At the birthday stage, the party had officially exploded into a full-blown phenomenon. DJ Big Leo was in his element behind the wheels of steel, bouncing to the beat in his fresh jacket and sunglasses. Beside the stage, MC Sophie commanded the mic like she owned the universe.
Music pulsed. Lights swirled. And every guest swayed their hips from left to right, hypnotized by the rhythm.
Up front, Sophie made a playful swirl with her index finger—her silent cue. Leo caught it instantly. He scratched the discs, drawing the beat into a dramatic halt.
The music stopped.
The dance floor froze.
Heads turned.
A wave of curiosity rippled across the crowd.
MC Sophie grinned into the mic.
"Hello-o-o," she drawled. "It feels like people are tired already… isn't it?"
"NOOO, WE AREN'T!" the crowd roared in perfect unison.
"Great!" Sophie clapped. "Because the birthday girl is about to arrive—but first… who's ready for Round Two before she hits the stage?!"
A thunderstorm of applause and cheers exploded through the air.
"Oh, that's beautiful indeed," Sophie said with a wink. "But before the DJ scratches it out again… the chefs are already here with refreshments."
She pointed dramatically as uniformed chefs and waiters stepped in from the side paths, carrying silver trays stacked with colorful snacks, sparkling juices, and fancy mocktails.
"What do I say, party people? Grab what you can for yah'self!"
The crowd hollered with excitement and dove toward the refreshment zones.
Sophie turned back toward Leo. "DJ Big Leoooo… take it over!"
With a grin, Leo spun the next track—a high-tempo Afro-fusion banger that lit the dance floor on fire once again.
The wildness was back.
---
🎀 Above, from the Balcony
Ling stood with her friends—Mei and Ning—watching the madness unfold below. Her pastel-pink dress shimmered under the chandelier light as she leaned on the polished railing, a smile tugging at her lips.
"Those two are awesome together," Ling said softly.
"Indeed they are," Mei agreed, sipping from a champagne flute of apple soda. "Their vibing energy is super cool."
"Are they twins or something?" Ning asked with a raised brow.
"I don't know," Ling said, shrugging. "But they do move like they share a brain."
Just then, Xiu came jogging over, tablet in hand, her silver dress catching the lights like a blade.
"Hey, Ling!" she called out, catching everyone's attention. "Your dad just sent a message."
Ling blinked. "What is it now?"
Xiu handed over the sleek device. "He says he wants to see how the party's going."
"Yaaay! It's time to go live on air!" Mei exclaimed like a little girl, spinning in place.
Ling sighed and clicked her tongue. "Ugh. Typical Dad."
But she took the tablet anyway. There was no escaping Dr. Wong's watchful eye.
---
🤖 Inside Dr. Wong's Secret Tech Chamber
Grook, the Zhao family's AI robot, stood tall and still like a sentinel in front of a vast array of wall screens, each showing feeds of security footage and camera angles from the estate.
In front of it, a pentagon-shaped digital table hummed with soft pulses of light. Its glowing blue screen displayed complex data streams, rhythmic pulses of biometrics, and surveillance grids.
BEEP!
A high-pitched notification rang out.
Grook tapped the table. A luminous hologram rose from the surface, flickering into the shape of Ling's face.
"𝑯𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒐 𝑮𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒌."
"𝙷𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘 𝙻𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙻𝚒𝚗𝚐."
"𝑪𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝑫𝒂𝒅, 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆?"
"𝙾𝚏 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜𝚎. 𝙲𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚊𝚠𝚊𝚢."
"𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌𝒔, 𝑮𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒌."
"𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚕𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎, 𝙻𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙻𝚒𝚗𝚐."
The hologram vanished. A ripple moved through the glass table as screens began syncing to the mansion's main cameras—viewing the celebration in real time.
*******************************
🚔 BONUS SCENE: Highway Powerplay – En Route to the Future
A convoy of U.S. government vehicles sped down a restricted highway, flanked by helicopters overhead and black SUVs on either side. The motorcade glided with military precision—no noise, no traffic, just momentum.
All this were heading to Fort A.P. Hill – Caroline County, Virginia for the AI weapons testing program. The event was going to broadcasted live on air globally.
Inside one of the armored vehicles, the newly appointed Minister of State Security, Dr. Wong, sat in silence. He wore a sharp black suit, gloves, and dark glasses.
Next to him, the President of the United States, Marshall Grant, sat reviewing documents. Behind them, General Holtz quietly scanned an encrypted brief on a holographic tablet.
Dr. Wong tapped his own device. The screen lit up—revealing a live stream of the birthday party back at his mansion.
He swiped through multiple angles—viewing the courtyard, the buffet lines, the dance floor. Then he paused.
His gaze narrowed.
On screen was MC Sophie, energizing the crowd like a young star.
He zoomed in slightly.
Then panned over to the DJ deck—where Leo threw his arms up to hype the crowd.
Dr. Wong leaned forward.
"They remind me of someone," he murmured, the words curling through the cold air like a ghost.
His eyes lingered, deep in thought—until the vehicle turned sharply and the live feed faded into static.
To Be Continued.....