[Nexus] The Gambling League of Gambling

[Slii Arhem]

Cabaret

Dionysius deflates a bit, letting out another chuckle before resting his hands back on the table. He takes another sip of champagne before replying.

"Ah, yes. I suppose a better introduction is required. Dionysius, Greek god of the vine, at your service. And I am truly at your service, milady Grace. Your company has brightened my night thus far, and it would be an impossible task to find another person to match your style before the night it through." Oh, he's sure he could find someone both easier to please and more likely to warm a bed, but there was the principle of the thing. Grace was intriguing, a completely self-made person, and Dionyius found her conservative tastes to be a challenge.

[Lord Magtok]

Cabaret

Magtok grins viciously, lunging upon what he feels is a trace of hypocrisy in Cessie's claims.

"And how does anyone know that you're telling the truth, and that what goes on behind those doors is completely ordinary, as you insist it is? That's just it, they don't, Mithar."

He sips at his drink. Now, to go in for the kill.

"Y'know, now that I think about it, Watchtower doesn't really disclose a lot about itself either, does it? I mean, you could certainly find me in the news if you wanted to. Just skim through a tabloid or two, but Watch...Watch hasn't got a thing. I'm not saying you or Watch are up to anything, of course, just...well, before one goes accusing anyone else of harboring secrets, it would be a good idea to check your own closets for skeletons, wouldn't it?"

[Reinholdt]

[Cabaret - Rein(y) and Dena]

"My favorite animal? Would you be angry if I said a cheetah, it's a type of cat right?" Cessie replies with an amused look at Rein(y).

Cessie's hitting on Rein? =O
"I'm ok with it. Russian Blue is mine though. But I have to admit to a certain... affinity with them."

[Shadowcaller]

Cabaret - Cessie and Magtok

Cessie actually smiles at that, "Alright Magtok, you win. I'll tell you what we are doing back in the keep." She leans in conspiratorially and whispers. "We have sex. Yes, Harnel and I have sex in the privacy of our own home. A lot of it. Does that satisfy your curiosity or do you like to know the positions as well? Because I could tell you."

[AmberVael]

[Cabaret]

"Ah." Grace manages to say, somewhat uncomfortably. Well, now what? He was certainly being polite, and it isn't like he had really brought the point up, but given that he was basically the embodiment of a worldview opposing her own, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of distaste. Well, maybe not opposing entirely, he probably wasn't a part of the Heavenly Bureaucracy, and it wasn't like she was in Celestial Dynamics anymore anyway, but gods were gods.

"I'm afraid I have quite a few opinions of gods, none of which are very positive." She admits after a moment.

[Slii Arhem]

Cabaret

"I've run into that sort of outlook many a time, and actively worked to change it. I work to bring happiness, however temporary, to those that I can, and trade favors with other, more brutish gods to ease the pain of those under their heels. It is not an entirely thankless task, I gain much from the adulation of those I provide for, but I dislike those who wield great power from high cloudtops and never see the true face of humanity. It is why I've come here, to the Nexus. I wish to see the people, be among them, and learn what ails them. Hopefully this will give me a better understanding of how to please my own followers." And if not, he can always go back to hosting revels and orgies and feasts of all sorts. Temporary happiness, to be sure, but it has sufficed for the past few millenia.

[Lord Magtok]

Cabaret

Magtok gags on his drink a little, struggling to maintain a modicum of nonchalance in the face of such an unexpected response, and failing horribly. Jegus fudge, that isn't even close to what he thought the supposed 'uber-prude' was going to say. On the bright side, all of that coughing and flailing and clearing his throat gives him plenty of time to work out a rebuttal.

"No, ma'am, I don't think...well maybe Devi would be interested, but believe it would be best if we didn't go down that road just yet."

He pauses to wave back at Missy and send out a ping in reply, as well as a small message, composed solely of Javert, the word Remnant, and a shiny violet question mark. It buys him only a moment of silence, but that moment is just enough time for our devious little bastard to figure out exactly where he wants to go next with this Cessie duel.

"In all seriousness though, don't you suppose the Masks might be doing the same thing? I mean, there are some really weird fetishes out there. Some people like to feel pain when they do it, others enjoy playing with leather, a few folks like the feel of scales...maybe they just have a really weird thing for religion and identity-shielding costumes? It wouldn't even be the first time a cult based entirely around having sex, either. You're not holding yourself to the same standard to which you've brought against your opponent, and that could lead to a nasty spot of trouble if they turn out innocent and Watch doesn't."

He shrugs noncommittally.

