The majority of the buildings in Hollowgrid are the massive megacomplexes that span entire city blocks, separated only by wide streets. For that reason, the side alleys in the district were different from the usual. Most went straight through the buildings, acting as a sort of lobby connected to some staircases, but for some people, they were nothing more than shortcuts.
Another thing that differentiated them from conventional side alleys was the presence of ceilings. One could argue that it made no difference, but with how dark things tended to get at night, having the light from above was quite important, especially with how some of the buildings lacked maintenance.
Dante chose a random building to deal with his rat problem. It was unexpectedly deserted, perfect for an ambush. Just as he crossed half the distance between him and the first set of stairs, he heard the sound of footsteps hurrying to catch up with him.
