The thick scent of perfume mingled with the stench of rotting fruit. Was it carnal desire that stoked the flames of want, or desire itself that fueled the pyre of flesh?
Children with eyes as lifeless as dead fish were bought and sold as commodities. Modified machines, stripped of weapons and armor, were chained and paraded through the streets. Prostitutes, their arms stained purple from drugs that ravaged both body and mind, danced frenziedly under neon lights, luring anyone—man or woman, young or old—into their brothels.
In the undercity, where the concept of day and night had long been erased, the Pleasure District shone brightest. A crucible of desire, it was a gathering place for broken souls drowning in lust and debauchery. Those sold into brothels through abductions, those whose minds were eroded by addictive narcotics with no hope of escape, those born in the district who lived without ever developing a sense of self—the Pleasure District was both the undercity’s breeding ground for sin and, on the surface, a dazzlingly glamorous place.
Danang lit a cigarette, exhaling purple smoke. He snapped the arm of a dealer trying to peddle drugs, glared at an approaching prostitute, then turned his gaze to Eve walking beside him.
Her eyes were cold, sharp with anger. Witnessing the horrors of the Pleasure District, Eve’s rage was palpable, yet she seemed to be wrestling down the fiery emotions roaring within her.
“Eve,” Danang said.
“…”
“Got something to say?”
“I’ve got more questions than things to say.”
“…”
“Danang, I’m no saint, and I’m definitely not a god. I’m human, just like you. But what is this place? Everyone here’s like livestock.”
An old man sat motionless on the ground, a child trembled with drug withdrawal, a woman screamed in terror under threats of death if she didn’t bring in customers. Men leered at grotesquely modified prostitutes, their bodies twisted by augmentation. Eve’s contempt, calling them livestock and worthless, was understandable.
“That’s the Pleasure District,” Danang replied. “But it’s still one of the better parts.”
“Better? How?”
“Because people don’t die here for no reason.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“The Pleasure District… no, the entire undercity has no law or order. The weak get devoured by the strong, and the strong get eaten by those even stronger—a world of survival of the fittest. But even here, there are unspoken rules. Eve, never help women, children, or collared men in the Pleasure District.”
“Tell me why.”
“Look around. You’ll see.”
Danang’s gaze fell on a girl being stripped bare. A security soldier, leering with a vulgar grin, snorted and drooled, high on a cocktail of illegally manufactured stimulants and aphrodisiacs. He struck her cheek, his bloodshot eyes treating her like property as he violated her with unrestrained brutality.
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“?” Eve gasped.
Was it righteous indignation, fury, or compassion? The silver wings enveloping her body shimmered, their radiant feathers scattering as her emotions surged.
“Leave it,” Danang warned.
“Danang! That girl—”
“She’s that guy’s property. He paid for her, bought her as a product, and he’s playing by the district’s rules. Eve, if someone stole your stuff or attacked you while you were just having fun, you’d be pissed, right? Don’t lose your head over this.”
“But!”
“There’s no ‘but.’ Eve, you wanna start a war with an entire organization by yourself? Go ahead, but don’t drag me into it. Look closer. Does that girl look like she’s suffering?”
The girl, ravaged and abused, wore a crazed smile, fawning over the man’s savage desires.
“They’re already broken,” Danang said. “Everyone here is. They might’ve been normal once, with functioning minds. But they learn quick—you don’t survive here unless you break. Tell me, Eve, what’s your plan if you save her? Fight the mid-level city soldiers? You’ll die.”
“…”
Broken. Being broken. Breaking others. In the Pleasure District, everyone—whether part of the crucible of lust or not—was shattered. They saw abnormality as normal, madness as sanity.
“Let’s go,” Danang said.
“…Yeah,” Eve replied.
As Eve rewrapped her silver wings around herself and walked beside Danang, a girl bumped into her.
“Oh, I’m so sorry. Are you hurt?” the girl asked.
“No, I’m fine. You okay?” Eve responded.
“Yes, I’m alright. I’m just not used to this district, so I got a bit lost.”
The girl, wearing a wide-brimmed white hat and a pristine white dress, stared past Eve with unfocused eyes, swaying a white cane dangling from her wrist.
“The person next to you—is he your brother? Or perhaps your lover?” she asked.
“Neither. He’s… a partner, I guess.”
“Oh, I see. My apologies. I have a brother myself…”
The girl smiled elegantly, then a man dressed in black appeared like a shadow, whispering in her ear. She nodded slightly and bowed.
“My brother says it’s time to go, so I’ll take my leave. Safe travels, and… welcome to the border of hell, dear guest.”
The smell of charcoal and ash tickled Eve’s nose. Lumina, the device aiding her vision, glitched for a moment, displaying static. When it cleared, the girl was gone.
“…” Eve stood frozen.
“Eve,” Danang called.
“…”
“Eve, what’s wrong?”
“Wasn’t there a girl right in front of me?”
“What? You losing it? There was no one.”
“…”
Impossible. She’d spoken to the girl, who’d asked about Danang and mentioned her brother. Shaking her head as she stared at the neon and clamor, Eve adjusted Lumina, which had thrown a visual error.
“…Danang,” she said.
“What?”
“Do you believe in ghosts?”
“That’s ridiculous. No such thing.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“In the undercity, people die and are born every day. If ghosts existed, this place would’ve burst at the seams. But… if they were real, I’d—”
“You’d what?”
“…”
“Danang?”
“I’d want to see the old man again.”
The old man… Every time Danang said those words, his menacing aura softened slightly, and his tightly set jaw relaxed.
“Danang, this ‘old man’ you keep mentioning—”
“Don’t say another word.”
“…”
“Don’t get close to me. Don’t try to connect. Don’t pry. I told you, didn’t I? Sometimes it’s better not to know each other. I don’t ask about your life, and I don’t care to know. If it’s necessary, we’ll talk when the time comes. So… don’t show me kindness or softness.”
“You’re saying that, but—”
“But what? You’re the weird one, Eve. Don’t you get it? Just talking like this raises the risk to our lives. Every time you try to get close, even after I push you away, the people around us notice. They think, ‘This girl’s got an opening. She’s a fool we can use.’”
In the undercity, kindness and softness were weaknesses. A hand extended to help, a heart seeking to understand—they were nothing but convenient vulnerabilities to a third party. Raising an alarm at Eve’s compassion, Danang bared his wariness, his mechanical arm humming with tension.
“…Danang,” Eve said softly.
“…”
“I think you’re pretty kind yourself.”
“Shut up.”
“But—”
“I said shut up. Want me to smash that pretty face of yours? Don’t say another word, Eve.”
Pointing the muzzle of a combat shotgun at her face, Danang lit a fresh cigarette, muttered about hurrying, and stalked off irritably.
“…That’s what I mean, Danang,” Eve said under her breath.
And with that, she followed him toward the ruins ahead.
