Chapter 3.1: No chapter 4, it's bad luck

A sinister silence took place after the surreal encounter. The immensity of this ridiculously huge room became cold, almost frizzing. Q and Mei didn't dare to move, aware there could be spies. 

Quickly the entrance reopened and a tall, magnificent creature entered the room.

This woman was in her youth, about 21, a daring chest and a perfect face, blond hair and some elegant clothes. She looked like your typical stereotyped poster blond model. 

She welcomed Q and Mei with a terrific smile:

"Turn out you made it! Glad for you Maam and Sir, if you please mind following me" 

Q acted faster than Mei, the latest keeping distance from the newcomer. As she was already leading the way he could smell in the wind her perfume, it was a man perfume, but a good one with elegant notes, very fresh and European, subtle. 

She was engulfed with a little army of protective men around her. Obviously, she was someone important. None of the bodyguard paid attention to Q and Mei, they only cared about the creature, and Q couldn't help to think it was not a bad thing. 

They went back to the huge entrance and passed a second fronter.

The place was heavily guarded.

They were given a kind of green passport with a strange seal on it. No photo was on it but their fingerprint was like "sculpted" inside. And each time they had to put their finger in some ink and their prints were compared.

They had to present the passport to the first gate officer, which at the view of it stood straight on his feet and did a military Salut. Q had the reflex to stood up straight and stopped himself before saluting back.

A sort of tramway went on, and they went on it. Inside someone asked again politely to check their passport, and it seemed a more meticulous check. Some sort of phone call was made, and after a time they had their passport back. 

"Everything is in order" said the hostess. That's at this moment Q realized she too was quite attractive. 

The tram had no window and it was impossible to say how fast they were going. They stopped 3 times and each time a different officer entered. Q noticed that each time the officer had better look, better physiology, and looked less and less antipathic. Mei seemed to notice too. It was fair, thought Q. 

The 3rd time, a hairless giant checked their passport. This time they were invited to go out of the train, and accompanied to a sort of post. 

Other passenger went an other way, and some distinguishly beautiful people went their way too.

It was interesting because the people from the other way was more hurry, looked more stressed and had less elegance than the people in their way. They were surely taking the VIP lane Thought Q. 

When they arrived the check point Mei was surprise to see everyone had seat and refreshment while the documents was checked. It was a charming fronter. Therefore Q and Mei were taken to a different bureau, a small one on the left with a tiny inscription at the door "Foreign affairs".

The inside was as big as the entrance was small. The place even had a sort of giant X-ray machine. Q wondered if it was dangerous, but it was surely not because the machine had hug flash in Q and Mei direction, which included the guards and the creature, and some white dressed men observed a screen for a time. What seemed the leader nodded to the officer, who checked again the prints. 

Again everything was in order and they finally entered what seemed a small town. 

The creature told them they were being taken to their respective home, and that they had to separate.

Q started to complain but Mei stopped him putting her warm hand into his chest, Q shut up. 

Mai went a way and Q an other. The charming creature went Mai side, and Q stayed with a Tall, muscular Sergent. 

It was becoming clear they were in a architechturally chef d'oeuvre.

But amidst the awe-inspiring architecture and bustling crowds, a stark reality soon became apparent.

Q decided to ask some questions to the Sergent, and surprisingly this one decided to answer some of them. 

Q understood that the city was divided into six distinct circles, each one a microcosm of wealth and privilege. At the bottom of the social hierarchy lay the sixth circle, a grim reminder of the inequality that permeated society.

"The city is governed by a simple rule," the sergent explained as they walked. "Whoever has the most money holds the most power. It's a harsh reality, but it's the way things are here."

Q nodded solemnly, his eyes widening in realization as they beheld the stark contrast between the haves and the have-nots. Yet amidst the disparity, a glimmer of hope flickered within his heart, a determination to defy the odds and carve out a future for themselves in this unforgiving landscape.

At a certain point some guard stopped and left, as a kind of soft frontier was revealing itself at the corner of a smoking street. 

As he bid farewell to the guard and ventured deeper into the heart of the city, Q knew that his journey was far from over. But armed with ingenuity and determination, he was ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead, his destiny intertwined with the fate of the mega city itself.

With each step he took, Q delved deeper into the labyrinthine streets of the mega city, his senses assailed by a kaleidoscope of sights, sounds, and smells. Towering skyscrapers cast long shadows over bustling markets and crowded thoroughfares, while the distant hum of industry filled the air with an electric energy.

People around was walking quite peacefully, a sense of elegance and fierty was sweling from them. They looked quickly in Q's direction and seemed disturbed tho, the view of a military surely was not good around here, but no one said anything, and Q finally arrived to the said home, a Charming villa with roses bricks. 

An employee waited for him at the door and nodded welcome to him. 

The Sergent talked to her in a foreign language and she nodded back respectfully, looking nervous for a millisecond, and then back to an obedient normality. 

Q tried to talk to her but he fast understood she couldn't speak his language, and he decided to simply call it a day. 

Dinner was ready, he ate quite fast, the servant looking at him with worried eyes. He was too hungry to care. 

He went to sleep straight away and fell asleep on the bed without even removing his shoes.