|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 8:27 pm
It seemed like it would be just another boring uneventful evening.
After trecking through dense-growth jungle for most of the afternoon and mid-evening, Seth had finally decided to wander into the area of Beach Bar with only one purpose in mind - to replenish his stocks of whiskey and other favoured spirits.
During the last week or so, he had mainly kept to his own devices, avoiding the other islanders as much as he could. He was still very concious about his recent changes and besides, he was still somewhat sore from them. It had been much easier to sleep it off, or numb it with alcohol. Which was where his current problem lied - he had completely run out of everything. Even the horrible tasting low-alcohol content beer he had stolen just out of curiousity. He decided that above all his other issues, he had needed more.
The thylacine-man creeped into the area behind the bar once he had made his way inside, his eyes wide and attentive, his tail stuck out straight behind him, stiff. The animal within was wary and nervous, the feeling heightened by Seth's own feelings of nervousness. He always got like this when he intended to steal things. Still, nobody was in the area, so he was safe. For now.
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 8:43 pm
Rachel found herself wandering the village that day, in a kind of brain-dead state. The thing she had witnessed the afternoon before had put her off of food more than usual and left her wanting to rid her mind of the images. In her aimless exploration, she had come upon a notice board that contained a map of the village buildings and ammeneties. She glanced at it not really caring, until one spot on the map caught her attention. "Beach Bar." She glanced at it a moment, before deciding to head towards where the map indicated its location was.
Rachel had never had alcohol before. She had never really had reason to before, but she had heard from others that it was good for situations when you didn't want to care or think. This was a situation that was both, and Rachel couldn't think of a better time to see if the claims were true. Besides, its not like there was anyone here going to bust her for drinking underage. Not on the island where nothing made sense.
As she approached, she noticed a man going enter the building in an almost sneaky manner. He didn't seem to see her, so she approached carefully, not wanting to deal with surprising someone that thought they were travelling unnoticed.
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 9:01 pm
Seth quickly crouched low to the ground behind the bar counter, his front 'paws' on the ground, adopting a pose that was very similar to a quadraped's. He grinned happily to himself as he opened the cupboards and discovered the large stock pile of mixers, spirits, beers and liquers inside.
It took him no time at all to secure two bottles of Johnny Walker black-label scotch whiskey, carefully placing them on the ground beside him. So involved with his search was he, that he did not hear or notice anybody come in. He just continued to greedily snatch at different spirits, wondering to himself just how much of it would fit in that small barfridge in his Duplex.
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 9:08 pm
Well whoever it was, certainly wasn't kidding around when it came to drinking, Rachel thought as she noted the bottles next to him on the ground, with a raised eyebrow. She certainly wasn't planning on consuming that much. By the look of it, he might even be storing some away for later consumption. Maybe that means he'll leave in a little and I can be alone do drown out my thoughts, she thought grimly.
After a moment of watching him silently from the doorway, Rachel cleared her throat, to let the man know she was standing there, hoping not to startle him too badly.
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 9:40 pm
The semi-marsupial man was still casually choosing out what to take with him when his sensitive ears picked up the noise. It startled him and he made a loud guttural "urrr!" noise in surprise. The bottle of white spirits in his hand slipped and promptly smashed onto the floor.
"Bugger!" He yelped and darted backwards, standing up, brushing splashed spirits off his jeans.
His attention immediately turned to the newcomer and he pinned his ears back as far as they would go, his brown eyes attentively watching her for a few moments as the thylacine instincts within told him to stay put. It took him several seconds to recompose himself and relax once again.
"Ah, sorry about that..." He realized how hopeless he must look right now, and gave the female a friendly grin, which looked more like he was curling his lips back into a snarl with the way his maw had grown now.
"So then, um... you're new, I take it?"
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 9:53 pm
The noise he made, when he heard her caused Rachel to start and give a small gasp as the bottle he was holding crashed to the floor. She insintively cringed as the liquid splashed, but was fortunate to not get more on her than a few drops on her tennis shoes.
