An Empress in relaxed dark-blue trousers and white high-platform sneakers waits at the bus stop, unaware of the snail resting just beside her right foot — entirely at the mercy of her next step. Without warning, her elevated sole comes down squarely over it. Under the weight of her platform, it collapses instantly, pressed into a faint smear beneath her shoe. She never even realizes. A subtle trace remains along the underside of her sneaker, but she continues waiting calmly, focused only on the arriving bus.