The first in a series. The narrative centers around a photojournalist invited to an alien planet ruled by humanoid androids. She first spends her time with the royal family and upper class, in their oppulent penthouses at the top of sky scrapers made of crystal. It isn't until later that she finds the citizens of the metropolis living in complete disarray, quite literally falling apart, unable to afford to reconstruct their being, but unable to free their mind from this existence in any type of human death.