His reaction had set Rachel on edge, her nerves already jumpy after the ups and downs she'd had in experiences the past few days. First the news of the chips and cameras, then the she/he in the entertainment room, then the red-scaled man in the cafeteria. She watched him cautiously and silently until he relaxed and then opened his mouth in what appeared to be an attempt at a smile, but it did nothing to help Rachel feel more at ease.
She nodded in response to his question, clearing her throat again before speaking quietly. "Yeah...got here a few weeks ago...and I didn't mean to scare you..."
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 10:07 pm
"Oh, phh..." Seth dismissively waved a clawed hand and shrugged it off. "I wouldn't worry about that. This animal I'm turning into has a high-strung disposition, beleive me. I've jumped at a lot less during the last week. Why just yesterday, a leaf skittered across my path - I thought I was going to die. It just takes some getting used to, I guess..."
He scratched the back of his head hopelessly. "This stupid animal is more spring-loaded than a pair of kangaroos in the mating season. I hope you have better luck with yo--" He stopped himself quickly and bit his tongue. This female looked completely unchanged. Perhaps she didn't know about the island yet? Seth hoped he didn't have to break it to her.
Instead, he quickly changed the subject. "I take it that you're here to enjoy in everything this place has to offer?" He grinned. "It's all free, so you might as well. There's not much else here to do around this island hell hole."
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 10:21 pm
"Ah, I see..." was all Rachel had to say to his rambling explaination about his jumpiness and the animal he was changing into. It wasn't very articulate, she knew, but she couldn't think of anything else to say at the moment. She noticed that he cut himself off about to wish her luck with something, but most of her didn't care enough to try and figure out what it was.
"I suppose I am," Rachel said evenly, nodding slightly as the man moved on to the subject of why they were both there. "There are several things I'd rather not have to deal with thinking about at the moment..."
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 10:32 pm
"Oh, right. Er, you know about the purpose of this island, then?" Seth breathed a small sigh of relief, happier that he didn't have to explain it to her. "That's too bad though. I was pretty unhappy when I found out about this place. And now look at me..." He wiggled a clawed hand for emphasis. "I look like a kangaroo dog stripey thing... bloody hell."
He moved back behind the bar, picking up the bottles of high-strength alcohol that he was intending to take with him, setting them down on the top of the counter.
"Don't let it get you down for too long, though." He said calmly. "Because the faster you get over the initial shock, the more time you can spend escaping." He gave her a lopsided smirk. "Y'know, gimmie a few more weeks and I'll have devised a fool proof plan out of here. Interested?"
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 10:45 pm
"Yeah...I found out about it the morning after I got here," she said with a sigh, letting herself relax a little as she talked to the man. "Gave me quite the shock, I can tell you that. But my reasons for wanting to not think have more to do with things that have happened since then, rather than knowing that I won't be fully human after a while." The actual shock of knowing what the island was about had worn off shortly after that first day, because despite being told, and seeing others changed, it was still surreal because it had not happened yet to her. The events in the past few days, however, she had experienced first hand, having a greater effect on her reality.
At the mention of a "fool proof plan" to get off the island, Rachel raised a skeptical eyebrow, moving over to sit on one of the bar stools, leaning her arms on the counter. She knew about the chips and cameras, able to track and buzz them. There was no way Rachel would give herself hope of believing that the people watching them would allow such a thing.
"If it actually will work, sure, but I don't think the people keeping us here would give anyone the chance to even try, let alone be successful in an escape attempt."
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 10:59 pm
"Yeah, that's what you would think." Seth nodded. "I'm more than willing to bet that most of the security measures are in place so we don't escape, at least, without being noticed. It's like they have their own nice little controlled environment here, the jumped-up bastards."
He picked up one of the bottles of pure Stolichnaya brand vodka from the counter, lightly tossing it back and forth between his hands for a moment, before he uncapped the bottle. "No security is fool proof though, let me assure you." He he picked up a couple of glasses, moving away to fill them up with ice. "No security setup is perfect, just like there's no such thing as a perfect crime. We'll just have to find the holes and exploit them. I can think of a few ways."
He set both glasses down on the counter, then picked up the vodka bottle once more and poured some into the glasses, filling them about halfway up.
