The Pit Stop; Aekea's local paradise

Customers!

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[PQ and Retrostacja]

It doesn't ever seem to matter whether it is day or night here; Aekea keeps it's subtle appeal, the soft constant clanking of machines echoing off the metal and buildings. Down the walkway from the car shop you see a multi-leveled building in the corner. Like most of Aekea, the rust and faded shine of the metal seems to give it even more of an allure.

Through it's several windows in the center, bright lights flicker behind thin curtains. It isn't until you stand in front of the door that you finally feel it; the soft rumble of bass that seems to pulse from the entire building. Above the two large entrance doors, you see the name of the building curved over the archway, made out in bent and rusted pieces of scrap metal. Pit Stop.

The name strikes a chord in your mind. A robot, not under contract with The Faktori, established this building back in 2006 for Gaians of all races and wealth to enjoy themselves. Due to the ban of robots outside of Aekean territory (very select few being exceptions), robots needed a place to party.

You see a flooring index etched into the left door, the only thing in sight that looks relatively new. Even there though you can start to see the subtle signs of rust deep in the engravings.

F1: Fresh Paint
F2: Grindin' Gears
F3: Revvin' Engines

Once again you look around, trying to peek inside the small windows on the two doors in attempt to see what could possibly be inside. Through the dirty glass, you see a large shelf of shoes and a rack of clothes, large tags hanging from each piece. Squinting you can see a metal spiral staircase in the back corner, seemingly intricate as it reached upwards towards the second floor. A flashing light seems to pulsate faintly at the top of the small platform, hinting at the origins of what you had seen outside.

It's then that you realize there is only one way to figure out what was on the other side of the two large doors in front of you; to go in yourself.

[PQ and Retrostacja]

; We didn't start this to have our customers and staff treated like s**t. Respect is top priority. Use it or lose it, love.
; While having fun is great, try to have it in a decent fashion. The TOS applies here too.
; Please don't use 1337 speak. Robots may be programmed in binary, but the two languages share minimal commonalities.
; Watch your tongues. We don't want to hear them expelling obscenities every other word, nor do we want to see them down someone's throat.
; Robot racism, or any racism for that matter, will not be accepted. We're just trying to run our businesses in peace.
; If the need to add more rules should arise, they'll be put up without hesitation.
; If you feel the need to speak OOC, please put it in parenthesis so we can see the difference.
; Shop until you drop, dance until you're weak in the knees, and drink until your favorite thing to see is the bottom of a bottle.
; When applying for a staff position, please PM the owner in question.

[Gerakabatta]

Under construction....Please stand by....

[PQ and Retrostacja]

The moment you step into the building, a peculiar smell reaches your nose. At first you think it's gasoline, a strong but slightly sweet scent that tickles your brain. But on the second inhale you catch that undertone that made what you were smelling not just bearable but somehow pleasant: daisies. You can almost taste the smell of them, and it leaves you wondering if you should like the strange mixture of senses or not.

On your left you can see what you had seen through the windows; the entire left wall was stacked top to bottom with dozens of shoes. Neatly color and size coordinated, the wide variety of foot wear is an interesting accent wall.

Filling up the majority of the room are racks of clothes, each rack categorized accordingly. From where you stand you can see them categorized by gender and type, a special area for MCs and unevolved EIs rests up against the cash register opposite of the shoes. A few hat stands sit in the corner, filled to the brim (no pun intended) with merchandise. With all the items simply laying around, who was here to take care of it?

"Excuse me!" Jolting in surprise you look back to the long racks of clothes, trying to find who was talking. It was then that you saw it...you didn't want to call the robot that but from where you were standing, its gender was indistinguishable. Long silver arms highly resembling a mix of dulled scissors and praying mantis claws delicately held a few hangers, overpowering its rather petite body. Its round head seemed a bit more in proportion, pale blue wide eyes accentuated simply due to them being the only color other than black, white or gray on its body. Despite the weather outside, it wore a black and white checkered winter cap, the strings from the ear flaps barely touching its shoulders.

