The Creature goes looking for someplace to eat. He's in the mood for a big hamburger, and asks the nearest local for the best hamburger joint in God City.
Dr Rotwang!
Quazarn, Best Of All The Guys, eyes The Creature disdainfully.
"Hamburger? Hamburger, you say? Humph." He cocks an eyebrow. "Hamburger. Well...Rollo the Entropian makes hamburgers -- 'course he makes rats on a stick and some kind of green, slimy liquor, too, so you're on your own.
"Pardon me," Quazarn then says, filled with sudden regret. "I'm afraid I may have been kind of unpleasant just now. Here...let me take you to -- I'll take you to Greebloid's. You can get a great burger at Greebloid's. And I'll pay."
[Q's Psychometric Morbidity has kicked in, and he's fighting it. I didn't roll it, I just decided.]
Coffee
Sure, Rollo the Entropian makes hamburgers, but he also makes beefburgers and that's what Zarko is eating. He's sitting at his usual place toward the end of the bar, not too far from the corner booth where the Honchos of the local crime syndicate make their social headquarters. (He has been useful to them in the past, in an errand-boy sort of way, and hopes to increase his usefulness someday, but they seem to be ignoring him.)
wulfgar
Creature pays the burger attendant a few credits and starts chomping away on his double bacon mushroom burger and curly fries. Being frozen in the arctic sure builds up an appetite.
Dr Rotwang!
"No, no, no," Quazarn insists. "I said I've got it." He stops The Creature from paying and hands over credits of his own.
"Why are we at Rollo's? I tried to warn you about --" and he points at a passing doxy, legs up to here, walking past with a fried rat on a stick. "Well, the food, not her."
Quazarn slumps over and sighs. "I wanted to go to Greebloid's." He takes a moment to regard The creature. "Don't talk much, huh? Yeah..." He leans back in his chair and drapes his elbows over the back of it. "I wouldn't talk to me, either." He sighs, and Vanth presses down harder upon him.
Rondo
Buck's at the bar...cold beer in hand and his helmet on the table. Turning slowly around to eye the doxy he spots the party. He takes his frosty one over and with his hand in his pocket, saunters up. "Where's the fun, boys? Can I buy anyone a cold one?"
"Here bud...looks like you could use this," he hands his beer to Quazarn and starts looking for the doxy waitress to flag another one for himself.
Dr Rotwang!
Quazarn looks at the beer as though it were a foot-long centipede, humming to itself and flossing its teeth. "I -- um --"
He sniffs the beer to see if it has Buck Spit on it. "Er...thanks, pal. Say!" he says, suddenly perking up -- and recognizing Buck as a potential friend to attach to. "I'm Quazarn. This," he says, wiggling a thumb at The Creature, "is a very hungry Frankenstein who doesn't talk much. That's a nice helmet. Who're you?"
Rondo
"Hey, Quazarn!.....Creature....nice to meet you both...Buck Pulsar...bored space cadet....." Buck spins a chair around and sits down. "Ah, the helmet!...yea, you won't find another one like this 'un." Buck drifts in thought for a second scratching his chin and thinking about the Academy and another time period....long ago...
"Say, I've been looking for some guys like you. Any chance you guys would want to follow-up on a little rumor I've heard going around? Seriously...I wanna make some scratch! This place is boring."
Dr Rotwang!
Quazarn grins at Rondo. "The ship?"
Rondo
"Yea! I heard that 'un too!" Buck grins and winks at Quazarn. "You know, we might oughta work up to that...there's money to be made right here...in this greasy spoon. I got a little plan that involves making some dough. If we had the money after this gig, we might have enough to hire enough henchmen to take that ship," Buck starts spinning a Gold Credit on the tabletop...." You know, that thing might be pretty stock fulla monsters, and we'd stand a hell of a better chance with some high end ray guns and a gang to back us up."
Dr Rotwang!
Quazarn narrows his bright, intelligent eyes at Buck. "What are you proposing, mister Pulsar?" he says, conspiratorially. It is very, very obvious to anyone observing Quazarn that he is astonishingly intelligent, charismatic and, above all, cool.
Max
The bargirl, a comprehensively tattooed Vulkin, sees Buck's raised hand and saunters over. "Don't know where you fellahs got the idea I was a doxy," she smirks knowingly, "But is there anything else I can help you with? Try and stick with what's on the menu."
Dr Rotwang!
It is very, very obvious to anyone observing Quazarn that he is astonishingly intelligent, charismatic and, above all, cool.
Sizing him up with a glance so piercing it's like she can read his mind, the Vulkin arches a single eyebrow in disbelief, tapping the menu impatiently.
Rondo(Hey guys...watch what yer thinkin!...ESP chick?)