"Want some? Not sure if vodka's your poison or not, but..." He shrugged and retreived a bottle of lemon soda from below the counter. "It's pretty good if you mix it with this. It's also pretty good for numbing your mind for a while." He paused, smirking. "Not that I approve of underage drinking."
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 11:20 pm
"Well more power to you if you can find a way, but I'm not going hope for it," she said matter-of-factly. "I have too many other things on my mind." She eyed the glasses as he filled them and the part of her brain that was not occupied with trying to not think about the past few days was suddenly screaming at her with the amount of calories that were in the alcohol. She wresteled with it for a moment, finally rationalizing that it was ok because not thinking was more desierable at the moment and that she hadn't visited the cafeteria since the incident with the red-scaled man. Besides, she could always work out extra to make up for it later.
Her mind made up, she reached for the glass and held it up for him to pour the soda into. If he said it was good for numbing the mind, then it was fine for her purposes. She glanced up at him at the underage drinking comment. "Is there an underage in a place like this?" she asked, scoffing.
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 26, 2006 11:25 am
"Heh, I suppose not." Seth grinned in amusement as he poured the lemon soda into her glass. "Only joking though - I actually couldn't give a rat's arse about it. Drink yourself under the table if you want, just don't make yourself sick and die. Laws don't really exist on this island. I've nicked a heap of junk and nobody has cared."
Seth filled his own glass near to the top, then he took a casual sip from it, screwing his face up immediately. He forcefully swallowed the mouthful of vodka and soda mix just to ensure that he wouldn't spit it violently across the room in his disgust. He lowered his head and coughed, making a sharp husky noise as he did so, his animal instincts also protesting to the highly bitter taste. He hadn't tasted any alcohol since his last change, and hadn't realized that his tastebuds must have changed also. At least, until that very moment.
"Oh my god," Seth moved to the sink and turned it on, squeezing his eyes shut in his distaste. He moved his head down and began to lap up the water with his tongue, not really putting any thought into what he was doing and how silly it must have looked. "That was bloody horrid..."
After he had composed himself once more, he turned off the tap and moved back to the other side of the bar, taking a place on one of the empty bar stools.
"Honestly, ignore me. It's not that bad." He shook his head. "I still have to get used to uh, this thing..." He reached over to pick up his glass once more, and took another sip. The taste was powerful and burned in his mouth, but this time, he only screwed up his face. "See, it's good, really."
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 26, 2006 5:16 pm
Rachel was glad she hadn't taken a drink right away, and watched Seth's reaction to a sip of his own drink with a strange mix of dread and amusement. Obviously there was something about the drink he didn't like for some reason, and she couldn't help but be put off a little. When he offered his explaination and took another drinking, trying to convince her it was good, Rachel raised a skeptical eyebrow.
"Uh-huh..." she sarcastically. Well at least now if she didn't like her first taste of the stuff, she wouldn't look like some baby or something. Not after the experienced drinker couldn't handle his own concoction. She glanced at the drink in her hand, not sure if she was brave enough now to try it.
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Nov 26, 2006 7:04 pm
"It's a pity this place has no peanuts or something..." Seth grumbled to himself and set his drink back down on the counter. He rose to his feet and casually moved around the bar area, looking for anything to eat, sniffing the air with his snout, his stiff tail stuck out straight behind him in his attentiveness. Smells had been magnified since his nose changed and sometimes he could smell things that were downright horrible. But the new nose also had its advantages, for he could already smell the faint hint of peanuts in the air, confirming that there were some in the area, somewhere. Though, it was quite muted by the strong stench of alcohol in the air.
"So how long have you been here anyway?" Seth asked Rachel casually as he continued his search. "And how did they sucker you into coming to this place? Me, they told me they'd give me money for... well, for something I brought over anyway." He pinned his ears back and lowered his head, sniffing around one of the back counters, being sure not to step on the broken glass left on the floor, courtesy of himself. "And they never did." He snorted. "Lying bastards."
"Aha, success!" He finally found a bowl of mixed nuts, still in shells, in one of the drawers behind the bar counter. He carried it back with him and moved out from behind the service area, setting the bowl down on the counter in front of Rachel, grinning at her once more.
"Hungry?"
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|