one night of magic rush

[blyat]

WHO: Cain, Prompto, Hideki Maeda, and you!
WHERE: The popular Asylum club.
WHEN: Night of October 26.
WHAT: Cain and Prompto's joint birthdays!
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Beyond drinking/smoking, general wild party behavior, and fake friendship, there shouldn't be much. Will update as needed.


[Set deep in the downtown of New Amsterdam's entertainment district is Asylum, arguably the most popular club in the city. The exterior is cool steel beams and tasteful futuristic architecture with a long line down the corridor, suited bouncers posed at the entrance all armed with a virtual guest list. Its interior is fashioned with bright, colorful lighting dynamic to the music of the infamous DJ Semicolon, high ceilings and acoustic sounds to lend that feeling of a constant full-body hum. Any partygoers on the guest list for this event will be funneled toward the VIP section. They will have received an invitation a few days prior via their Cooltalk profiles. Jason is specifically blacklisted, sorry buddy.

DANCE YOUR HEART OUT. Nearly impossible to book without deep pockets or wide-reaching connections, Semicolon is at the top of their game mixing popular contemporary hits with Whitney Houston's classics. From song to song, Semicolon provides a unique and talented contrast of the slow to the energetic, so no matter your dancing style, you'll find something to move you on the dance floor.

DROWN YOUR... LIVER. Courtesy of the party's host, Hideki Maeda, the VIP section's private bar will provide an ever-flowing river of your favorite expensive high-proof alcohol. Pick your poison.

CHILL OUT. Tired on your feet from too much dancing, or just need a break from the packed atmosphere? There are plenty of comfortable areas where you can relax and take it easy until you're ready to get back out there. The lights around this area cycle through different colors in reflection of Semicolon's performance set, so a slower song might lend toward romantic shades of red while a faster-paced song is brighter blue.

SMOKE, EAT & MINGLE. Asylum will be serving real, fresh meat at this party, so enjoy that luxury while it lasts. There is also an outdoor area with a beautiful view over the city itself if you want to take your vape pen out there for a smoke, just get some air, or see who's around for a chat.]

Comments

[forcevisions]

Is it bad to turn up empty-handed?

[ Rey looks suddenly concerned. ]

Should I go get something?

[blyat]

[Marveling, gaze turned out once more over their surroundings. The nature snares most of his fascination, because it's nothing like he's seen in New Amsterdam, not even the same as it was in the dreams. He watches a cool breeze flutter through the leaves of a nearby snatch of trees. There are so many, and they must go on for miles. He's never seen so many at once this close.

With one leg thrown over the bike, he settles in behind, arms immediately cinching around Abel's waist to tuck himself up against the warm line of his back. And that feels good too. A stray thought has him wondering if they can fuck in VR, but... first thing's first. Cain's feet find the indicated rest.]

Everything feels so real. How'd you make something like this?

[998]

[oh....no...rey....he shakes his head.]

I'm sure they'd rather have you here. You could aways find them nameday gifts after the party, if it's important to you.

[he's going to have to find one for cain. surely sansa can make him a better shirt........another grim smile.]

Prompto was surprised we brought these, too. I know nothing of the traditions of this world. But it didn't feel right to me, not bringing anything.

[adsero]

[Abel is pulling on his gloves as Cain settles in behind him. It does feel good, almost like Abel tooled around with what he felt like whenever they touched. Safe, electric, warm, right-- the fact that they're holding hands in Cain's bed probably only adds to the experience, and Abel has to take a moment to lean gently backwards into Cain's arms and enjoy his work. This program isn't built for extracurricular activity so to speak... but Abel has always wanted to fuck on a beach.]

The answer is both fascinating and a little terrifying, truth be told. [Abel finishes putting on his gloves.] How we interact with our environments outside of VR is based entirely on signals that our brain receives and processes-- sight, touch, smell.

But brains aren't perfect. They can be tricked by things like anesthetics for example. Anesthetics don't prevent pain, they prevent the signal from reaching the brain, and so in essence we don't feel it. All of this is piggybacking on the implant, which sends signals to our brains that we're reading text or viewing an image. I've only made that more complex so you can not only see the images, but I can tell your brain what it's like to feel the breeze here, or smell the morning air. It's all signals and chemistry.

But what you feel, how you're reacting to all of this-- that's entirely in your control. [Abel kickstarts the motor and it immediately starts with a crack and growl, settling into an eager rumble under them. When he'd driven them in New Tokyo, Abel had still been emotionally struggling and unable to find true joy in anything. But here, something certainly shifts. He drums his fingers around the handles and leans in, ready to tear up the hill.]

Say when.

[blyat]

[He's listening, he swears he is, but it's easy to get caught up in the spell of illusion. The scientific explanation is simple enough to understand. There are signals sent by the brain in one's perception of the world, and the simulation is tricking those signals to interpret something else. The leather of his clothes isn't real, neither are Abel's gloves, or the warm growl of the engine between their legs, but his brain doesn't know that. It feels real.

