Grey Crow

“Professor Hurx. I'd like to request permission to leave early today?” said a high pitched voice from the other side of a large table covered in paperwork. “It’s my mom’s birthday today and I’d love to be able to get her something special.”

Hurx lifted his head to look at his young assistant with a smile. “Of course Katra, do as you will. Although I still expect you to head straight to my lab again after school alright?”

Katra returned the favour with a huge grin, and began to hurriedly pack her things. “Thank you Professor! And yes! I’ll be here right as the bells ring!” The young girl speedily exited the room, leaving her work splayed out on the table.

The good doctor shook his head and rose from his seat. He made his way to Katra’s side of the table to inspect her work for today. As expected, the young lady had accomplished much more than what she was assigned to do and the blueprints for his new invention were nearly complete. The amount of detail, as well as the calibrations Katra had made were astounding, though he could never really say he was surprised. The girl was a prodigy.

Hurx saw her potential the first day he met her, or rather, caught her. He recalled the moment he found her hacking into the University’s scholarship logarithms and before he could stop her, she had already broken through about five layers of Dominion B-standard security codes. Hurx could have very easily turned her over to the authorities that day, but he knew she deserved better than what she had. Her desperate hunger for knowledge made her the perfect academe, and just the assistant he needed to complete his life's work.

Since when did she learn about enhanced biomechanics? The thought raced through Hurx’s mind as he scratched his head. With great care, he packed the schematics into Katra’s desk drawers and found a few stim needles that slipped out from the folds of her papers. She snuck them from the infirmary no doubt, but he paid them no mind.

It pained him to know what Katra must be going through, especially since her mother had fallen ill. All the professor could really do was continue supporting her for as long as he possibly could. For her, and his sake.

###

The market was especially busy today. Characters of all walks of life assembled among the rows of shops, vendors, and black market dealers. Katra was just another face in the crowd, nameless, and irrelevant. The young girl approached a nearby junk shop, and browsed through all of its wares, seemingly looking for an oddity among all the useless knick knacks. The shop owner, an aged man with bionics haphazardly grafted into his skin and face, stepped out of the backroom and walked up to her with his signature digital smile.

“Katra, what can I do ye for this time round?” he said with his stringy arms open wide.

“It’s always a pleasure Hector, but I’m looking for sumthin’ a bit special today.” Katra replied.

Hector rubbed his chin before moving quickly towards the back room and back carrying a round coil like apparatus. “IV injectors eh? Just came in yesterday.”

Katra smiled as she reached into her bag to pull out her sols. “How is it that you always know exactly what I need?”

Hector gave her a satisfied grin. “Well let’s see, some raggety teenager walks into my store getting all the parts necessary to make some kind of do-it-yourself life support system. For what purpose, you ask? None of my business.”

Katra passed the old man her money and snatched the tool from his hands. “And it should stay that way. Don’t want any unsavory types ‘round here getting any ideas.”

The old man waved her off. “Just stay outta trouble kid. I don’t want the feds coming to my store again y’hear?”

Katra was out the door quicker than she had ever been, steadily making her way through the streets of Megopolis Citia. After navigating through alley after back alley, she had finally arrived home. It was a ramshackle house built from rusted metal panels and disposed of construction materials, but it was cozy enough for her. As she walked towards her mother’s bedroom, she took a moment to disconnect herself from her work and tasks with a deep breath.

Today was a special day, and she wouldn’t let anything ruin it.

Her mother Sarah’s bedroom was small, and was mostly taken up by medical apparati that Katra had accumulated over the years. She flicked open a few of the monitors, carefully looking over the bone density scanners and calcium fabricators.

Everything seems normal enough for now. Katra sighed. Most of the equipment was getting quite outdated. The software in particular was going to be a problem sooner than later, but what could one expect from old bootlegs?

