal hoped, would dull the pain. But the sheer ecstasy rippling off Judy was a surprise, even to her.

After one final cry of ecstatic pain, Judy relaxed, her body settling into a new form, a variant mirror of Crystal's. Where there had once been a reserved braindance techie who preferred her BDs to company, now sat a bloodline-enhanced seductress.

"Holy smokes. That was better than Braindance, choomba," Judy slurred, her eyes fluttering open, her voice a sultrier version of Crystal's. The key was to suppress the body's rejection of the unnatural changes. It had to accept the alterations as natural. That was the majority of the ritual. The flesh-shape alterations were a mere precursor for the mental changes.

Crystal scrutinized Judy, but there was no hint of rejection. Judy carried her new form as if it were the one she had been born with. Seeing this, Crystal breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's the toll for that psycho roller coaster ride?" Judy asked, a wicked grin playing on her enhanced lips.

Crystal hesitated before asking, “You still in the game?” It had been a while since she'd entertained romantic company, and she was due for a steamy distraction. Her Icy Veins mod had damaged her violent tendencies, but it also meant she could draw out the intimate moments.

Judy’s new form would be the perfect trial of technique.

A flicker of anticipation crossed Crystal’s crimson eyes, but the dread of rejection quickly followed. Had she misread Judy’s signals?

Her fear was short-lived, however, as Judy said with a grin, "Absolutely. Let's do this dance, Crystal!"

Crystal pinged Sgt. Fluffyfeathers, tossing a few extra eddies to keep the lounge locked and off-limits. She wanted no interruptions for what was coming next. Satisfied that their privacy was secured, she slinked over to Judy's corner.

Nestling close, she pressed a soft kiss against the warm pulse of Judy's neck, murmuring, "You still got those BD rigs?" Flushed, Judy nodded, to which Crystal purred, "Fire up those sensory halos and let's get them working."

With the BD rigs snugly fastened around their heads, Crystal repositioned herself. Her legs folded beneath her as she straddled Judy's lap, the tiny electronic hum indicating the BD rigs were operational. Tracing her tongue along the curve of Judy's neck, she peppered her skin with kisses before sinking her fangs into the neck and shoulder.

As her fangs pierced Judy's skin, a surge of venom streamed directly into her system. Feeding at a measured pace, Crystal allowed the venom to spread, gradually intensifying its effects. It was intoxicating to watch as pleasure painted Judy's face with each shudder of her body.

The venom traversed Judy's veins like a sweetly torturous intruder, cranking her sensory dial past the limit and sending her free-falling into an abyss of ecstasy. Crystal's vampiric strength came into play, holding Judy as wave after wave of orgasmic bliss swept through her.

The BD rigs, recording every second, amplified their shared experience, looping the euphoria in an endless cycle. If not for Judy's new, improved form, the overwhelming pleasure would've sent her ticker into overdrive, but instead, she could ride the wave of rapture to its fullest.

After nearly two hours of tantalizingly slow feeding, Crystal finally pulled away. Judy whimpered, a sigh of longing escaping her lips, too lost in the throes of the afterglow to protest. The remnants of her spent bliss trailed from the corner of her mouth, her eyes glazed over and vacant. Initiating the shutdown command for the BD rigs, Crystal set about taking care of her thoroughly blissed-out partner.

With a flicker of the Clean spell, she tidied up Judy while ensuring no evidence was left behind. The BD rigs were packed safely away in Judy's nomad pack while the intoxicating scent of Judy's desire hung heavy in the air, making it difficult to focus.

After a futile struggle against her mounting desire, Crystal gently unfastened Judy's tight leather pants, sliding them down. Grabbing a cushion from her chair, she settled between her partner's thighs, her tongue tracing along the honeyed sweetness that awaited her.

Sometimes, those enhanced senses paid off.

As Crystal attended to her more traditional pleasure points, Judy's body slowly began to show signs of returning to life. What once was a pliable doll morphed into a writhing, squirming sensation as if reignited. Glancing up, Crystal sought any sign of discomfort, only to be met by Judy's hands knotting themselves in her hair, guiding her motions.

Complementing her tongue work with a couple of fingers, Crystal could see the venom's intoxicating paralysis begin to fade. After a relentless thirty-minute marathon of stimulation, Judy's body finally gave one last shuddering arch before she collapsed back into the chair, a sated grin splitting her face.