"On the other hand, this is all just hypothetical and whatnot, I don't know any more about them than you do, and I'm probably more than a little tipsy right now, too. Best to take everything with a grain of salt, I think. They're religious folk, they help the needy, they have weird imagery. You're violent folk, you stomp on the apocalyptic, you have weird outdoor wedding ceremonies. Best to just stand back and withhold judgement until the facts come in, save a lot of hurt feelings that way."

[happyturtle]

Cabaret

Missy's return message is an emphatic "No! "

She doesn't like to date her fellow soldiers. She's done it before, and probably will again. She's too much a victim of her loneliness to completely swear off the largest group of men she has regular contact with. But it gets so awkward when it ends. And it always does. She doesn't really expect to ever have a relationship that actually lasts, though she hasn't consciously recognized that pessimism in herself.

At least she found out early that it isn't going to work with Javert. Ten minutes into the first date. A new record.

[UncleWolf]

Missy and Javert

Javert takes a sip from his champagne flute before looking through it, twirling his wrist slightly to swirl the drink. "I apologize if I'm a tad rusty at dancing. It's been quite a long time for me. A year or so, but I really am good at it." He tells Missy as his gaze runs over the crowd.

Taul and Moff

Taul offers his hand to shake Moff's. While he didn't know where Moff's hand has been lately, it was still how he chose to make deals. "Alright. You have yourself a deal."

Backstage - Kirk

Kirk will be led through several hallways and into a dark corridor before opening a final set of doors labelled "Ladies' Dressing Room". Inside he'll find a couple dozen ladies in various stages of dress and undress, each one of them quite lovely to look at. At his and his guide's entrance, they look up, smiling and wave. "The Lady said you might be able to help back here. The ladies for Act IV in the show need help with their corsets and can't do it themselves since we don't want the cords to leave marks on their hands for the show." She explains, pointing to a group of 6 women wearing little more than...well, wearing nothing. "The helper they had before is in the infirmary back home. Said it was something about a "strained pelvis". The Lady has met you before, and told me to get you since you seemed like you'd be an expert in this sort of thing."

Kirk really shouldn't have made that bet.

Reelshka and Pathfinder

Pathfinder puts a claw under his collar to help him fight the heat building up with his fur and clothing before smiling down upon the goblin. "Thank you. You're looking quite lovely yourself." He tells her sincerely. The Shaman takes a moment to take a blue bead off of his shirt sleeve and swallows it before shuddering as his body feels suddenly cooler. His smile returns with his sense of comfortableness, the choking heat gone due to the little gift from the spirits.

When he notices Andy, he gives a bit of a sigh as he walks with Reelshka. "I really should apologize to him sometime, but this isn't the place for it."

Cabaret

Near the stage, dozens of musicians, not wearing masks, begin taking seats and tuning their instruments. There hasn't been an announcement that the show is starting yet, but this is clearly a sign that it'll be starting soon.

[ThirdEmperor]

Bar

"I suppose that does make sense, looked at from an angle of social acceptance rather than statistics." Icarus says, although his attention is now on the bartender rather than the other partygoers. Although Icarus is quite inclined to believe Vinny's claim of not using mind-magic -his inborn abilities as a commander of Excelsior making him, if no less vulnerable to such methods, at least more of aware of if he's being influenced by them- the fact that Vinny could make such a discernment without magic is in and of itself a point of interest.

"I... I'd also guess that you must interact with people often, considering your livelihood, enough to read them well? If it's not an odd question, how much can you tell about me?"

[Gullara]

You don't know more than me, then. They've done some work for the Red Zone before, but I don't interest myself much in charity. He's not exaclty the most charitable person out there.

[Cabaret - Dipsnig and Ramiro]

Funny that he's at a charity event. "It's good to see someone do what they can for the less fortunate at the very least. I believe they've been there for some time now, though for exactly how long I'm unsure. It's difficult to keep up with things in another city."

Cabaret - Nadia and Irena

"Trust me, it is." Irena insists. "...but sure, I want something strong, don't want to be sober right now." She doesn't seem to share Nadia's notion about not getting drunk.

[Cabaret - Nadia and Irena]

"Alright, alright, I'll just have to keep an eye on you then." Nadia slings her arm around Irena's waist as they go over to the bar. She'll have to try and watch how much she drinks at least.

>.> They're both gonna end up drunk on stage aren't they?

[Backstage - Kirk]

*shakes fist* It's almost like some malevolent higher beings are plotting against him.