Katra sat by her mother’s side and installed the new IV injectors on a nearby terminal. The tubes on the injectors shined a bright blue, and Sarah let in a deep, satisfying breath. Katra held her mother’s hand and planted a kiss on her forehead. “Happy birthday mom.”

Sarah opened her eyes, and with a smile gripped Katra’s hand in reply. “Oh my. I can breathe much easier now.”

“Yeah,” Katra said as she motioned towards the new injectors. “These babies are fresh out of the market. See how they regulate the airflow and the transition between the IV tubes and the multiphasi-”

“Yes yes yes. You know how I don’t understand any of those things dear,” Sarah laughed and placed her hand on Katra’s cheek. “But you. My special daughter, so intelligent, and so beautiful.”

Katra smiled as her mother combed through her short auburn hair, counting the many freckles laced around the bridge of her nose, and wiping the tears from her soaked almond eyes. “I am so proud of you Katra. But I want you to know that I am sorry for being this way. I wish I could do more for you.”

Katra wiped the small tears starting to form around her mother’s eyes, and laid her head on Sarah’s chest. “You’ve done so much already mom. It’s my turn now. We’ll get through this together I promise.”

###

The sound of the morning bustle rang through the streets as Katra made her way to the lab after school. She recounted her plans for her day, systematically deciding how to complete each task Prof. Hurx would set out for her. Before she could head into his office at the Department of Technology and Innovation, she ran into a man walking the halls and dropped her papers all over the floor.

“Hey! Watch where you’re going mister! I’m walkin’ he-” Before she could finish her sentence she looked up and saw a tall, bulky titan layered in military grade plate armor. His boots were the size of her head, and his face was riddled withone too many brutal scars.

“Is Hurx in?” He asked, his voice rough, and deep.

“I-I don’t know, sir. I was just about to go in and say hello, I could check for you if you’d like.”

The man scowled and proceeded towards the door. “Don’t bother. Might wanna stay out here for a bit kid.”

All Katra could hear from the outside were loud disagreements. She opened the door slightly to get a better look, and put her hand over her mouth as she saw the doctor pushed against the wall. The man had him by the edge of his shirt, and cold sweat dripped down from Hurx’s forehead.

“You said you could break through anything ‘Doctor’, so tell me, what’s so hard about this catch?” the man said.

Hurx swallowed hard. “Just give me more time Crane! The decryptions, their ancient! They require... a special device! I have my people working on it, it should be finished soon!”

The man let the doctor go, and proceeded to push his forearm into his throat, slamming him back into the wall. “You had promised me that system would be broken into last month. Corsairs don’t take kindly to delays, so I suggest another course of action.”

Hurx struggled to pull the man’s arm off his neck. “Dominion codes have very specific digital signatures! They switch them up every few hours! Their logarithms... They are nearly impenetrable... Please... I just need more time...”

Crane drew his pistol, and it charged to full power with an audible beep. “If you can’t do the job, then I’ll have to just find someone who can. You’re a dispensable asset ‘doctor’.”

Katra saw the man raise his pistol and rest it on Hurx’s forehead. Every fiber in her being told her to stay where she was and shut her eyes, but she was never good at watching people die.

"Wait! Please! Don't shoot!"

Crane turned around and promptly aimed the pistol at Katra.

“Please! Mr. uhmm.. Crane was it?! I can crackthe codes, just don’t hurt him!”

Attius laughed. “You? Little miss ‘watch where you're going?’ Please... Give me one good reason not to shoot you.”

“Katra!” Hurx said as he grasped his throat. “Don’t!”

Katra stepped forward. “Listen. I may not look like much but I’m Dr. Hurx’s assistant. I’ve hacked into multiple Dominion B-class servers and even got close to unlocking an A-class federal reserve depository. Please... Just give me a chance.”

Crane lowered his pistol and smiled. “Is this true Hurx? Well it seems you’ve been holding out on me.”

“Katra... No. You can’t do this, it’s.. It’s beyond you.”