Buck holds a G.C. between his gloved finger and thumb, "Problems at this burger joint lately eh? What kinda stuff has been going on around here? Any scoop? And can I have a round of beers for my buddies?" He's gonna grin at her, wink and waggle that Ronald Coleman moustache a bit.. and try throwin' down with the Seduce for some answers (I'm rollin....I gotta 58%...."03"...whoo hoo! Off to a greeeat start.....well, if it's worth anything).
Dr Rotwang!
Quazarn eyes the menu disinterestedly, then hands it to her with a shrug. "Something select, yet proletariat."
Max
Looking Buck square in the face, the Vulkin bargirl purses her lips, cocks her hips saucily, and shoots him down: "Problems? You look like you might be a problem, flyboy. Pity about the moustache, though."
"He must hit his head a lot, huh? The helmet?" She says, turning to Quazarn. "Select yet proletariat? I'm sure you'll love the goxburger." Staring pointedly at the Remulaki's prodigiously bald head, she adds, "It might even put hair on your...chest. I'll bring it right up."
At the bar, a stout dwarfess drops her grog with a crash, swooning at the power of Buck's moustache.
[The Vulkin Psi-Resisted, so your critical got diverted. Careful where you point that thing.]
rondo
Buck grins and then laughs a bit. He looks away from the waitress no problem, and says, "Watch that goxburger...she's bringing it up, but you might 'bring it up' later1....Okay, fair enough miss...." and he gives her a little wink. Then he looks over to the stout dwarfess and gives her a shiny smile. "Suppose I better stick to my airships," he grins to the waitress and then gives up on it. He looks over to the Creature, "Hey, buddy...don'tcha ever say anything?" ( I hadn't had a chance to look around till about now, but wondering: what's the scene behind the bar?)
Max
The dwarfess giggles and turns away, blushing. Behind the the bar a wide-mouthed lizard man grins back at Buck with a mouthful of chisel-like fangs. The bar is well-stocked, lacking nothing that a connoisseur of bottom shelf booze could want. To one side a swinging door leads to the kitchen.
The place is mostly quiet. A trio of goblin bike messengers loiter at the bar waiting for their next run. Late lunchers are scattered here and there, and loud barks of laughter rise up from a table of rough men in the corner -- street soldiers in the Honcho crime family, you suspect. Near them at the end of the bar a lone planetary ape hunches over his burger.
For an instant, Buck has a premonition of a robodroid cowboy, but it passes.2
Presently the Vulkin bargirl strolls out with Quazarn's goxburger. "The working man's better burger, rekilled fresh this morning. Anything else, boys?"
Dr Rotwang!
"Yes, miss. Should I have any trouble with this goxburger, is there a way that I can contact you about it later? Say, after your shift?"
[Quazarn is trying to seduce her, too -- or at least, get her to like him. He really needs to be liked! I'm rolling -- HOLY CRAP I GOT A 09. Even with my...what is it for Remulakis, -25%? Anyway, that's a base Seduce of 78%, so...you tell me.]
Rondo
Buck leans over to Quaz, "Hey bud...I'll be right back, I'm gonna check something out." He gets up and wanders casual over to the bar and the dwarfess...he sort of squats down and looks at her, "Would the one as pretty as a dainty flower care to let me in on some information? I'm new to around these parts, and I sure would like to find out a few things." He, sort of, half bows...smiling gently.
Max
Smiling indulgently the Vulkin bargirl bends over the table close to Quazarn, stretching her long arms around him from behind. Before he can think how to react, she picks up his knife and fork and cuts his burger into bite size pieces.
"There now. You think you can manage that without any trouble, lucky strike?" she croons, wiping off her hands on her apron. A chain of monkeys tattooed on her left bicep seems to flip him the bird en masse, but she winks and offers her hand. "I'm T'Pixeleen. Pixie. And you're cute, but where's the logic?"
Rondo
Buck...wanders casual over to the bar and the dwarfess...he sort of squats down and looks at her, "Would the one as pretty as a dainty flower care to let me in on some information? I'm new to around these parts, and I sure would like to find out a few things." He, sort of, half bows...smiling gently.
The dwarfess merely giggles, turning a shade of red as brilliant as molten iron in the forges of her forefathers.
Max
[GAME-RELATED: I'm fine with our pace so far -- your child-like attempts at Seducing Pixie have been most amusing. But since you and the Doc have been the most enthusiastic players so far don't be shy about moving things along -- the others can catch up when they catch on. Till then I'm ok if you choose to leave them here in the bar.
[Anyway, found a damn near perfect match for how I envision T'Pixeleen, here. Pigtails and everything, and I swear when I named T'Pixeleen I had no idea she had a doppelganger out there with the same nickname!3
[While searching for punk girls with full sleeve tattoos I also found this cutie (the picture is demure enough, but the url is not work-safe, FYI). Jack Skellington on one arm and a freaking skeksis on the other? Whoah.]
Dr Rotwang!
