[OP-F1] Daze Off

[Azide 0]

A flick of his fingers tossed the lustrous coin into the air. The spare change flipped a countless number of times, spinning with enough speed so that it gave the appearance of being a solid sphere. If one were to listen closely enough, one might even hear a gentle whir as the golden piece continued to displace the air around it. After a brief time, the coin reached the apex of its ascent, and the revolutions began to slow.

Gravity redoubled its efforts as the earth made an effort to reclaim what'd been taken from it. Its descent was, however, interrupted by the presence of a dainty hand.

The waitress glanced at the col which had fallen into her palm, then returned her attention to the seated player in green; he was a young man, perhaps around the age of a university student. His posture implied an upbringing that had either been well off, or had simply stressed etiquette- but it easily could have been both. His eyes were the color of freshly roasted coffee- something she happened to see everyday working here at the Starlight Cafe. Perhaps it was an analogy born of convenience. But in any case, he didn't seem to be even the least bit interested in her presence.

His hands were folded against the table, and his expression was neither particularly daunting nor welcoming. Rather, it was the face of someone who was simply waiting. Azide turned his head to face the girl, and he noticed the puzzled look on her face. Her mouth opened, as if she were contemplating a response, but hadn't yet decided on the words.

He decided to nip the inevitable question with a preemptive interjection, maintaining steady eye contact as he explained himself in a level tone. "Before you ask, I'm fully aware that the water here is complimentary. That said, take the col. Just don't spend it all in one place."

The girl looked at her customer tentatively for a moment, then finally enclosed the coin within her palm. She nodded slowly and scribbled a few lines illegible lines in her ledger before disappearing behind the kitchen's steely double doors.

With that taken care of, his eyes drifted around the building's ambient interior. "It's been a while since I last came here," he thought. What a long time ago that had been- the inaugural meeting of Square One. It was a happy memory from a different age. Where was Lucifer? And Lessa? Kino, Xanward and Sozen?

He took a moment to relax his fingers as he became aware of the tension which had knit them closer together. His arms had taken on a faint twitch, as if he'd had a little too much sugar or caffeine. With a bit of focus, he forced the sensation to subside.

His mind's eye filled the building's vacant seats with false patrons. There was Xanatos, pulling up a chair- a dagger stuck in his shoulder. Mari sat opposite to him, but she was not quite there. Her image flickered, as if it were more of a whispered legend than a solid construct.

A turn of his head brought into view a boy dressed in white and blue. He flinched as the sight struck him, and again as the boy flashed red. In the corner behind him stood another man, whose only distinguishing feature was an orange crystal which hovered ominously above him.

Filling out the rest of the cast, he saw Kosan, cloaked in black. Wild locks as white as snow obscured his vision, and he sat alone. He saw Kiru and Daeron- self proclaimed Maverick Hunter and former maverick, respectively. More and more faces, old and unknown, swirled around him.

A cup plunked down in front of him, sending tiny beads of water into the air and onto the table. Nothing noticeable- but he had noticed it. He looked up at the waitress and she smiled, regaled him with the same old tired lines of hospitality, then took her leave. The ghostly figures were gone now.

He sighed, and raised the cup to his lips. It was a quiet start to his day off, to say the least.

-200 col

[Xanatos 0]

Walking around the starting city has always been fun for me. The sights, the smells, even the interesting players I've met since being trapped here. I walked for a few meters and spotted a cafe I had not yet visited. The Starlight Cafe? Sounds like my cup of tea! kekekeke I crack myself up sometimes. I wonder if there's anything good in there. I walked inside to find none other than Azide sitting at a table on the far wall. I decided to greet him in the best possible way I could. I grabbed his shoulder firmly. "I was hoping there was something good in here!" (OOC: Consider this bromance beginning to boil XD)

[Azide 0]

His hand instinctively shot toward the grip of his blade as he felt someone take him by the shoulder. He jolted his head around to see that it was none other than Xanatos- an ally and a friend. Recognizing his paranoia, he withdrew his hand from the weapon at his hip and set his cup against the wooden surface. "It's not as if I have to worry about my water getting cold, after all."