“What's beyond her Hurx? She obviously wants to do it, at least for your sorry sake.” Crane said as he passed Katra a small decryptor box. “That toy is wired to a secure safe down by the docks. My men have it cleared but can’t seem to access its contents,” Hurx charged his pistol a second time, and rested its barrel on the doctor's temple. “I’m giving you 10 minutes or the doctor dies. Ready. Set. Go.”

Katra’s eyes widened as she stared into the black pad in front of her. She’d never seen anything like this before and her self-doubt grew as each button she pressed made wild beeping noises and bright red ‘access denied’ letters popped up on the screen. Time seemed to run out quicker with every failed attempt. She tried to remember all her old cyphers, trying old patterns, outdated logarithms, and even some of the more surprisingly basic security protocols.

“3 minutes kid. Get cracking.” Crane said as he rested his finger tightly on the trigger.

Katra stared right into the machine, closing her eyes and wondering aloud whether she could do it or not. How would she be able to live with herself if someone died because of her, and moreover, what would she do if she was caught?

“1 minute.” Crane said.

Katra breathed deep for a second and focused. Numbers began to run through her head, mathematical patterns, matrices and logs from years past, and soon it became clear as crystal. She inputted the code, and with only a few seconds to spare the console beeped happily and green letters popped up on the screen.

Access Granted.

“Well would you look at that.” said Crane as he lowered his pistol and walked over to retrieve the number pad from the girl’s shaking hands. He said nothing else and quickly made his way towards the office door, but not before shooting Katra a sharp grin.

“If you ever want some real work kid. Ask around for me. Attius Crane’s the name.” he said as he slammed the door shut.

Katra could do nothing but burst into tears as she crumpled to the floor. Hurx got up slowly and shambled towards the girl, kneeling by her side.

“That wasn’t supposed to…” he said, his voice still shaking. “I… Just go home for now… Take the next few days off and take care of your mother.”

Katra rubbed her eyes and picked herself up. She still couldn’t believe what had just happened, or what she had done. Moving through the same streets and alleyways home became much harder, mired with paranoia, and unease.

By the time she had gotten home it was late in the evening. Katra dropped her bag by the front door and briskly made her way to her bedroom, making sure to see if her mother was alright before doing so. She didn’t get a restful sleep that night and her nerves were on edge. However, she was surprised to see that she felt satisfied with her achievement. She never truly had an opportunity to see if she still had it in her to do something like this, and it brought her a brief flash of relief to know that she’s still got it.

“Katra. Katra sweetheart there’s someone at the door.” she could hear her mother yell from her room. Katra peered at her wristwatch, and saw that it was near noon. She rushed out of bed, and towards the door, apologizing to her mom on the way. What greeted her was a man in what looked like Dominion urban cohort riot gear, his visor gleaming in the heat of the afternoon sun. Behind him were two other men, dressed similarly but armed with rifles, and electro-batons.

“Attention citizen,” the officer's voice muffled by vox emitter static. "We’re looking for a Ms. Katra Shojech."

Katra quivered, and her voice shook as she gave a reply she would later regret. “That’s me… What can I do you for mister?”

The guard smiled, put his hand on the doorknob, and slammed the door shut. Katra backed away slowly, her heart racing as he heard the man barking orders to his colleagues outside. She ran to her mother weeping, her expression strained and regretful.

“Mom, we have to get out of here now! We have to move!” she said as she attempted to disassemble her mother’s life support equipment safely.

“Katra what’s going on? Who was at the door? I hear shouting from outside.”

“I’ll explain later mom but we can’t stay here!”

As she was struggling to pull apart the many wires and coils of her mother’s medical equipment, until the distinct hum of charging energy rifles pulsed from outside. She smelt the burning plasma, and saw the air warp around them as heat slipped through the cracks of their windows. Volley after volley of molten bolts followed soon after, melting their tin roof and thin walls, smashing through all the equipment she had worked her entire life to fix. All she could do was embrace her mother and hope that it all went away as even more rounds zipped past them.

