The neon signs buzzed and flickered like dying fireflies in the deepening twilight. The rain had finally stopped, but the streets still glistened with the remnants of the storm, each puddle reflecting the fractured lights of the city. Max moved through the back alleys with the silence of a shadow, his coat pulled tight against the chill that permeated the air. The city was waking up from its stormy slumber, but it was a restless awakening filled with the whispers of danger and the scent of fear.