A thin smile crept across his face, softening his expression. He gestured with an open palm to the seat across from him. "So I take it your hopes didn't go unfulfilled then?" A soft laugh escaped his lips, and it did his heart good. He raised his hand to hail a passing waitress, and he spoke to her cordially. "Bring me a bottle of red wine, if you have it. And get this man whatever he might ask you for- as long as it's legal."

To be honest, he was glad that someone had shown up. Perhaps this was the sort of thing that had kept some of the more experienced players sane.

[Rebekah 0]

Today was the first day in a long time that she did not start the morning off on a walk into the frozen lake, mapping the rest of the floor, yet she had an urged to visit the first floor. For whatever reason, something had attracted her down to this floor today, but at this moment she could not explain. As she had been aimlessly walking around starting city, she had began to feel tired, and she did not feel like renting a room at a nearby inn. Rebekah continued to walk, until she found a cafe up ahead. She could barely make out the name of the cafe, Starlight Cafe or something like that. She quickly entered and order a cup of coffee, before quickly dozing off on a nearby table, somebody or the waiter can wake her up when the drink gets here. Meanwhile, she would hope that nobody was going to disturb her in the meantime.

[XWuZHeAR 0]

I bursted through the starlight cafe doors super pissed off. As I walked furiously I grabbed a chair and threw it at the counter.

"X! What the hell!" The shop owner yelled at me.

"What the hell is this Old man!?!?" I yelled back as I took out a flyer with a picture of me playing guitar.

"Oh that? It's to get your face out there a little more, you know advertisement." The shop owner said with a smile.

"You mean to tell me you took time out of your day! To make sure I was still the talk of the town!?!?" I asked yelling like I'm still pissed.

"Yeah..." The shop owner said.

"Aww thanks dude the picture you used is sick too!" I said gratefully.

As I turned around I noticed azide and Xantos were sitting at a table.

"Ah hey guys! So... You two on a date?" I said as I sat down at there table.

[Baldur 0]

Baldur paused outside the doors to the Starlight Cafe. He had just been about to push the doors open when he heard a large crashing sound like someone had thrown a chair against a bar or some other bizarre, equally unlikely occurrence. His hand had flickered to the handle of his sword, but he remembered that was in town. He was safe here, orange players couldn't enter the town, and no one could attack another player expect through a duel. The man paused, taking a steadying breath, then pushed open the door and walked in.

 

A slight breeze caught him as he pushed through the door, whipping up his blue haori, and causing the white flames decorating the bottom to dance. Underneath the coat he still wore his starting clothes, black pants and a blue tunic. While he was in town he unequipped his set of armor, but the jeweled livery collar sat around his shoulders, and his ever present katana was at his side. As Baldur stepped into the cafe, his blue eyes glanced around at the occupants. It had been quite a while since he had taken the time to relax. Last time he had been here he had made several friends and had the chance to hear X play some music.

 

Well, he caused more of a ruckus than music. He remembered the player lamenting a friend and getting drunk before going up on the stage and playing, but it had been an enjoyable, memorable encounter.

 

A table over to one side of the cafe had three familiar faces and so Baldur casually rested his hand on his katana so that he could navigate the patrons and the tables as he made his way over to the table. He put on a broad smile for the three of them as he walked up. Once he stood at the table, just behind and to the side of where X had sat down, Baldur bowed his head differentially to Azide, and then flashed a larger, more comfortable smile to Xanatos and X as he slapped X's shoulder with a friendly hand.

 

"Konnichi wa! Xanatos, nice to see you again. X! Does this mean you're going to be performing this afternoon? I haven't heard you play in a long time. Azide-san, it is nice to see you again as well. I am Baldur." 

