{"sf1_id":566440,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Prologue Penumbra","author":"Jinx Curi","words":1488,"posted_at":"2013-07-22T19:21:00.000Z","tags":["Action","Clean","Club","Humor","No-Yiff","Shark","cyber","cyberpunk"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/566440-prologue-penumbra","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/566440","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=566440\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"Okay, well, here is a trial introduction / mini story that both introduces a few fleeting snippets of background info about both Sliver and the world that he operates in. I welcome any and all comments and criticism, along with helpful suggestions concerning my style of writing, content and pacing. I hope though, that you do enjoy peeking in through this little window into seeing Sliver in action.","content":"Penumbra's Shadow resonated with the primal beat of\nhardstyle electronica.  The nightclub's bustling\ndance floor, appointed in a vaulted, neo-gothic style, lay awash in the glow of\na score of neon lights; several whirled and pulsed in time to each drop and\nbeat.  It was a heady, hypnotic mix of\nstrobe light, loud music and strutting bodies. \nSliver reclined lazily upon the well-worn cushions of a couch in his\nfavourite spot; an alcove off one side of the dance floor.  It was dimly lit, secluded and allowed the\ncybernetic shark a measure of privacy with which to relax and on occasion, conduct\nbusiness.  Despite his fatigue, his\nsenses and nerves felt electrified by the atmosphere with 'The Shadow'.  His nostrils flared as he drank in the miasma\nof sweat, tobacco, and other more exotic substances.  Here, within the midnight recesses of the\nCommercial District of Penumbra City, was life. \n\nExciting\nIntoxicating\nDangerous\nIt operated in a narrow metaphorical crevasse between\nlegality and illegality, and was THE place to be heard and seen.  It was here, tonight, that Sliver would play\none of his roles, that of an info-broker. \n\nThe shark stretched,  relieving the lassitude that had gathered in\nhis shoulders and sighed pleasurably as his back cracked.  He quickly sat up, smoothing down his shaggy\nmess of navy-blue hair into a measure of neatness, as one of the floor staff, a\nfemale humanoid clad in little but softly-glowing tattoos passed by him, a\nladen drinks tray balanced carefully upon one hand.  With practiced, nimble fingers, he plucked\none of the cocktail glasses from the tray; countering the scowl he received for\nhis actions with his best, and most disarming, grin.  His rows of long, white teeth stood out with\nstark brightness.  With an annoyed humph,\nthe cocktail waitress strode onwards to her destination, and then stopped and looked\nback over her shoulder at the shark.  Her\ncybernetic eyes widened, as payment for the drink and a rather generous tip of\ncommercial credits that Sliver had thumbed over to her via the Shadow's\nproprietary app on his wrist-comp, reached her own implanted software.   Sliver\nwaved a dismissive hand, the cera-metal of his augmented arm, one of a pair, catching the sparkle of the club lighting and reflecting a diffused glow, and winked; the self-assured, mischievous grin\nremained.  By balancing such harmless\nmischief, with being a generous and popular customer, the staff of the\nnightclub tolerated such antics and even indulged him a few privileges.  No other clubber stepped foot in his alcove\nwhen he was present within the club, and little bits of gossip and rumour often\nfound their way to him, overheard by the sharp ears of the staff and\nmanagement.   A grateful smile touched the teal lips of the\nfemale, as her ire was quickly forgotten and she returned the wink, and then\nreturned to her duties.  \nSliver touched the rim of the cocktail glass to his lips;\neyes half-closing as he savoured the rich, exotic aroma of the unknown blended\ndrink.  With an inward shrug at his\npossible foolhardiness, he raised it and took a hearty gulp.  The liquid flowed across his tongue and down\nhis throat with honey smoothness and raw ginger sharpness; he had to stifle a\ncoughing it in reaction to the tanging fire that seemed to have ignited in his\nmaw, restricting his outburst to a raspy gasp.  The softly-glowing fins of his artificial and heavily cybered tail flared up with harsh brightness in response to the sudden burst of negative emotion, before dimming again as he gained control of his emotions again.  With tears welling up in the\ncorners of his eyes, he quickly placed the glass down on the table next to him;\nhis innate curiosity had been satisfied quite enough with regard to that\nparticular drink.  He looked up quickly\nas a shadow fell across the table, and a moment later, the table shook and the\nglass clinked as it tipped and spilled its remaining contents over the table as\nsomething or someone bumped into it.  