The Shape of Things to Come (Hypernaturals 15)

Star Chamber

The inside of the stairwell is dark. Not so much for lack of lighting as all the dark colors, it is decorated with. Rich dark red fabric carpets. Red curtained walls. If you were trying to create the feeling of walking through an artery, this might be how you did it. If this were Asimov's 'Fantastic Voyage', some red blood cells would be floating by. All they need are some round red pillows sitting around. It looks sumptuous and rich, but it also seems a little like symbology that misfired. We hate what we think are Vampires, so our secret lair has a passage down to it that looks like a big wide illuminated decorator blood vessel.

I am moderately sure that inside the SPH all this dark red fabric has some other meaning. It seems like to me royalty always likes to use tera-meters of expensive fabric as a way to denote to others, like the woman we say carrying food down here, their power and influence. Look at any picture of royalty, and they have on kilometers of fabric, decorated to the hilt. This is probably that. The statement here is we are rich, powerful, and here is how you can tell: we bought the entire annual output of silk from China, dyed it royal red, and hung it in here.

Denise was thinking along that line. "It's like some guy's silk power tie exploded." She subvocalized, her voice quickly absorbed by the fabric.

"I was wondering about that." I replied.

"Red means different things to different cultures. Love. Rage. Danger. Power. Jesusfuck there is a lot of it. It's like walking into a giant vagina, with downward curving steps."

"I was thinking blood vessel." I said.

"These assholes? Who knows. Bet they hate women as much as they hate Vampires though. You notice it is door*man*, but an attractive young *woman* brings them food and drinks." Denise shook her head as we padded down the plush steps.

The overhead lights let us see the steps easily, but I imagine a human had to be careful. It is as quiet as a tomb: all the fabric in the stairwell absorbing everything.

"I wonder if they have another reason for all the overt display of wealth. They cheap out on their data center, then they do this? High-end soundproofing?" I asked.

"Sure works like it." Denise ran a hand over the deep red waves of the fabric on the walls. "I feel like I'm walking into some private club. A super high-end sex club or something."

"Never been to one." I had to admit.

"Discounting Helen and Jessica's romps through hem back in the 1920s? Not missing much. Overpriced drinks. Lots of comfy furniture. Theater in the round seating to watch other people have sex up on stage. Usually more edgy stuff. Bondage. Sodomy of various kinds. Vera might like some of it, but probably too extreme even for her. What one hopes are fake rape scenes. Scat. Lighter stuff is available in other rooms. Lots of kink and drugs. Some wearing masks even, because they do not want people to recognize them. Billionaire by day, sadist by night kind of thing."

"Why do you know about all that? You ran a pretty straight house."

"This was after I ran any of my houses. I was in New York, on a Crew mission. We were looking for a Vampire that was rumored to be working in one of them and showing fangs."

"Shit. Were they?" I asked.

"Yes. Everyone thought it was a special effect, and in the drugged-out mental haze, they all thought the kink was part of the act. I suppose it was, but we had to take her out of there, and explain a few facts of life to her."

"She knew what she was and about the community?"

"Yes. She was pissed off about being turned and taking it out on humans. Was not a super stable lady to start with."