Losing Your Lunch (open)

A quick drink and a hot meal before departing wouldn't hurt. Having come back to Dagos just for a bit, the day was still young although his budget had taken a beating the past two days. Before heading back to Felici, a refreshing beer or perhaps wine would serve him well without getting him slobbering drunk. As much as he wanted to have another rousing night in the Red Light District, it wouldn't be good to have it turn out like the last one.

Twilight had set in and the city was looking onward at the azure-hued rust belt of night. That was when most of the tavern goers and party-rousers began to make their rounds. Nothing ever changed in the Red Light District, Aiden noted as he walked down a familiar street in search of someplace he'd never been before. His outfit was a bit wrinkled and ragged, though he could deal with that for now. People passed him by, either in joyous revelry or starting the night's first round of drinking before all the alcohol was gone. Some were already climbing onto the rooftops, setting up flags or causing a ruckus. The occasional sounds of crazed people and stray animals also started to wake up the denizens that most always came out after dark.

The familiarity of the stink and squealing were nostalgic in a way. He wouldn't want to live in the Slums again, but it was interesting to be reminded of where he came from. On the far left side, past where his normal hangout used to be, Aiden read along the lines of a sterling bar he hadn't visited before, bathed in crimson lights from the nearby neon sign. It was a curious place, lovingly decorated and not debased like the rest of the establishments he normally saw. It looked appealing and with a flick of a curious finger over his chin, he glanced over at the sign before walking inside past a steel swinging door to a rather well-lit and impressively organized room.

It was above average in fare for a bar, though Aiden had to note that the early night hadn't yet filled it to the brim with customers just yet and so he was one of the few who were going to sit at the bar. A couple young girls, guys, and women operated in the background while an interesting guy farther back where Aiden couldn't see clearly. He was greeted kindly by a waitress and happily waited for a few moments before he was seated and tapped the wood in waiting a bit impatiently for one of the serving girls or the acting bartender to take his order after running up and down the menu for just under a minute.

"I'll have a steak and.. I wanted to know if you have anything cheaper in wine."

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Note: Thought I'd take this one. Let me know if there is anything I can change cause my mojo is just getting back into the swing of things.

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Aiden took to moments of study. First, it was the menu he held in his hand with the varieties of goodies the bar had on order that seemed pretty enticing. Once the menu went down, Aiden concentrated mostly on his waiter's suggestions and poured over the preference for red wine once presented to him. "Au'Chateau de Rouge..." he mused in moderate tone. It was within the range of what he expected to pay for wine and one he'd never attempted to sample before. He gave the wine a once-over, reaching with his left hand to curdle the strands white hair over his eyes and sharing another glance with the young waiter before making his decision.

"Sounds like a fine compliment to me, a full body wine sounds good to me. I'll have a glass with the steak if you don't mine. And one more thing..." Aiden gestured towards his waiter's collar where the ex-hunter had noticed a slight reddish-brown Ketchup stain could be seen alongside the pristine blackened vest. In Aiden's observation, his waiter was looking a bit haggard and maybe a little stressed from something. Something also looked a little bit off about the young boy as Aiden happened to glance around as the boy darted away to grab the list of drinks.

"You might want to fix yourself. Looks like you're also a little disorganized tonight... you feeling a bit under the weather or did you get drunk or something last night?" he commented dryly with a thinly disguised snarky expression on his face. Aiden's eyes wandered away afterwards though, periodically coming back to take a glance at his waiter as he passed on by.

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Note: I know waiting 3 weeks wasn't what I originally planned and for that I must offer you my apologies. If you still wish to continue this, I can promise that I won't be disappearing out of thin air again. My only explanation can be that the holiday hubbub has drained me and a lot of my thoughts away from RPing. Hopefully we can breath new life into this :).

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Aiden faced his server with an unknowable expression. He scrutinized for a few minutes, taking in some information like the stain and the man getting drunk the night before. It made for good conversation and man was at least knowledgeable when it came to good food and wine. At least, Aiden came away with that kind of impression, though something else struck him as he observed the man and took a glance at the obviously exhaustive smile, much as if it had come from a bad stomachache.

The boy's teeth were also a bit more... elongated. It was barely noticeable and he certainly wasn't going to make any attempts to bring up or confirm his suspicions, although he would shoulder them for now and file it away in case the information one day became useful. It wouldn't be the first time he noticed someone trying to live an ordinary life, although it was happening with a jagged frequency these days. Some days he was lucky to see one or two and others he could pick up slight details here and there with a sharp sense reminiscent of old.

Once he got his steak, Aiden smiled gratefully as the server placed the plate in front. "Thank you" he replied as the waiter retreated and he happily tucked into a sip of the Rouge wine. The taste was instantly recognizable; a bit of the matured sweetness from the raspberries gave the drink a bit more depth of flavor and tickled the edges of his palate before he was ready to take a bite of the steak and cutting off a piece at a time while taking a sip or two of the Chateau every few bites to curb the heavy bite on the steak.

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Note: Kinda just made something up as I went along.

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Perhaps this evening wasn't going to be the peaceful bastion that Aiden had wanted after all. Just as he had been chowing down on a chunk of succulent and rare-cooked steak, the space outside began to ring and then the door burst wide open to allow in its noisy adherents from the cold.

Maybe some would kill to have Aiden's night and he himself might actually oblige. One moment he is eating in peace and musing about wine and next moment the restaurant turns into something out of a horny teenager's wet dream. Harassed by a bunch of employees from a strip club; the only thing missing from that was probably the lack of clothes. They weren't dressed in the particular fashion that you'd expect from a strip club. Some were dressed in fine, professional robes and suits while others entered in after the main bell with a much more risque taste.