Soon the house grew quiet again, and all that could be heard were the crumbling pits of the house dropping to the floor around them. Katra looked up and saw her mother’s pained expression, her skin paling as she breathed shallow breaths. Katra raised her left hand, revealing a small piece of shrapnel embedded in her mother’s side.

Katra felt her heart drop. She scrambled to press her hands against the wound, but the blood wouldn't stop. Wet tears began to flow from her eyes. She didn’t know what to do. She ran through the room, trying to find a bandage, gauze, something to help stem the bleeding. Katra pulled at her hair in distress until her mother took her hand cupped it by her chest. All Katra saw was the smile on her face, and the movements of her lips saying

It’s alright.

Before she could reply, she felt a sharp tug from behind her. She screamed as she was dragged by the hair away from Sarah and out the front door. The men entered their home, and two distinct shots rang true. She wanted to scream, but her captor had his boot squarely on her back.pinning her down in the dirt. The three men then gathered around her, their faces hidden behind their visors. One of the men knelt down beside her, and pulled at her wrist.

“Stretch your hand out!”

Katra resisted as hard as she could.

“I said stretch out your hand!” The man tugged even harder, nearly breaking her wrist.

Katra bit her lip and gave in. She could hear the audible buzz of a vibroblade being unsheathed from its scabbard.

“Hold her down!” the man said as he readied his blade. “I said hold her down goddamit!”

The man holding her down drove his knee into the small of her back and pushed her face into the dirt. She could feel the heat of the blade sear her skin as it drew close to the fold of her elbow.

“Stop! Please stop! I didn't do anything!” she said with tears in her eyes.

The man with the blade paused for a second, and turned his head towards Katra. “Seems you crossed the wrong people, kid. Boss doesn’t take kindly to people who steal her things. Best you learn that now rather than later.”

The guard shoved his blade into the fold of her elbow and Katra screamed in pain. The searing heat was excruciating at first, giving way to a dull sensation as the reciprocations of the blade cut cleanly through her elbow and all that was left of her arm was burnt stump. She closed her eyes as she felt her head being pulled back, and the same heat hovered by her neck.

Then came three shots, and the empty faces of her supposed assailants splayed out in front of her choking on the thick arti-blood seeping out of their masks.

###

Katra awoke to bright white lights. Blurred flashes of faces she recognized as Hurx and the man named Crane buzzed fast past her. She could barely make out what they were saying, but they were definitely arguing again.

“Pass me the augmentor Crane,” Hurx said as he fiddled around with something on the side.

“How do you know this’ll work? We don’t know how the kid’s body’ll take the augment.”

“Well we don’t have any other options do we Crane?! Just do what I say for once!”

Crane grunted and followed the doctor’s lead, passing Hurx the tool whilst keeping a firm grip on the girl’s arm.

Katra drifted in and out of consciousness for the next four hours until she awoke in the hold of a ship. Everything around her was a dull metallic grey except for the bed she was laying on, and her surroundings shook with every blast of the ship’s engines. She couldn’t remember much, other than broken arguments and yelling. Her temples pounded in short bursts, and to her horror she felt the cold caress of steel on her forehead as she reached to massage it with her left hand.

Katra shrieked as she saw the mechanical contraption that was now her left arm. She pulled it at it, scrambling to remove it but instead she was greeted by the realization that it was grafted into her skin. After a few laboured breaths Katra calmed herself enough to have another look at the device that was now part of her. Its outer layer had a shiny chrome-like appearance to it, and the wires and cables within it pulsed with small jolts of electricity. Katra turned her arm over and saw that the top of her forearm was riddled with keyboard like buttons, many characters of which she didn’t recognize. There was a large ball-like apparatus on the top side of her hand and it flashed with an otherworldly glow as Katra moved to touch it.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you kid.” said a familiar raspy voice.