Now he can see why Fitz said there was some danger to simulations like this. It almost reminds him of the dream world, in an abstract way. He steers his thoughts from that bleaker avenue and focuses on the present with a firm squeeze around Abel's hips. His cheek tucks in behind Abel's head, mouth close to his ear.]

So, this extra-tight leather outfit you put on me... [Abel won't be able to see the shape of his smirk, but maybe he'll feel it pressed to his skin. In a lower growl,] Ready.

[adsero]

[It's true that Abel asked himself several times if he was doing them both a favor by making the environment so close to the real thing, and so idyllic in nature. He'd read things about people beginning to prefer VR to the real world, troubling studies, but Abel told himself that it was just a gift. Just something to tide them over until they were home. It wasn't going to get out of hand, it was a toy.]

[A really, really great toy, he thinks as Cain's leather-clad thighs squeeze him. He bites his lip and presses his hips back just a little.] Programmer's privilege. [So he snuck in a few treats for himself into this gift, he's only human. He's about to tell Cain he can change it if he likes, but that feeling of lips against his ear kills that practical sentence immediately. He can definitely still drive a motorcycle, he can do this, Cain in tight leather won't kill all of his faculties.]

[Hopefully.]

[He kicks the stand back and they take off. Abel focuses on the road though the motions are almost automatic now. The simulation matches the road inch-for-inch, and he's driven it enough that it's a meditation. He's not speeding, letting Cain take in all of the scenery he seemed so fascinated by, occasionally whipping them tightly around a corner or leaning hard into a turn. They won't slide out of course, in addition to Abel being a capable driver the program parameters simply don't allow it. Abel could drive with both eyes closed and they would be fine.]

Look right! [Abel shouts at one point as they fly by a space in between homes that frames a beautiful vista, just beginning to be touched by the sun.]

[mercurio]

[prompto's quick to pick up the camera from the tray, his face a mix of awe and surprise. falling back on the cushions, he's looking at the camera over with the eye of someone who has definitely seen this around but could have never dreamed of getting something like it at all.]

This is a Lux Ti1 D900! Dude! This is too awesome!

[it even has film! that's too high quality for a gift?!]

Are you sure I can keep this? [holy shit] Cain, it has film! [!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[wiccant]

( if billy were any less tipsy, he'd probably be right there beside abel. as it is, he keeps an eye on him, watches how stiff he moves. he doesn't know this guy well, yet. but he gets it. the nervousness, the--not wanting eyes on him judging him. so billy changes tactics.

turns into abel and wraps arms loose around his shoulders, leans in close. )

Close your eyes. Don't focus on any of them, focus on yourself. Dancing isn't about being perfect, it's about letting go.

[forcevisions]

That's kind of you.

[ At least, she thinks it is. But it's also one of those things where she remembers there's a lot for her to learn. She highly doubts that's an unusual thing--Jon is, on the whole, better socialized than she is, even if his culture gap is severe around technology. ]

What are they? [ She peeks into one of the boxes. ]

[998]

[he raises his eyebrows.]

Waffles. With lemon curd. You haven't been to Sweetwaffel?

[liege waffles, to be specific. he fishes one out and offers it to rey.]

Try one.

[forcevisions]

Never. [ Well, surely Prompto can't eat all of those himself. She accepts it, which makes her fingers sticky instantly, but she's not overly concerned with that. The taste is sweet, but not cloying like some of the desserts she's tried. She sucks some of the curd off her thumb and nods eagerly, then says around a mouthful: ] It's so good!

004

[selfimage]

[ it's toward the end of the night that Loki arrives, lingering like an onlooker rather than a party goer. this isn't the first time that he's creeped around a party (though it's usually his own parties that he tends to exhibit this behavior), and it most likely won't be the last. this place isn't a place to let go—instead Loki approaches everything with some wariness. the party is at the end of its last upswing when he finds Prompto.

he doesn't want to make his face too seen. even being here he's rolling the dice. ]

Hello, there. Is this generally what mortals do in celebration of their day of birth?

[ despite all of his caution, he took advantage of the drink. ]

[verselet]

[A smile gone more skewed, a silent assent to that declaration: Well, you're definitely not gonna get that here. It’s true, and he couldn’t agree more — all the more reason why V attending these kind of gatherings will be a rarity rather than a new habit.

V almost shrugs, but instead opts for a chin to rest on the heel of his palm. Black tattoos peek out from beneath the cuff of dark sleeves, coiling up the back of his hand. The former question alone reveals Cain’s own role as a Displaced, though perhaps V already knew as much before coming here, courtesy of his discussions with Prompto.]

He found me during the Halloween festivities. Freshly stumbling about.

