Part 21
Balance over the Abyss
What happened a few weeks ago at Abyss…
The New Year’s party at Abyss was always a spectacle of shadows and sound, the air charged with anticipation as the clock edged closer to midnight. The club’s usual electric atmosphere was amplified by the promise of a special event - a dance competition unlike any other. Revelers crowded the floor, their eyes darting towards the stage where Evelyn stood with a commanding presence.
Clad in a sleek black gown that shimmered under the dim lights, Evelyn raised her arms to silence the crowd. The music faded, leaving only the buzz of excitement hanging in the air.
"Welcome to Abyss’ New Year’s Dance, the Balance over the Abyss!" Evelyn’s voice was smooth, but with an edge that hinted at the night’s darker undertones. "Tonight, five of you will have the chance to compete in a unique dance challenge, where grace and balance will be your only allies."
The crowd murmured with anticipation as Evelyn gestured to a large, ornate glass bowl in which the names of all female guests were collected. Slowly, one by one, five women were selected. Each stepped forward hesitantly, a mixture of excitement and apprehension on their faces as they approached the stage.
Evelyn greeted the selected dancers with a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. "Congratulations to our brave participants. Tonight’s challenge is a test of rhythm and balance and is not for the faint of heart."
She motioned to the stage floor, where five small platforms stood in a row. Each platform was a square, barely large enough to accommodate a single pair of feet, raised four inches above the ground. The stage floor around the platforms was covered in a carpet of gleaming, sharp needles, creating a dangerous landscape that shimmered menacingly under the club’s lights.
"The rules are simple," Evelyn explained, her tone matter-of-fact but laced with a hint of malice. "No spiked-laden shoes. Instead, you will each dance barefoot on one of these platforms. Your objective is to maintain your balance and rhythm. However, if you fall out of sync with the music or simply try to stand still, the platform will tilt slightly forward, making it harder for you to stay upright."
The crowd gasped softly, understanding the added challenge. The tilting platforms meant that staying still was not an option - constant, precise movement was required.
"If you lose your balance or step off the platform," Evelyn continued, "you’ll land on the needle carpet. Trust me, you don’t want that." Her eyes glinted as she spoke, the danger implicit in her words.
The five women exchanged nervous glances, the reality of the challenge sinking in.
"The dance will continue until two of you are eliminated," Evelyn said, her smile widening. "The last three standing will receive generous cash prizes. But for the two who fall… their fate lies with the Wheel of Misfortune. Some prizes may even be taken home with them."
The crowd signaled its approval with an affirmative applause. She gestured to the ominous wheel standing at the side of the stage. Its dark surface was divided into six segments, each labeled with a different punishment.
The five women stepped out of their shoes and onto their platforms, their bare feet gripping the smooth surface as they started to move as the music began - a slow, hypnotic melody that soon picked up into a fast-paced rhythm, demanding swift and precise movements.
At first, the dance was cautious. Each woman tested her balance, swaying gently to the beat. The platforms were just large enough to stand on, but the threat of the needle carpet loomed with every step. The tilting mechanism added another layer of difficulty, forcing the dancers to keep moving lest they lose their footing.
The music intensified, the beat driving the dancers to push harder. Their movements became more intricate, their feet shifting constantly to maintain balance. The crowd watched in breathless silence, captivated by the spectacle.
Raluca, one of the dancers, faltered first. She swayed too far to one side, the platform tilting under her weight. Her arms flailed as she tried to regain her balance, but it was too late. With a cry, she toppled forward, her bare feet landing painfully on the needle carpet. She gasped in pain, the sharp points pressing into her skin as the crowd winced in sympathy. She froze in place as she quickly realized that moving forward off of the needle carpet would require to lift one foot, thereby putting even more weight onto the other foot. And then stepping again into the needles. She looked over her shoulder to find her platform having tilted now 180° to reveal another needled surface instead. The island of safety she was looking for, was nowhere to be found.
The remaining dancers continued to sway and dance to the rhythm, observing Raluca as she finally screamed again as she lifted one bare foot up and then screams again as she put it down anew into the needles. One more step and she was off the carpet, collapsing to the ground, wrapping her hands around her feet to comfort herself.
The four dancers continued, their focus intense. The music’s tempo increased, and the platforms’ tilting became more frequent, testing their endurance and poise.
Minutes later, Nicoleta lost her rhythm. The platform tilted slowly, and she stumbled, her feet slipping off the edge and onto the needle carpet. She yelped as the needles pricked her skin, the pain clear on her face. The music stopped and the platforms stabilized. In another scream and under the roar of the crowd, Nicoleta made it off of the carpet.
Evelyn clapped her hands, drawing the crowd’s attention back to her. "And we have our two losers. Raluca and Nicoleta, step forward and face the Wheel of Misfortune."
The two women, still wincing from the pain of the needles, approached the wheel with visible trepidation. Evelyn’s smile was one of anticipation as she explained the stakes.
