The reek of damp concrete and stagnant water usually calmed the beast within. It was a comfort, a familiar scent that spoke of the hidden world beneath the city. But tonight, something was different. A subtle vibration, a foreign tremor in the earth, tickled my reptilian senses. Someone was down here.

I shifted my weight, clawed feet scraping against the sewer floor, and moved with a hunter's deliberate grace. The scales on my back bristled with an unease I hadn't felt in… well, it had been some time since anything truly surprised me. The sounds were faint, almost swallowed by the dripping echoes of the sewer. There was a hushed rustling, a soft footfall against the grimy floor – not the scuttling of rats, or the hurried slither of snakes. This was something else. Human, perhaps.

The sounds grew a little louder, guiding me deeper into the labyrinth. I kept to the shadows, my camouflage near perfect in the dim light. I could smell them now, a faint whiff of something metallic and… earthy? It was an odd combination, not the usual stink of sweat and fear that accompanied the unfortunate souls who sometimes wandered into my territory. There was no fear in their scent, only a strange curiosity.

I rounded a bend in the tunnel, my tail whipping low to the ground for balance. And there they were. Not what I expected. They were crouched by a particularly damp patch of wall, their breath puffing out in small, misty clouds. They wore dark clothing, practical and somewhat worn, and seemed to be examining something on the wall. They weren't a threat, at least not outwardly. They didn't look like the usual gangs that tried to expand into my home. But their presence bothered me, disrupted the natural order of things. I was the one who belonged down here, not them. I took another step forward, my claws clicking softly against the concrete. The sound seemed amplified in the silence, and their head snapped up, their eyes, finally visible, wide with surprise.