The Stairway

The stairs lead for what seems like forever down into the depths. Overhead, pipes hiss and drip with condensation. Here and there, the stair lights have gone out, making the fooring treacherous. At last, the end of the stairs arise.

The stairway opens up into a concrete tunnel, extending off to your right and left. It curves slightly inward, giving the appearance of a large ring. It is well light, and painted a nondescript grey. Here and there a door in the outer wall boasts a bathroom, or a public computer terminal. Along the inside wall, however...

The inside wall is a solid, clear window. The glass is rocket-proof from both sides, but is perfectly transparent, looking down onto a massive underground city. Streight ahead, large lights hang down, illuminating the city, and huge skyscrapers merge with the concrete and steel ceiling, seeming to become more like colomns than buildings. Their windows are one-way, making their outsides mirror-like. The city is massive, easily as large as Boston or New York. Lights flash down in the city streets, showing signs of life. A door into an elevator that leads down into the city.

Behind you, the stairway leads back to the surface.