Aiden didn't mind oogling a few of the women, but then the employees looked angry and were shouting hateful things. That got his attention and made him grit his teeth with disgust. Trash. Magiphobes and people believing they could step over another and laugh about it. The bartender he had talked to just a minute ago took a firm stance and his eyes had a glare of defiance in them. The ex-hunter grabbed for his saxe knives, though something else began to happen. A thin woman in front, dressed with a more provocative flare in azure purple robes, began to snap her fingers in rhythm.

For perhaps a couple seconds, Aiden had the thought that perhaps they were putting on a show of some sort, but then he got the hint of what was happening. A signal. One of the last two to enter in through the door had a backpack strapped to his waist like he was a school boy and he had the frame to fit the role. Aiden caught him in his snare before the snapping ended and the figure pulled up what looked to be a hose strapped to the underneath area and it looked like actively spewing out its invisible contents.

It wasn't long before he got the hint as the nearest patrons to the door started to suddenly... laugh. They gaggled a bit but then the laughter was louder than the sound of the vacuum. Aiden jumped backwards, watching as the couples and people around the room couldn't help themselves. The gas was going to fill the room, incapacitating everyone if left to themselves. By reflex, Aiden covered his mouth with his shirt as he jumped backwards. There wouldn't be anything convenient like a gas mask nearby, but his shirt or a box of tissue would suffice. After a moment of rushed thinking, Aiden quickly pulled open a few cabinets, searching for something to help while the bartender distracted the invaders.

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Note: Laughing Gas. Hardy harhar.

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Aiden eagerly took the proffered rag as the gas began to ramp up throughout the restaurant, incapacitating everyone in its wake. Out of the corner of his eye, Aiden spotted one of the men who had barged in suddenly and weirdly lose interest in him and the bartender. Instead, he walked over to a young boy who had been sitting with a girl at a nearby table and began eagerly locking their lips together.

The scene didn't disgust him, even though his eyes were already burning from the gas, but what were these people after? Were they just here to find and kill any Magi on the premises? Was this a robbery? His thoughts cut short, Aiden began to fend off the man and woman now rushing towards them with the intention of taking care of the last nuisances. There were more of them, though it seemed that this was the first probing charge. The man was close to Aiden's height, though he was thin and lithe like a woman quite oddly. There seemed to be little of note when it came to the actual female coming at him, but he had to keep his guard up or risk being outnumbered.

That didn't account for the bartender's ability which seemed to be quite a bit of courage. He nimbly blocked the man's punches before retaliating with a swift, strong roundhouse kick to his face. No sooner did he finish the movement, the woman looked to take advantage of that time delay to slash at him with an unseen sharp object clenched in a fist. Acting on instinct, Aiden reacted just enough to dodge and stay out of range. He spotted a chair on the outskirts of his peripheral vision and quickly made the decision to dance toward it, blocking or otherwise redirecting the woman's lightning switches. She seemed to have some experience in fighting as Aiden discerned from the way she was moving, though he was already calculating his next move.

She went for a lunge, lashing out with a knee to push him back and then spinning around to plunge the bladed object into his chest while he was off-balance. Aiden's facial expression changed to a bit of surprise from the maneuver, but that was soon replaced by his confident, snarky smirk from beneath the rag. He grabbed the chair and used that to regain his composure. It was perfect timing as the patron who had been occupying the chair also responded when Aiden kicked him violently and caused him to roll over. That was enough to trip up Aiden's last assailant as her foot came forward and then her body weight plunged forth, leaving her in a vulnerable position.

Aiden delivered one jarring elbow jab to her waist with enough force to push all the air from her lungs. She went limp, lying atop the very same patron who was still laughing out loud from the gas that was completely filling up the restaurant. The ex-hunter quickly returned his attentions back to the entrance of the restaurant where the rest of the men and women were still seemingly enjoying themselves or otherwise going about. He didn't know what they were after, but he wasn't about to let them have it.

There were fewer left now, but the place was still in dire chaos. The strip club employees could now have their way with anyone they wanted and if they weren't keeping a lookout, some were busy 'enjoying' themselves. Two of them seemed to be perfectly content helping themselves to the food like it was their own little playground. At least 3 of the group seemed to be the 'bodyguards' that were just there to be intimidating and they were quite fit for the role. One was a bald, heavily tan-skinned man with bulging muscles and blackened hair, enough to give even Aiden pause for a moment to prevent attacking recklessly. The other two were around mid-height and looked like they had enough experience to take on someone who could fight.

As Aiden was contemplating how he should approach the three imposing men across the room, the door jarred open once again and admitted one more invader. This one however was bigger... a LOT bigger. If Aiden was 6"3, the new entry was near 8 feet tall and he was bulky to boot. He had a full head of hair, but that was all Aiden could tell since his face was covered by a gas mask to blot out the toxin. At first, the giant surveyed the carnage and then suddenly started to argue with the woman in flair from before. Whatever was going on, he assumed they were either friend or he was another employee they had hired for this raid.

Whatever the case, with the two Aiden had taken out, that meant that the remaining invaders were down to 2 woman and still 8 men, not good odds for him. Aiden knew he was good and he had the confidence that he could easily take out the three bodyguards, but the giant was a different problem. It looked like he was going to need to be a bit more agile and consider things from a different angle. The only ones who had reacted quickly enough were him and the bartender from before and it seemed like the man was capable in taking care of himself for the time being.

Aiden decided he would focus his own efforts on evening the score as he started to put his plan into motion and charged the bodyguards.

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Note: OvO Thought I'd throw in a wild card. Now the weirdness is starting.

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