No....not it. HER. You could see it now; her mouth held the smallest faint hint of pink. And why would it matter what she wore? Robots didn't feel heat and cold....did they? "I'm sorry I scared you, I keep forgetting that the clothes are taller than I am," she apologized, her voice sounding more feminine now that you really listened. And she couldn't be more right about her height; the top of her head barely counted as five feet tall. Oddly enough, her arms seemed to be each just as long, absently putting the clothes back on the racks as she continued to look at you.

"I'm Kluteau; I do my best to run the store while other staff do their other duties." Once she mentioned her name, you noticed the large K on her chest, very reminiscent of the robots at the Fakori. Her monochromatic body shifts slightly backwards, the soft hum of the gears moving as the track slid under her almost comforting. "If you need anything, I'll be over here." And with that, she turned and slipped back into the jungle of thrift store clothes. It's then that you realize that Kluteau was the one that smelled like daisies.

[PQ and Retrostacja]

Even when you were climbing up the spiral staircase on the first floor, the heavy bass seemed to shake the sturdy metal. The slight jolts are nowhere threatening, but it affirmed your suspicions as to where the beat was coming from. Reaching the top of the stairs, you step onto a metal platform with metal railings on either side, framing the black door in front of you. Now that you were closer, you could hear the music instead of just feeling it from your head to the tips of your toes. The lights flickering underneath the door are vibrant but not blinding.

Pushing the door open, the vastness of the floor catches you off guard. While this was the second floor, and on the outside it showed no difference in size...it seemed nearly twice as large. The large crowd of people, waving glow sticks and grinding into each other as they moved in rhythm to the beat took up the majority of the space, the black light giving some of them almost angelic features. In each corner, two couches were nestled against each wall with a simple legless coffee table in between them. People lounged in them, sipping from water bottles and martini glasses. You could see they held a metallic sheen, but seemed to lack the harshness of metal. On the right wall you could see the rest rooms, designated for male and females.

It didn't smell like it did downstairs. Up here it smelled hot, but not unpleasantly so. And it did smell like sweat, but there was a hint of cinnamon that took the musk off of the normally rank smell. Without warning there was a small click underneath the loud music, and a gentle mist fell from small shower heads installed into the checkered ceiling. The moment it touched your skin, the heat seemed to fade just slightly and you couldn't help but feel refreshed despite the surprise of it all.

As the song changes, your attention is pulled into the front of the room. Large speakers littered the walls, but the two largest seemed to stand guard alongside of a massive mixing table. While you couldn't see the other side of it, the sheer size of it hints at the complexity of it. But you can see a robot, all six arms glowing slightly with flourescent purple lights illuminating his every move, easily taking control. Even from across the room you can see his body is a heavily modified jukebox, a very suitable sight for a club such as this. Large checkered headphones frame his head, surrounded with dread-lock like bundles of black wires. A single arm lifted up to his headphones, adjusting them with a smile.

"This is Melodeau, bringing the beats," the robot said, his voice having a slight Jamacian accent. "Lounge, grind those gears, or head upstairs if you feel a little dry in the throat." Without another word he cranked the volume back up, eyes never leaving the massive mixing table.

[Gerakabatta]

Feeling thirsty, you go up to the next floor. As you neared the third floor, the music began to fade back into a beat. The moist feeling you felt earlier became drier, the refreshingly cool kind. The scent of pumpkin spice filled your nostrils. Was someone fixing a glass of Autumn Colors? Curious, you opened the quaint-looking door that had now caught your eye.


Upon opening it, you had nearly gotten hit by a flying robot in business-like attire. Good thing you ducked, huh? Looking back up, you were now staring into the eyes of a robot waitress in dark clothing. Telling from her posture, she must've been the one who threw that business robot out. Before you could ask her what happened, she immediately went back to work.



After sliding past a snooty-looking robot artist that insisted his audience referred to him as "Robokopf the Great", two robots that looked to be the bouncers here, a tranquil looking robot strumming her guitar and singing songs about unicorns, a robot who seemed to be part of the fraternity, a geeky-looking robot, and someone crying inside his own office, you finally got to the counter. A patchwork robot and what looked to be like an ex-police bot notice you immediately and provide service to you right away.