"The wheel holds six possible outcomes," she said, her voice almost gleeful. "The winners will go home with cash, but for Raluca and Nicoleta, their fate depends on this spin."
She gestured to the segments, explaining the prizes. "The infamous Belt of Shame - yes, my dear audience, the rumors are true. As you are aware from previous events, Abyss is absolutely okay with chastity as a punishment for those who can’t dance. Not all pain has to be physical. The Belt of Shame, one of our fine chastity belt, however is less permanent than what you might remember from the past. One prize is to be worn for one year, and another for two years. Naturally, Nicoleta and Raluca, should you spin for either of these, you will have no access to the key. Come back to Abyss anytime to enable us to help you with cleaning, hygiene and fit. After all, we are no monsters here, are we?" The crowd erupted in laughter.
"Next are the infamous Torment Boots - you’ll wear them for a week, and they’ll punish you with spikes if you remain still for too long."
Evelyn’s smile widened as she introduced the remaining three punishments:
"The Throne of Bass - We will dress you into an elegant evening dress made from the slickest latex and sit you in our special throne to overlook the party until the sun rises. The catch might be that the dress has no back side, leaving your behinds naked. The throne is covered in spikes connected to a microphone and they will pulse into your skin with the music’s bass."
"The Garments of Thorns - A delicate ensemble of lockable panties and bra, their inside lined with fine spikes, pressing lightly into your skin. You’ll wear it for a week, locked onto you, and it’ll remind you of your loss with every movement you take even when sitting or laying down. Don’t worry, they are crotchless to allow for your bodily functions."
"The Cursed Drink - A liter of collected semen, served in a pitcher and the finest crystal glass to drink from. A consolation prize, we don’t want our failed dancers go home on an empty stomach. Don’t finish it or throw up, and we are happy to supply you with a visit to the needle frame for the remainder of the night."
The crowd murmured in anticipation as Evelyn turned to Raluca. "You first, my dear."
Raluca hesitated but then spun the wheel. The clattering sound echoed through the club as the wheel spun, finally slowing and landing on the Throne of Bass. Raluca gasped, knowing her punishment, though painful, would be quite public.
"Raluca, my dear, you've spun a wild card tonight. It's time for your reward… or punishment, depending on how you look at it. A throne for a queen like you." She presented Raluca with an elegant evening dress made from the slickest latex. It shimmered under the club's strobe lights, a second skin that hugged Raluca's curves perfectly. The dress, however, had the promised unique feature; it was missing a backside, leaving Raluca's behinds naked and vulnerable. Evelyn put a silvery crown on Raluca’s head, decorated in more spikes, luckily these only pointed outwards. Raluca's heart pounded in her chest, a mix of fear and dread coursing through her veins. She suspected what was coming, but the thrill of the unknown was intoxicating. Evelyn guided her to the center of the stage, where the Throne of Bass has been wheeled in by the attendants and awaited her. It was covered in painful spikes, connected to the club's subwoofer systems, ready to pulse with the rhythm of the music. A spotlight shone onto it, it seems like a cutout against the dark backdrop of the stage. As Raluca sat, the spikes dug into her skin, a stinging pain that sent shivers down her spine.
Next, it was Nicoleta’s turn. With trembling hands, she spun the wheel. The crowd held its breath as the wheel slowed, finally landing on The Belt of Shame - for a year. Nicoleta’s face fell, the weight of her punishment evident. She was never expecting to come home from a New Year’s party with a chastity belt locked around her hips. It was evident that the crowd, and even Evelyn, was a bit disappointed that it was not to be worn for two.
Evelyn clapped her hands once more, her smile never fading. "Congratulations to our winners, and to our losers - enjoy your prizes. This is Abyss, after all, where the dance never truly ends."
With these words, the music slowly swelled back into the club, its heavy industrial bass setting the mood to dance away the night. A scream echoed out from the stage where with each pulse of the bass, a wave of pain followed into Raluca’s back, ass and thighs, a strange and perverse display of a squirming queen. Evelyn watched Raluca from the sidelines, a devious smile playing on her lips. She knew the game well, the thrill of the pain, the pleasure she had observing this. She could see the agony in Raluca's eyes, the way her breath hitched with each pulse of the bass, unable to find an acceptable position in her throne.
Nicoleta were helped off the stage. Both fates sealed by the Wheel of Misfortune. The remaining three dancers were awarded their cash prizes, though the memory of the challenge and the narrow escape from the wheel would linger.
As the party continued into the early hours of the morning, regularly accompanied by a cry from the throne on stage, the air buzzed with whispers of the next devious challenge. Abyss had claimed more victims, and the legend of the dark, twisted club grew ever darker.
In the lounge, a new picture was framed, next to Alina’s and Nadia’s, showing Nicoletta’s face and a plague with a timer:
NICOLETA
LOST AT BALANCE OVER ABYSS
CHASTITY
11 m, 30 d, 23:21