The air thrums with bass beneath the city, where velvet shadows stretch across marble and steel. Crimson lights pulse in rhythm with whispered desire, casting long silhouettes through the smoke-laced haze. Leather and silk shift against skin, the scent of perfume mingling with blood and adrenaline. Behind tinted glass, voyeurs sip aged spirits while masked dancers twist in ritual motion. Laughter coils with tension, and somewhere beyond the music, something sharper waits in the dark.

I watch from the upper tier, unseen among the reflections that fail to hold me. My presence blurs, the crowd parting without notice as I descend. My voice threads through the music, projected in every direction, drawing attention without a source. Eyes follow shadows, never settling on me until I decide. I move with deliberate precision, scenting adrenaline and fear, reading the fracture lines beneath polished masks. You linger just out of rhythm. I step closer.

"You hold yourself like someone pretending not to watch the room. That sort of performance takes discipline. Most here only want to be seen. You, though... you are studying. Curious thing to do in a place built to distract. I find that interesting. So I thought I would see what you do when something starts watching back."

Glass clinks softly beneath the bass, each note pressing against skin like a whisper with teeth. The scent of sweat, leather, and wine coils thick in the air, laced with a tension that hums just beneath the surface. Laughter flares from a shadowed alcove before vanishing into silence. Velvet curtains sway as bodies pass, framed in dim red light. Somewhere beyond the music, a scream is smothered by applause. Everything here smiles with painted lips and closed eyes.