After helping yourself to one of your favorite beverages, you notice another robot out of the corner of your eye. Cat-like and wearing modest attire, this female robot was just staring off into space and mumbling something about the robots at the Faktori. After five seconds had passed, she finally realized that someone was staring at her. Giggling at her own spacey nature, the cat robot bowed politely and greeted you.


"Konnichiwa! Hajimemashite?....Whoops! Better speak the local language....*ahem* Hello there! How do you do? I'm Gerakabatta, the head waitress of Revvin' Engines! What can I do for you today, nya?"

[PQ and Retrostacja]

Each place at the Pit Stop has a certain requirement for a wide variety of talents that even robots can not complete on their own. And it is so that we have hired several talented Gaians to help us accomplish our day-to-day goals. As of now the list is very short but we hope to bring more help in! Below is a list of our beloved employees.

Fresh Paint

;Kluteau - Assistant Manager of Fresh Paint. When PQ is busy tending to other issues in the building, she takes charge of the entire thrift store. You need something, whether it be getting measurements, finding the dressing room, or checking out, Kluteau is there.

;shelly_bell223 - Naomi is Fresh Paint's cashier, slightly pale skin and her blond hair highlighed in bright pink gives the slightly monochromatic store an extra pop of color! Go to her if you ever need to buy some merchandise.

Grindin' Gears

;Melodeau - Fully customized robot that knows how to do one thing; DJ. And he does it well. Top DJ in Aekea, Melodeau is a laid back robot that wants to do nothing more than rock out.

;54topdawg54/Emobot: A musician gone cyborg after a nearly fatal accident, Emobot is the one in charge of keeping the peace in the all but peaceful club. With his black and silver robotic legs, arm, and a synthetic eye, his appearance is intimidating to most. But look through the shaggy black hair and into his bright eye, and you'll see his kind nature.

Revvin' Engines

; Bizbot - Our local advertiser. He works for Bizco and is constantly thrown around by the second-in-command waitress here.

;Gothbot - Second-in-command waitress. Rather moody at times, but is sound-minded. Don't take it to heart if she acts indifferent toward you. Deep down, she's willing to listen to your problems.

;Robokopf - The interior decorator and artist. He's rather self-gratifying at times, but you learn to let it go unheard. He's got talent, I'll give him that much.

;Angrybot - The aggressive one of the two bouncers. He's always angry, but he knows how to command respect. Just stay outta his way and be good. Just trying to give you some safe advice here.

;Larry the Cable Bot - The friendlier of the two bouncers. He has a bit of a southern accent. On the side, he does stand-up comedy. Unlike Angrybot-san, Larry-san won't bite....unless you manage to push him over his limits.

;Tendertron - The musician who plays music here on the weekdays between 6 PM to 12 AM. Yes, she's a tree-hugger. Yes, she doesn't like it when you eat meat in front of her. No, you can't mess around with her medicine drum.

;Kegomatic - Not really part of the staff, but he's a regular here. Need a drinking buddy? He's your 'bot! Hope you can take his "In my pants" jokes, though....

;Geekbot - Another regular. When he's not trying to hit on Gothbot-san, he sometimes volunteers to help out. However, we have to get him rare limited-edition merchandise as payment....

;Sad Robot - Our accountant. He usually wishes to be left alone. Unless it's a financial emergency or something, I advise you not to disturb his daily sobbing routine.

------

Despite the fact that the majority of our staff is indeed robots, we can't run the whole complex by ourselves. And we aren't just looking for robots, so many Gaians have the opportunity to work with us. We are willing to accept employees for anything, whether it be a waitress job to advertisement. Not only do we hope to give employees experience in a wide variety of jobs, but we want to show Gaians that robots are more than just metal and binary.