The bulk of a tall, well-muscled figure loomed\nabove the reclining shark, it's back turned. \nSliver's eyes narrowed as his holo-visor scanned and fed him key\ninformation about this unwelcome intrusion. \n His chem and bio-sniffers\nindicated a high blood-alcohol level and the tell-tales of recreational soporific\ndrug usage.  He had just enough time to\nscowl and mentally sigh at the potential trouble ahead, when the humanoid\nturned, revealing a large, bovine muzzle, deep-set eyes and curved horns.  \nDefinitely trouble\nThe dark-brown furred bull blinked a few times as it swayed\nand then squinted down at the now frowning cyber shark.\n\"Hey...yew...git out of...mah...mah...seat.\"\nIts voice was deep, rumbling, its tone demanding and\nrendered almost unintelligible by strong drink as it slurred its way around the\nwords.  It jabbed a meaty hand and a\nblunt finger in the general direction of Sliver.  The cyber shark raised a hand in a gesture of\nconciliation and smiled.\n\"Plenty of other seats, friend.  This one is mine.\" \nSliver's smile widened, his eyes narrowing to slits\ndangerously as he bared his razor-sharp teeth in what appeared to be a friendly\ngrin.  He knew that a show of strength\nand ferocity would either quickly disarm a situation or metaphorically ignite\nan explosive fuse underneath it when dealing with male bovines.   He\nhoped it would be the former; a barroom brawl with a walking slab of admittedly\nattractive muscle had not been on the\ncards tonight.\n\"Now, why don't I buy you a drink?\"\nThe bull grunted as it worked its mouth in unspoken words, its\nbeady bullet-like eyes struggling to focus upon the shark as its narcotic and\nalcohol clouded mind struggled to compute the situation.  The barely audible snick of a pistol being primed for firing pierced the cloud with\nsniper precision.  It looked down to see\nSliver holding a pistol underneath the table, it's boxy muzzle tilted to one\nside and aimed at the bull's kneecaps.  \n\"Go back to the bar friend; that way we'll both walk out of\nhere tonight...hmm?\"\nThe bull's nostrils flared at the challenge; its temper\nwarred with better judgement.  With a\nfrustrated grunt, it spun around and wordlessly strode away, shoving aside an\nunlucky patron that had strayed into its path of ignominious retreat.  Sliver shook his head in sardonic amusement\nas he watched the bull bluster and tapped a quick text alert to the Shadow's\nbarman regarding the actions of the drunken patron.  He had just re-ordered another drink when his\nwrist-comp bleeped the chiming tone for an incoming video call.  He raised his arm, holding the wrist comp\nparallel to his face as a camera pickup flipped up, tapping the receive icon when\nthe green 'Optimal Angle' light lit up. \nA video screen opened and expanded in the centre-left of his visor.  His caller was an attractive female humanoid;\ncoiled auburn hair crowned slim, elfin features.  The collar of a tailored business suit poked up\nfrom the lower limit of her camera pickup. \n Her expression was one of uncertainty;\nshe nervously chewed her lip and cleared her throat before speaking.  \n\"I trust...the information with which a certain...Ser Johnson\nprovided to me is accurate, and you are the one they call...Sliver?\"\nSliver wordlessly nodded and the ghost of a smile flickered\nacross his caller's lips, as she shed some of the nervous hesitation that had\ngripped her.  She learned forward, her\nhead tilted as she regarded him through her vidscreen.\n\"Good.  I...require\nsome information, and word on the\nstreet is that you are the best person to contact to acquire it, is there truth\nto that...rumour?\"\nHer tone and its upper-tier Penumbra society accent had\nturned conversational, almost friendly. \nAlways a worrying indication of\ntrouble ahead the cyber shark mentally warned himself.  A self-depreciating smile tugged at the\ncorner of his mouth as he tilted and inclined his head, his tone equally as\nconversational as he answered her query. \n\n\"You have found Sliver, and my services as an information\nbroker are yours to be bid for.\"\nHis caller steepled her fingers and stared over the top of\nthem at him, her eyes narrowing in thought, before she finally spoke again, a\nnote of hesitation returning to her voice.\n\"...and your rates?\"\nSliver smiled; his teeth shone with a blue-ish quality in\nthe glow of the vidscreen, as he winked at his still unnamed caller.\n\"As I always say...err...\"\n\"Halene.  Miss Halene.\"\n\"A pleasure, Miss Halene.\" \n\nHe inclined his head in polite greeting, continuing to hold\nher gaze through upturned eyes.  She\nnodded curtly, indicating that he should continue.  \n\"As I was saying, I can provide you with a sliver of\ninformation, for...\"\nSliver paused and waved his free hand in a theatrical\nfashion and leaned forward in his seat, the trademark sardonically self-assured\ngrin spreading across his maw, as he revelled in his little performance.  \n\"...Just a sliver of credit...\"  \n"}