Dubai

You wake up to Bruno's voice on the plane's intercom.

"John, this is your captain speaking," Bruno pauses for a chuckle and you also hear women giggling in the background, "We're about to make our descent into Dubai. Please get dressed and be properly attired by the time we disembark. Thank you and I hope you've enjoyed flying with me."

You rub your eyes and get up, noticing that Sarah's warm body is no longer in the bed with you. You crawl out of bed and flick the lights on to see your clothes neatly pressed and hanging on a hook on the door, and you get dressed. You notice that Carla added a blue silk tie to your ensemble and you put it on too.

After that, you leave the sleeping cabin and head back to the main cabin. There, you see Nazreen, Karolína, and Sarah, all dressed in conservative pant suits and wearing headscarves. They're scattered around the large cabin, all seated and either reading a magazine or on their phones. Karolína and Sarah look up at you when you enter, before returning to their own activities, while Nazreen waves to you and beckons for you to sit next to her.

"You ladies look formal," you remark as you sit down.

"Oh, it's Dubai, we have to keep up with appearances. Just because we're with Bruno and he knows powerful people, doesn't mean we can just violate societal norms. Oh, look, we're descending. You should buckle up," Nazreen says and you do so, gazing out the window as the plane starts going lower. You had never been to Dubai before and when you had first gotten the magic rings, especially the one that allows you to teleport anywhere, you thought you would have traveled more. Instead, now you're here by chance, at the whimsy of a flamboyant billionaire. Once the plane lands and comes to a stop, Bruno returns to the cabin to join you and the 3 ladies, still looking impeccable in his white suit.

"You look refreshed," he says to you as the women gravitate towards him. Karolína and Sarah each grab one of his arms, while Nazreen seems content to stick with you.

"Never slept better. You still look like a million bucks," you respond.

Bruno laughs. "I have my secrets. Come on, I have some business to take care of, I hope you don't mind tagging along. I promise you it'll be worth your while."

"And we can talk about Carmen on the way back?" you ask. All Bruno does is grin and wink, then he opens the plane door.

It's no surprise that Bruno is well connected with very important people in Dubai, and there's a limousine waiting outside on the tarmac. It takes the 5 of you into the city, making its way to a lavish building that you presume is some sort of palace. A dozen men are there to greet Bruno and he introduces the 3 women as his assistants while referring to you as a business associate. Apart from the many greetings and introductions, you stay silent and observe. From what you can gather, at least 3 of the men are princes or royalty of some kind, while the rest are also senior government officials, and they bring you all to a big conference room where even more people join the group and they start to discuss their business with Bruno. There's about 40 people on their side of the table, while Bruno sits alone. Apparently they're sorting out the details of a weapons and technology sales and you sit against the wall beside the 3 women and behind Bruno as he negotiates the terms. After about 2 hours of discussions and haggling, Bruno and the men sign an agreement that's worth billions of dollars. Hands are shook and pictures are taken, and you think the meeting is over, when one of the princes announces that you'll all be heading to the basement to celebrate the deal.

As you follow, Bruno pulls you aside. "Impressive, huh?" he says.

"Yeah. It's interesting to see the deals being made. So what now? Drinks in the basement like high school kids?"

Bruno laughs and slaps you on the back. "Well, there will be drinks too. And gambling, and **** if you're into that, and dancing and entertainment. These guys appear uptight publicly, but they party hard behind the scenes."

"So the girls are... entertainment?" you ask.

"Oh, yes. It's customary to exchange gifts. Like how you bring beer to a friend's party, except I brought entertainment for them. Don't worry, they'll have some exquisite women for us 2 too, but the ladies that came with us are going to be spending most of their time with the princes and their guys. Don't worry, they're well compensated. Just enjoy yourself tonight, eh?" Bruno then leaves your side to return to chatting up one of the princes, while you see that, indeed, all 3 women you had arrived with are now flirting with your esteemed hosts.

The basement is, well, not like a basement. In fact, it's a giant hall with magnificent columns and expensive furniture, and it resembles a Las Vegas casino, with all sorts of gambling tables, bars, and lounging areas. There are even 2 mid-sized indoor pools and several stripper poles, where you see scantily clad women dancing on. A big group of women, a lot of them dressed like belly dancers, greet you all, and start pulling everyone in different directions. Bruno wanders off with 4 women vying for his attention, while you see the women you had come with have the opposite effect, each with several men around them. While the princes were polite and formal upstairs, once now here, it's almost like they flipped a switch to start misbehaving, as you see they grope the women brazenly, sneaking in kisses and making crude remarks. Nazreen and Sarah seem to be enjoying the attention, while Karolína appears to be less warm, but she goes along with the program anyway. Bruno must be paying them a lot.

You find yourself as the last person left behind near the entrance of the basement, when a woman in red approaches.

"You must be an important man to be here," she says with a mysterious smile. One of the straps of her dress is hanging off her shoulder, exposing her bronze skin, and the exotic looking woman is effortlessly sexy.

"I guess I am," you remark, feeling your cheeks redden from the attention. "I'm John."

"Elodie." She shakes your hand, before turning around, still holding it. "Come, let's have a drink."

"You look familiar. Have I seen you somewhere before?" you ask as you let her lead you away.

"I'm a French actress, but you've probably seen me in some movies or American TV shows. Come, the night is young."