Panting heavily, Judy gasped, "Choom, you've spoiled me. No other partner's going to cut it after this. After that soul-draining seduction, anyone else would be a downgrade."

As a reply, Crystal kissed her way up Judy's body until her lips brushed against Judy's ear, her voice a soft growl. "Mine."

Few more sweet nothings were exchanged before Judy struggled upright, wriggling back into her pants. Crystal tucked the cushion back onto her seat, and the pair exited the lounge, leaving Lizzie’s with shit-eating grins.

Judy hopped into a Delmain cab, tail lights a pair of red eyes in the dark, while Crystal punched in directions to Mama Welles' place, El Coyote Cojo. She had a big pitch to sell, a plan to turn Eden into a Valentino-themed wonderland of the flesh.

Striding into the bar, Crystal clocked Jackie Welles, elbows-deep in convo with a firecracker in designer threads. A quick scan tagged her from the NCPD database: Carmilla Orta, offspring of Campo bigwig. No wonder Mama Welles looked as giddy as a kid at a candy store. Her boy, in a dynasty in the making? Mama must be on cloud nine.

"Gotta keep the kid from eating a bullet or something equally dumb," Crystal pinged her cyber-hen sidekick. Got back a gif of a couple of eggs hatching – code for "Hen-Sky-Net's got eyes on the situation".  She rolled her eyes and moved into the bar.

Navigating the sea of bodies, Crystal shot Mama a message filled with her offer and request, like the one to Padre, and got the green light to head to the back. Crystal greeted a chica who introduced herself as Sandra Dorsett in the Netrunner backroom. Amidst idle chatter, Crystal learned Dorsett was about to dive headfirst into the Corpo cesspool with Padre’s blessing.

"Which Corpo's your poison, then?" Crystal tossed out the question. The number of Corps was as limitless as the stars, but the real players? Those were counted on both hands.

“Night Corp.” Sandra returned, and Crystal had to bite back her surprise. That was home-field elite, way beyond any local wannabe. Sandra continued, “Chatted up Miriam Night herself. She gave me the thumbs-up. I couldn't stomach the thought of joining the rank-and-file parasites. Night's one of the biggest benefactors for the underdogs in Noir City.”

“Cashin' in on that old education investment, are we? Good on you.” Crystal smirked, tipping an imaginary hat. “Need any concrete poured? I'll remember to toss the gig your way.” Little did Dorsett know the Eden renovation gig was already earmarked for her. But Crystal didn’t see the need to let her in on that secret just yet. When she was starting, it would be a nice feather in the young woman’s cap.

Favors like that, especially in the newbie days, etch themselves into memory.

Dorsett split after a few more exchanges, replaced by Mama Welles sauntering into the Netrunner's lair. “So you’re Padre’s little firecracker,” she drawled once Sandra was out of earshot. “Heard you yanked my boy back from the edge. For that, my thanks. You here for backing?”

Crystal nodded. No need to sugarcoat it for Mama; the woman knew her biz. Mama gave her the up and down, then sighed, “You’re kinda hard to make out in the gloom. Can you kill that shroud?”

“Sadly, not all gifts have an off switch,” Crystal shrugged.

“Well, worth a try. Anyways, you've got my backing. Let’s call it a favor returned for Jackie. And while we’re at it, could you find some work for a few of my regulars? They're solid.” Her tone left no room for negotiation.

“Absolutely, reliable hands are a godsend these days.” Crystal slipped on a charming smile. “Now that the sun’s clocked out, I've got a bit of nocturnal fishing to do.”

“Rumor is Kang Tao’s sniffing around the Voodoo Boys' old haunt. Would be a real shame if they ran into some... trouble.” Mama Welles dangled her bait.

Bowing her head in agreement, Crystal exited the bar. She hailed a Delmain, dialing in the coordinates for Pacifica, and found herself in front of an old convenience store. Bracing herself, she let her form twist and reshape, bones and flesh warping in unnatural synchrony. From the depths of her cybernetic cache, she pulled her Militech ShellShield DX-1D10T and switched threads.

Time to stalk the night in a guise unknown to many. A predatory grin tugged at Crystal's lips. She posed and slipped into the shadows, ready to sow a little chaos.