Bolton’s younger brother, Andy, died from an explosion.

Landmine. Military-grade. Nine kilotons powerful enough to take down a goddamn militank. And Andy was only seven.

"The hell do you mean my sister can't have health mods?!" Bolt is ready to throttle the white-collared cyberdoc sitting prickly behind his worn-out desk. With both metal fists digging deep in the oakwood furniture, Bolt bellows his complaints at the unfazed, barely legal practitioner. "I got them cryptos, jay. 2.06 coins on the dot. We had a deal!"

"Cochlear implants ain't that cheap, kid," says the cyberdoc. He whips out a fat junn and sticks it between his disgusting bearded lips. He takes his time with it, then draws out thick blue smoke that hides the greedy bastard’s smile. "And we talkin' 'bout Grade 3 implants. The best you gonna get here in the Bedrock."

"Because you've been putting fake implants on these people, you scum!" Puffs of steam exhaust from Bolt’s titanium arms. He smashes the table with a downward punch, turning the poor oakwood into a flattened tin can.

Behind him, his younger sister Aria yelps at the sharp sound of metal to wood, hurting her last functioning, sensitive ear.

The doctor jumps back in his chair. “Ai! That’s another 0.02 coins, jay!”

“We ain’t ‘jay’s anymore, asshole,” warns Bolt, face scrunched that only predatory animals could make. “And if you think you can walk away with my money, you’d be dead wrong. Fuckin’ dead wrong.”

Bolt reaches behind, a silver barrel glints beneath Bolt’s jacket. The cold iron is hot on the trigger. His temper— sizzling like the fuse of a bomb— is coaxing him to hail down bullets in the man who can easily help his younger sister.

Bolt knows they can’t afford to sink their reputation again. Not after putting him and the twins in the Bedrock. But fuck it, if it means providing for the only remaining family he has, he’ll do it his way.

By force and by silver.

“Bolt, no!”

Gentle fingers catch Bolt’s cold metal arm before he could raise the barrel at the man’s head.

“Bolt,” Aria pleads, holding a pair of tired eyes and a cramping, empty stomach. “I want to go home, Bolt. Please… Let’s go home. I want to see Andy again.”

His heart crumbles. His anger snuffed out as fast as a candlelight.

Who is else to blame? If Bolt had been cautious in accepting gigs from sketchy fixers, authorities would have not tagged them red and evicted from the Strata District. He could have provided for his younger siblings a good home, good food, and a good life they could wake up to.

But they can't. Everyday is a waking nightmare, and demons are on the prowl. What else can the fifteen year-old Bolton do?

“Get the fuck outta here!” Bolt fails to realize that the cyberdoc already pulled a double barrel shotgun. Straight at his chest, a powerful spread to blow his innards inside out. But the nozzle is far enough that Aria would be in the line of fire. He can't afford to take that risk.

He holds Aria’s hand and together they walk out the front door without a second glance at the only cyberdoc they can afford.

“You’re banned from my clinic, y'hear me? Banned! Welcome to the goddamn Bedrock!”

Want to share your story in our cyberpunk universe?
Join our Discord at NEO Masterpiece Films.

Glossary:

  • Coin — common form of currency in selected bastion cities like Zion.
  • Crypto — slang term for money.
  • Cyberdoc — medical practitioner in cybernetics.
  • Health Mods — a type of cyberware upgrade for improving one’s quality of life.
  • Jay — slang term for friend.
  • Junn — a handheld vapor containing a substance that produces colored smoke when exhaled.
  • Silver — slang term for bullets.
  • The Bedrock — the lower class of Zion.
  • The Strata District — the middle class of Zion.