[Azide 0]

As he spoke with the always-lively Xanatos, the sound of chimes came drifting to his ears like a lazy breeze. In his sleepy daze, he was vaguely aware of someone entering, but his eyes did not follow the girl. "She's familiar though," he thought. He would have easily recognized her, had his attention not been so split between the man in front of him and the maelstrom in his mind.

But of course, the door once more- this time, with a slam. It called him back to life, and as he turned his head, he was greeted with the sight of X. A chair shattered against the counter, making him cringe. He was an interesting fellow, to say the least. His brief spat with the shop owner somehow ended with in a bout of good-natured laughs. The exchange sent his mind back once more to their meeting way back when. The rowdy fellow quickly went on to spot Azide and Xanatos, and made himself comfortable as he helped himself to a seat at their table.

A dismissive wave of his hand was his answer of choice as X launched the first of an inevitable series of wisecracks. Perhaps on a different day, he would've entertained him with some banter of his own. Another man approached their table soon after, and he recognized him as a friend of Lessa's.

"It's really becoming a party now, isn't it?" he remarked. He dipped his head as the man greeted him with a bow. "It's good to see you again, Baldur." He gestured to the weapon that lay sheathed against his hip. "That voucher you provided did wonders for my rapier." He looked to the three who'd gathered around him. "So, I have to ask- what brings you all here today? Just couldn't wait to get your hands on some drinks?"

[Baldur 0]

Azide exhibited a calm that Baldur had rarely seen among other players in SAO, and it seemed very fitting to Baldur for the man he had never really met, but with whom he shared so many acquaintances. He had assembled an image in his mind of what this man must be like from the information he had gathered, and Baldur was intrigued to see how fitting it was. He had had a quick rise to prominence, turning his guild into one of the strongest in Aincrad, by Baldur's estimation.

 

And there's X...

 

Baldur gave a slight smirk at his own internal monologue. He didn't want to intrude on what might be a guild gathering, but he had come to this cafe to be social and to relieve his mind of the stress that comes with always pushing forward, always pressing for the next fight, craft, or floor.

 

"I am glad you found it useful. I was beginning to think no one wanted them." Baldur rested his left hand lazily on the handle of his katana. It was in no way threatening, but rather spoke to the fact that the blade was always at his side. When someone went to move behind him, however, Baldur manipulated the handle to always keep the blade out of the way of people's legs, somehow conscious of it as a trip hazard. His other hand rested on the back of X's chair in a friendly manner.

 

"I came down here for some R&R. Tyger told me I seemed to have forgotten what that was. It's important, I feel, to recharge our batteries and remember what we're fighting for. There aren't many of us pushing the front lines - " Baldur cast his glance around the cafe, " - but there are many who are relying on us to do so."

[XWuZHeAR 0]

Azide in response to my question did the whole wrist twist thing people of that orientation do. So obviously the two were indeed on a date... Good for them. Then baldur came in being very friendly like he usually is. Maruchan has been sleeping in my downed hood the whole time.

"Hey what's this I hear about you performing at Gloria's cafe?" The shop owner asked me.

"Glorias hot dude, no way I'm gonna say no to her." I answered without missing a beat.

The shop owner let go a satisfied shrug and went back to making his coffee.

"So what's going on baldur; how's the shop treating you?" I asked baldur while leaning back balancing the chair on the back two legs.

[Rebekah 0]

Rebekah could not sleep with the loud ruckus that was being made in this cafe, even before her drink had arrived, she got up and slowly and walked to the back table of the cafe, as far away from the rest of the noise as possible. She did not know who was around, but rather she was hoping that it would be enough for her to shut the rest of them out. She had heard a few familiar voices, but that was not the point, if anybody woke her up, then perhaps she might be mad. For now, she look to avoid everyone else who was around this area, as it was rather annoying for her. She did not know if anybody had noticed her, which was a good thing, even though she did not have any hiding skills, she knew how to be quiet and show as little presence as possible in a loud and large area.