[So yes, definitely one of their number.]

[verselet]

Then may those minutes be ever expedient for you. If it's any consolation, though, a party like that-

[And so he picks up his cane, indicating briefly at the throng of people within, emblematic of the general vibe of a celebration like this one: loud, vibrant, bone-jarring, with drinks spilled and dance rhythms blaring.]

-is one that'll tire out even the most experienced party-goer. Maybe you won't have to wait long at all.

[A huff of amusement.]

As for my roommate, he's the other birthday celebrator. Prompto.

[isherarmor]

[Prompto's amusement is contagious, and she reaches down to produce a small box to place in front of him - simply wrapped in plain grey paper. Whenever he chooses to open it, it's a franken-mashup of a "vintage" jacket and a sweater.]

Of course! And I was mostly japing. I would have given you this either way, but your generosity is noted.

[Have at it WAFFLE BO IS OPEN. And that even number comment was most definitely b.s..]

I might have beaten him to the punch, but I'd bet Jon's gift is well worth the wait. He's very thoughtful to give two presents.

[She looks Jon over in approval as he sits - he's definitely going to be modeling this outfit on her cooltalk as well, she's decided.

Eating waffle carefully because WHITE DRESS ...why does she keep doing this to herself.]

[998]

[jon grins, laughs a little. her joy is infectious.]

Then we'll have to take you. There are all kinds of toppings. You can make your own waffle. And there's a pancake shop much like it, that's good too.

[jon actually prefers pancakerie for options, but pancakes don't travel as well or look as impressive as a box of waffles.]

[forcevisions]

I've tried a lot of food here. [ Still between bites. She's not very ladylike about eating it, that's for sure. ] But I never found Sweetwaffel. I've had pancakes, though!

Mm-- [ She takes too big a bite and has to pause for a minute. There's an effort to just ... chipmunk it so she can keep talking going on. ] I'll get you a list of the places I've tried. I bet Kylo has one somewhere. We usually go together.

[998]

Kylo?

[he doesn't think he's heard that name before. he tries to remember if he's seen it on the network.]

Is that one of us?

[he doesn't mean to sound disgruntled, or look it.]

[forcevisions]

Yeah. Kylo Ren.

[ That's a real name, Jon. Or, well, sort of. Depending on your definition of real names. Rey has managed to finish her waffle at least. He's free of her bad manners. ]

He's from my galaxy. Dropped off with me in the first wave. [ She's fighting a losing battle against the stickiness on her fingers and smeared across her chin because she eats like an animal. ] Some of them are food trucks. So you have to track them down.

[998]

[the name doesn't register as particularly strange to him--foreign, maybe. it almost sounds braavosi or tyroshi. he's just thrown by the idea of rey 'usually' doing something with someone he's never heard of. whenever he thinks he has a handle on what's going on, it turns out he knows nothing still.]

Aye, Sweetwaffel has a food cart. And Pancakerie--the pancake shop.

[he sighs and casts around for a clean napkin to give her, holds it out.]

The--Happy dumpling place. That's good too.

[isherarmor]

[Truth be told, she's a lightweight and has no business making fun of Jon. (He could drink her under the table, and for all she knows, so could Daenerys,) In Anatole she once got so drunk of sake she puked into a potted plant, but she can't help at laugh at the idea of it - Jon well in his cups, the image of Prompto helping her stumbling brother into his room, and the mock wounded look on his face - it's too much. She's laughing again.]

It's not a waste is it stays down. And it's no time for a turned stomach. There's too much food to be had that isn't crickets. All this meat. Maelys the Monstrous could have seven heads and still manage to stuff them all several times over.

[She wonders at the prospect of taking some ...to go at the eve's end: if there's any left, but says instead (and it's no less an honest thought):]

The both of you look very cool in your party vestments. Have you been ...merry thus far? It's a welcome change, truly.

[forcevisions]

[ Oh, look at that. She takes the napkin, and immediately it does that thing where half sticks to one finger and half to the other finger and it starts separating. She's doing her best. ]

You like sweets? [ Pancakes and waffles makes it sound like he does. ] I know a good cupcake bakery. They're huge. [ She finishes wiping off her hands, wads the napkin up to stuff in her pocket, then gestures like the size of a cantaloupe. ] That one's a real shop.

[998]

[the napkin is made of fungus, and will probably disintegrate into mush. jon follows its progress with some dismay. he raises his eyebrows at the size of the cupcake indicated.]

Sansa likes sweets.

[jon likes breakfast food, and more complex flavors like sea salt caramel and black sesame. he grins.]

I might need some help with a cupcake that size.

[forcevisions]

Then I'll bring the both of you.

[ Rey grins back. ]

I'll ask Kylo too. We can all go together.

[998]

[jon tries not to look startled by the sudden inclusion of this other guy. he smiles tightly.]

I look forward to it.