Mass Effect: Reaper Dreams

Mirror Mirror (Part 2 of 2)

Mirror, Mirror, hanging there with that crack in your eye.

You make me stumble, make me blind.

Time after time, and line by line.

Take a look into my eyes, tell me what you see.
Take a look into my eyes, tell me, is it true?

Take a look into my eyes, when I look at you.
Take a look into my eyes, tell me, is it me, is it really me?

(Steve Clark, Joe Elliot, Rick Savage)

March 11th, 2188

Subject Zero

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Jack cleared the last of her credits out of her account and closed it. She was all in now, walking the thin line, hanging her bare ass out there, or to be more specific to her current situation-tits to the wind. She stepped out of the toll center checked her right and left flanks, fingered her pistol, and crossed the street. A cold wind ripped into her skin as she cursed herself for not bringing a jacket. The doorman, a heavily armed Krogan, looked her up and down, collected her pistol, scanned her into the system, and let her pass. Just like that, she was dead broke.

The stairwell to Planet Heaven was impressive, it wound around an old brass pole decorated with street lamps taken from the 9th Arrondissement of 19th century Paris, and it was claimed (though never verified) that several of the lamps hailed from 32 rue Richer, the sight of the Folies Bergèr. It exuded class, but the people who came here were anything but classy. They were a motley assortment of mercenaries, sex workers, pirates, assassins, and thieves. Fortunately, Jack fit right in, or at least she looked the part.

Jack hadn't been to a party like this in ages, but if it was anything like a gig she once attended on Anhur, she was in for a crazy night. She reminded herself that she had to cut loose if she wanted to fit in, and if she got out of there alive, well, that was just bonus. As the stairwell came to an end, a warm dark opening enveloped her, sucking her into a misty twilight of glitter lit by pulsing purple stars. Faces and bodies, alien and human floated around her.

Music throbbed through her very bones as she made her way to the central room, which was hung by huge crystal lanterns strobing with light. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that some of these lanterns enclosed a blindfolded and nude Asari or Human dancer gyrating against the glass. Because the light was too bright to stare directly at them, Jack could only take in the dancers at a glance. It created a mystery effect, which was, no doubt, the intent of the designer.

Once she had finally given up at getting a good look at a dancer, she pushed her way through the crowd. Getting to the other end of the room was difficult. After nearly half an hour of being jostled back and forth, she finally reached the far right corner of the floor, which was fortunately all the way on the other side from the lavatories. A scanner beeped and the security guards let her through. The adjoining room was hot and littered with a maze of chairs and couches, several ensconced in dark corners where the bodies of casual lovers glistened with sweat.

Jack escaped the lounge area into the gallery, which had been her destination all along. The small room was filled with sculptures, paintings, holograms, and interactive menus. A variety of sounds chimed in the air as appreciators, many in an altered state, interacted with the displays. Worming her way through the various works of art, she found the series of paintings and sculptures she'd been seeking for days.