The low hum of an engine and the sound of pop music rouses me from my sleep. My head throbs, the beating of my heart and the pumping of blood sending ripples of pain through my skull. Sweat coats my face, the one small jet of cold air conditioned air doing little to help cool my overheated and dehydrated body.
My mouth is a desert, my tongue feeling like sandpaper as it brushes the inside of my cheeks in search for even a droplet of moisture. The warm sun burns at my eyes, even through closed eyelids, the aggravating red light causing me to scrunch up my eyes further and further to fight it back.
I slowly feel the worn sweat drenched leather behind me begin to slide against my back, a pain groan soon following as I slump to the left and my head collides with the window. As the groaning escapes my lips I begin to hack and cough dryly, my intense hangover seemingly gripping every part of me.
"You need water?" comes a deep voice from he front seat, the somewhat broken English soon being followed by the crinkling of plastic. "Here, should have water after big night" the voice continues as I feel a condensation coated water bottle land in my lap.
With my eyes closed, not wanting to face the harsh sun in any way, I fumble with the bottle. My hands shake and slip against the cool droplet covered surface, the plastic flexing and bending under my grasp as I twist off the cap and bring it to my lips. Water dribbles down my mouth, falling from my chin as it begins to cool my chest and soak the sweaty clothing covering my exhausted form. For a moment all is good, the icy cold water putting me into a state of bliss as I guzzle it down with abandon.
I can hardly remember how I had gotten here, in the back seat of some car, my memories begin more of a haze of drinks and cards.
"There, you need more?" asks the driver, a slight thud in the seat beside me alerting me to another water bottle. "Drink Miss, drink. You have big night with the girls?"
Five weeks ago I had hopped out of a cab by the docks, my luggage in hand as I marveled at the massive ship I would be calling home for the coming month. The stark white hull loomed large over those slowly boarding the seaborne goliath, with only a single ramp leading up to the main deck as to check everyone in with some level of order.
The Celeste was much like any other ship in this relatively small fleet, an adult playground filled with everything from restaurants to theaters, water parks and cinemas, and even multiple casinos and a fully operational Swap Clinic. Included with each ticket was complimentary access to everything and anything by way of the activities onboard, with the different price ranges only really effecting the type of room the guests would be staying in for their trip.
Normally, tickets to cruise like this would have been well beyond my price range. A ticket for economy class or even sharing a room with strangers would have been a big event while I was employed but was completely out of reach while unemployed. However, as a part of a promotion I had been lucky enough to be offered a heavily discounted ticket to a small and cramped single room.
I had of course eagerly accepted the cheap ticket, happily taking the tiny cramped room in order to enjoy the dozens of restaurants and some time by the pool out in the sun.
I couldn't have known at the time the reason The Celeste and other ships in that fleet offered discounted tickets. Far from a random selection from the entrants each ticket was carefully offered up to persons who could have something to 'offer up' in the casino for one of the more interesting aspects of these cruises.
While the trade and anteing of physical, mental or life traits in games of skill and chance was outlawed in most jurisdictions the same couldn't be said for the international waters that the Celeste would sail through and the flags of convenience that it would fly.
While under these flags and on those waters bets resulting in a trip to the Swap Clinic were perfectly legal, and in fact were a large draw for the wealthier and wilder members of the cruise. However, once people learnt of this less than hidden secret of the cruise it wasn't uncommon for really anyone to try and trade up for some trait if they saw the right person at a card table.
However, there was never any guarantee on winning, especially with the constant flow of free drinks coming in from the innumerable bars dotting the ship and the casino floor. Some could lose it all, going so far as legally becoming an entirely different person while another person staggered out blind drunk wearing their former body. Mostly, a mixture of wins and loses took place, resulting in most sober folks trying more and more risky bets in order to either fix themselves or at least make a cohesive body before their time on the cruise came to an end.
I had been selected for a few reasons. From my height and sex to my education and endowment, the company behind all this felt I would be a delightful offering in the casino. They had even provided me with a good deal of chips to use for the more traditional gambling to get me through the door and down at the tables in the hopes of engaging their clientele.
Over the coming weeks I soon found myself flooded with free liquor, the days passing by in a haze as I...
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