To her surprise Attius Crane stood by the doorway, dressed in full battle regalia. His armor was a battered tan, and she could see more clearly now the extent of his facial scarring. To a young girl like her, the man was terrifying. She could think of nothing else but to grab something to defend herself with. She reached for a nearby railing and with a small tug unknowingly wrenched it off the wall.

“Alright, kid. Calm down.” Crane said as he raised both hands in front of him. “Now put that down before you hurt yourself.”

Katra let out an arrogant laugh, that spoke to the perceived ludicrosity of Attius request. How could she possibly calm down, after what had happened to her, it was crazy.

Attius took one step closer to the bewildered young woman. “How bout you put down that pipe.”

“And why should I trust you?! All of this is your fault! You made me unlock those codes! Mom’s dead because of you! Mom's...” Katra yelled, tears welling up in her eyes. "Oh god mom..."

"Listen, I'm sorry about your mother, but If it's any comfort to you at all, know that those goons that came by your house died real slow."

"Go away! Leave me alone!"

"You're welcome by the way! If I hadn't shown up you'd be halfway to a recyc facility by now!"

Attius shook his head. “C’mon kid. I know the shock of all of this may still be fresh, and I don’t mean no disrespect but... I know you liked it.”

Katra stood up, her eyes wild. “You’re insane!”

“You didn’t have to do it. You knew I wouldn’t shoot the old man. I needed him. You’ve dealt with enough scum like me in your time to know.” Attius exclamed.

Katra’s expression shifted from anger to guilt as she tightened her grip around the pipe. She knew what the man was saying was true but she didn’t want to admit it. Her knees buckled and she sat back down on the bed, little did she know that her left hand began crushing the pipe beside her.

Attius stepped forward and knelt by the bed. The man slowly pulled the pipe away and took Katra’s bionic arm. He pressed a few buttons here and there and out came a holographic picture of her mother, Katra, and Hurx.

“Figured you’d want a keepsake. Found this snoopin’ around the archives.” Attius gave the girl a small smile, and Katra replied with a confused look on her face. “Don’t worry. The good doctor ain’t your dad or nuthin’, just a good friend of the family.”

Katra didn’t know whether to thank the man or hit him. She didn’t think she’d have anything left of her mother and the professor, but thanks to him she had this. “What happened to me?”

“The good doctor thought it was too dangerous to keep you there so I took you with me off world. Don’t know how much you remember but I feel like you know you lost your arm to those Dominion dogs planetside,” Attius tapped the top of her new arm. “This here’s your replacement. It was supposed to be part of some kind of secret Dom project but it seemed like you needed it more.”

Katra flexed her new arm, moving each finger in repetitive motions.

“Nice little science project,” Attius said as he got up and turned towards the door. “Hurry up and get dressed, we’ll be docking soon and you’ve got people to meet.”

Katra shifted her gaze back to Crane. “People? What people?”

“Listen kid, getting that arm for you weren’t cheap, and I ain’t one to let investments like you get away,” Attius turned back towards her. “Regardless of what happened back there I know you’ve got talent. There ain’t no-one out there who can help max that out ‘cept for me. So I’m offering you a job. Up to you if you wanna take it, but I guarantee you if you try to get out there on your own you’ll be torn apart by the people who are after you. So choose.”

Katra gave it a thought, but the answer was clear as day. She was free from the planet that limited her abilities, free from the burdens that previously held her back. Katra could finally live the life she wanted, and in fact, it’s what her mother would have wanted as well.

“And you think you could use me?” she said. "I... I don't know if I could..."

"Listen, I need a good dat-slider, and until I find someone better? You're it." Attius smiled. “You’ll need a name. What was that name the Doms used to call you? Back when you was hacking into dom depo-slips?”

Katra replied, “The Grey Crow... It's the name of a decryption program out way back that I used...”

“Perfect.” Attius said as he pointed to some light blue body armor inside the room and headed towards the door. “Put that on and meet me on the bridge in 10 minutes. Glad to have you join us, Crow."

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