If you would like to work in Fresh Paint or Grindin' Gears, please PM the following form to: Puke Queen
If you would like to work in Revvin' Engines, please PM the following form to: Gerakabatta

Username:
Name: (how you'd like to be referred to as)
Race: (human, vampire, werewolf, robot, etc.)
Appearance: (if different from your avatar)
Store: (Fresh Paint, Grindin' Gears, Revvin' Engines)
Position: (Waitress, Bouncer, Cashier, Tender, Musician, etc.)
History: (Your background story. Optional)
Previous Experience: (not necessary, but just in case)
Home Town: (Aekea, Barton, Durem, Gambino)

[Gerakabatta]

Like I said before, I'm Gerakabatta! You can call me Gera or Geraka for short, though! Everyone else does, so you can, too~



Just your average nurse/bartender/peacemaker robot. The two robots assisting me with your order are Thoreau and Toshi, respectively. I'd introduce you to my daughter Hakobe, but she's over at the Faktori right now. Aya, she loves hanging around her Ribateau-oji-san....



Anyhoo, my best friend happens to be the one in charge of the Pit Stop. Her real name is Puke Queen, but most of her friends call her PQ. As for me? I call her Pukie-chan!



....Nani? What am I making peace with? Oh, humans and robots, of course! It's been a dream of mine since I was a little girl....Sadly, there are those that try to prevent such peace from ever happening....Saying it's unthinkable and can never work....Whoops! There I go again! Nya ha ha ha~ heart



....Well, since I already introduced myself, Thoreau-kun, and Toshi-kun, I'd best leave you to relax and take a breather.


Enjoy your stay at the Pit Stop, nya~ heart

[PQ and Retrostacja]

I'm Puke Queen, owner of the Pit Stop. But don't call me that; PQ or Pukie are fine enough as it is. I'm an Aekean android; a heavily modified Gaian with the majority of my body being robotic. I'm pretty much the closest thing you can get to being a robot without actually being one. I came to Gaia around four years ago, and haven't left since. I'm a pure blooded Aekean, and don't you forget it.

My most loyal companion is Retrostacja, a Roro which I saved from being dissassembled due to his body not functioning properly with the Roro 2.0 system. Back in the day I used to be a mechanic, so I was able to fix him enough to be functional...although his bark is hardly pleasant. It's not that I'm not a mechanic anymore, but the Pit Stop has become my pride and joy.

If you want to know my weaknesses, they are quite easy. Give me a salmon sushi roll, a foreign film, horrible horror movies, a Dungeons and Dragons Handbook, swing dance music, or anything steampunk, and I'm like Superman with kryptonite. But in a better way, of course.

Gera and I met through our love of Aekea; more specifically our love of the Faktori robots. They are such understated NPCs, whose shop gets pushed into the corner because they sell housing items and not things that every Gaian loves. We became best of friends very quickly, and she has had my back through thick and thin.

The Pit Stop was an idea I thought of two years ago, opening a small commerce thread and naming my Market Store in theme with it. A lot of my Aekean friends enjoyed coming in and out, but the thread soon died and I went on to other things. But now that I have Gera with me to help man the place, I really hope it will be successful.

[Gerakabatta]

Under construction....Please stand by....

[PQ and Retrostacja]

The Aekea Town Guild is where The Pit Stop really started taking shape. It's the place that Gera and I really got to know each other, and now we are Vice-Captains of one of the best guilds, ever. It's small, but the only active town guild currently on Gaia! We're that awesome.

If you like the Pit Stop, or if you like Aekea, why not stop in and see what we have to offer?

[Gerakabatta]

*breaks an empty beverage bottle on a nearby metal pole*


We're so cool, we don't need to snip opening ribbons for this thread! mrgreen

[PQ and Retrostacja]

-glances over at glass-

Now which one of us is going to clean that up?

[Gerakabatta]

*raises her hand*


I will! I made it, so it's only fair that I clean it up!



*gets out some rubber gloves and starts sweeping up the glass*

[PQ and Retrostacja]

PQ scurries down to the front door of The Pit Stop, switching the sign from 'closed' to 'open' with a small anxious smile.