Quazarn smiles appreciatively at Pixie. "Thank you, miss," he says, "I think this will be splendid." He makes a mental note of her name, location and apparent skills, and having had a good look at her (which he hadn't had before), files her under "useful contact" instead of "hottie."
Waiting for the unpalatable female to walk away, he waits for Buck to return from his, um, intel-gathering excursion.
[This isn't really related to the game at all, but I'll mention it anyway: I think that one of the most tragic and horrifying things that an otherwise-attractive girl can do to herself is to shove ink under her skin. In other words, tattoos barf me out.]
Rondo
Buck's getting too weird a vibe from this bunch. Besides, he really woulda liked to have hit it off with the inked-up honey, so he's feeling kinda dejected...his vanity is easily bruised...he moseys back to the table. "Hmm...I don't know boys...this place may not be worth messing with. Maybe we should just get a crew together and look for that so-called 'Monster Magnet' ship."
[I'll refrain from ever posting a picture of me or my wife online...we got enough ink to keep you barfing for some time to come Doc!)
Max
[Sorry, Doc, I'll tag any future links IMCT if the Image linked Might Contain Tattoos!
[I'm unaligned myself on the topic, having no pressing urge to have anything permanently inked on myself but no particular objections to tats on other people. But I am vehemently pro pigtails and Dark Crystal. ]
wulfgar
With a monstrous gulp, the Creature finishes his burger and then licks his chops with his stitched together tongue.
"Burp."
In a guttural monotone he groans in the direction of the waitress, but he's loud enough for anyone else nearby to hear:
"Bigby......Smalls.........where....is.....he? "
Max
The entire bar seems to flinch at the grating rumble of the Creature's voice. The seemingly unflappable Pixie trips and drops a platter loaded with full beer glasses, but they stay upright and unspilled through some mysterious force.
The other patrons go back to their drinks and food. The noisy table in the corner is quiet for a moment, then their laughter resumes more loudly than ever.
[Oh, and I'll need Consume Alien Food rolls from the Creature and Zarko. Quazarn too, unless you can give me a good reason why he isn't eating the burger he just ordered.]
wulfgar
Creature Rolls:
Consume Alien (rated 2%) Rolls 85%
Unpleasant Order (which would seem to apply since he ordered the food! HA) (rated 84%) Rolls 22%
Rondo
Buck grabs the edge of the table, summoned out of his bored stupor, "BIGBY SMALLS!? He says something, and it's 'BIGBY SMALLS!?' Who is Mr. Smalls, Creature??"
Buck is grinning but shocked. :0
Dr Rotwang!
[I rolled a 50.]
wulfgar
Creature pulls an object out his pocket and shows it to Buck and Quazarn. After a moment of puzzlement, they realize it is a small piece of a bathroom stall dividing wall, which the Creature apparently ripped loose. Written in sharpie on the fragment is:
Bigby Smalls Bigtime Brawl
No blades or guns. Just fists and money to be won.
Think you got the stuff to be tops?
Try your hand, we'll clean up yer blood with some mops
Slightly lower and in different handwriting it says:
Darryl's Mom is hawt
and still further down and yet another set of handwriting:
ICUP
Dr Rotwang!
"I-cup?" Quazarn says. "Oh, dear. How would she even walk?"
rondo
Buck says, "Hmm, lemme see that..." he looks a bit closer. "Brother!" he says to Creature, "You indeed GOT THE GOODS! Lets go make some dough!" and with that he's calling over Pixie..."Gorgeous! You know where we can find Mr. Smalls? I'm the manager for 'The Creature Feature' here....we have some biz with this guy, Mr. Smalls..."
Coffee
Max
[Oh, and I'll need Consume Alien Food rolls from the Creature and Zarko. Quazarn too, unless you can give me a good reason why he isn't eating the burger he just ordered.]
[And here I am at work, without my dice! Don't worry; I won't let it happen again. And I'll get you that roll tonight.]
Zarko was just listening to the general conversation until Smalls came up. That sounds like something he could get into. He'll start to edge closer to the group.
Coffee
Okay, my Consume Alien Food is... 03. (Gulp).
And I roll ... 03! Holy cow! I made it!
[I can't believe that happened, but I'm keeping the roll. Of course, when I really need a good roll, I'll blow it spectacularly...]
--------------------------------------
1 Buck alludes to a rumor he'd heard about the escalating rivalry between the burger joints of God City, including a bunch of people getting sick from Rollo's food. Why he wasn't more earnest in relating this info is something you'd have to take up with him.
2 Another player was slated to join the group. He'd even rolled up his character, a robodroid cowboy I called The Droid with No Name, but he stopped posting on the RPG Site entirely just as the PbP was starting up. Falling out with Pundit I think?
3 She was named after a Steely Dan song. "Rave on my sleek and soulful cyberqueen -- Pixeleen"
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