[Xanatos 0]

"Baldur! Always nice to see you too! It seems we all felt a bit of magnetism to this place! I guess Azide has a tendency to attract attention, even in the most reclusive abodes!" I chide at Azide playfully. "It's funny, I was just talking to Calrex not too long ago about the situation on the front lines. If you don't mind me asking Baldur, why has Azure decided not to participate in the next boss fight? Surely some of the strongest players in Aincrad would jump at the chance to clear the way to the next floor"

[Azide 0]

Baldur and Xanatos spoke in turn, and he realized that their words struck a chord with him. He offered a solemn nod as Baldur reaffirmed the importance of rest, while also alluding to their predicament on the front-lines. "I'm beginning to realize just how easy it is to get burnt out playing this game," he thought. It was likely that many of the more veteran front-liners had experienced much worse than he had at this point, but even that was of little comfort to him. Misery and stress weren't a zero sum game, nor were they an arbitrary contest.

His eyes trailed the waitress as she made her way over to their table, and accepted graciously as the girl uncorked the bottle of wine he'd requested. He mumbled a quick "thank you", signaling that she was free to go. The deep red liquid poured into his glass as he lifted the base of the bottle. His smile was about as delicate as the glass he held between slender fingers as he gestured to the bottle with his free hand. "Please, help yourselves," said Azide. He raised the glass to his lips and took a generous swig of crimson ambrosia.

It was light, fruity and aromatic- but slightly stronger than he'd anticipated. It'd been a while since he'd had this sort of thing; he figured the last time had been well before the whole Aincrad debacle. Xanatos touched on a issue which he himself had wondered, and in the process pointing out the elephant which had now been occupying the room for the better part of a month. "Hopefully it's not out of line for us to speak of Azure's activities, but I can't say I'm not curious."

His arm quivered almost imperceptibly as he held the glass- his weariness and troubles had yet to be alleviated, but were instead simply suppressed. "The last time I met a commandant of Azure, he made it known that the Brigade would not be joining us before leaving, just like that." He took another sip of the wine, hoping it would put him at ease. "And now there are rumors that he's gone missing. Zelrius, I believe, was his name." He shook his head, realizing that his words might be a potential sore spot. "Apologies if I'm overstepping my boundaries, Baldur."

[Baldur 0]

Baldur cheerfully took a glass and poured himself a half glass of the red wine. Out of habit, he swirled the wine in his glass and examined the effects. He had heard about how in-depth the flavor recreation engine was in SAO, but he had never tested it with something like wine. How faithfully could they recreate the complex tastes? Would the glass show him the legs of the wine, or was that asking too much? The system was not even complex enough to be able to mimic full range of facial expressions. Instead, when someone felt surprise, your face went into a pre-established surprise expression. Same for anger, or sadness, or happiness. It reminded him of many of the old school MMO's which had emotes, only these were activated by brain scan, rather than a command line. It was all very surreal.

 

And therefore, he was curious what expression showed on his face once the questions began.

 

"I am afraid being a relatively new member to the Brigade, that the logic of those decisions are beyond my pay grade. What I have been able to infer is that there a politics afoot in Aincrad. A game, I am afraid to say, which has players lives at steak." Baldur frowned at the glass of wine. It was stronger than he preferred, which was mostly why he stuck to sweeter white wines, but the fact that it was something other than water meant that he kept drinking.

 

"I hardly know anyone involved, so I cannot even begin to say who is right or who is wrong, only that ego will be the death of players who are uninvolved in this chess game. Were I in such a position, I would gather together everyone who wanted to work in the best interest of everyone in Aincrad and clear the floors, since that seems to have been forgotten."

 

Baldur set down the empty wine glass. He seemed surprised by what he had said, but he could not blame the wine, they had merely asked a question he had been wondering about for a long time as well.

 

"I have not yet been on a progression raid, however, so it is not my place to judge so."

 

Baldur wiped away a bit of wine from his lips.

 

"If you'll excuse me, I should probably catch up with my lady." He gave everyone at the table a polite smile and then turned to leave the cafe.