Kirk eyes the women appreciatively, especially those that need his assistance. Wasn't there something about a bet..? He can't recall. Of course, there is one detail that can distract him, however. "I'd love to help, but I have a question first. Who might this Lady be?" He asks, not showing the suspicion he feels.

[Halae]

Oh, yes. The dead book scribes just have no luck in the Nexus. Not sure why that is. Michalson puffs a cloud of smoke from his pipe. He did hire SAINT once to get rid of Din or otherwise stop her from bothering him. It met with partial success. There was that berk named Prince at AMEN once. He came there to write someone in the dead book but Powers, he was the most inept crow feeder I've ever met.

[Cabaret - Harnel and Michalson]

"No berks like that here, at least. I'm twigged to the bub though, that's good stuff," of course, Harnel's slightly limited knowledge of the cant might be caught by Michalson right there. Bub usually refers to something cheap, after all, and this is anything but cheap.

Harnel also glances towards the stage, "Looks like the fun's gonna soon."

[Shadowcaller]

Cabaret

The mage looks at the cyborg with (fake) confusion. "Now I'm not sure I follow you Magtok. As far as I can tell this whole argument started when I refused to tell you what I was doing in the privacy in my own home. I was just curious what the masks were doing just as you were curious what I was doing. As I just said though, you've won, I already shared with you what is going on back there. That is unless of course you want me to tell you more about my private life?"

[Cabaret - Rein(y) and Dena]

"Oh? Please tell me more Reiny, I always admired a man who could handle such elegant creatures." Dena asks curiously.

[Cabaret - Nadia and Irena]

As they reach the bar Irena orders a bottle of vodka for herself. "If you are going to end up as a 'slave' for someone you might as well be happy doing it." She muses. No one accused her of being smart.

[Zefir]

Cabaret
"What a coincidence! I'm here to auction myself off as well!"
He offers his hand to Andy to shake it.
"I'm Dave. Dave Smith. Ninja Doctor and also the king of hell apparently."
He says the last bit like he was a tad unhappy about it.
He wasn't over how he was what he was now, especially when he's a nice guy.

Cabaret

Andy shakes his hand. With a smile in his face, but the smile seems to be a fake.

"Yeah very funny. I'm Andreas Emerald."

Don't seem that he goes for what he said. Maybe it's both or just one of it.

[Mindfreak]

Cabaret
"I'm not joking. I had a whole adventure where my wife made me the co-owner of Hell while she recovered, so I had to fight off the forces of Heaven's army."
"It was a very intense experience."-.-

[Zefir]

[Cabaret]

"I'm sorry to say that, but I don't belive that after all. Expect you mean that 'The Hell' is a place here in the Nexus and your enemys call themself 'The Haven's Army'. And Ninja Doktor? You caould be a Ninja and a Doktor, but a Ninja Doktor would be useless. Just imagine a Doktor you never see or notice. How could a patient would freak out right?"

Andy still takes the doctor job very seriouse and still thinks he made a joke there. Also he don't belives in the Hell and therefor all who call themself owner or such are making joks.

[Mindfreak]

Cabaret
"Ninja doctors aren't useless..."
"You're mean."
He seems close to crying.
"Anyways, it was Hell. Demons were there, people were suffering for sins...it wasn't pleasant."

[Ashen Lilies]

[Cabaret]

"King of Hell?" Says Kal, sidling up to Andy and Dave. It's just something he couldn't help but hear.
"Riiiiight. And I'm the chosen messenger of God. Nice one."

[Morty]

[Cabaret - Dipsnig and Ramiro]

Funny that he's at a charity event. "It's good to see someone do what they can for the less fortunate at the very least. I believe they've been there for some time now, though for exactly how long I'm unsure. It's difficult to keep up with things in another city."

Bah! How could he miss an opportunity to be seen as a pillar of the community?
They've been keeping a low profile, yes... I'm not comfortable with not knowing much about someone.

Reelshka and Pathfinder

Pathfinder puts a claw under his collar to help him fight the heat building up with his fur and clothing before smiling down upon the goblin. "Thank you. You're looking quite lovely yourself." He tells her sincerely. The Shaman takes a moment to take a blue bead off of his shirt sleeve and swallows it before shuddering as his body feels suddenly cooler. His smile returns with his sense of comfortableness, the choking heat gone due to the little gift from the spirits.

When he notices Andy, he gives a bit of a sigh as he walks with Reelshka. "I really should apologize to him sometime, but this isn't the place for it."

Reelshka's ears twitch. Yes, I've heard you had a quarrel. Andy means well, but gets confused somewhere along the way at times.

[Cabaret - Harnel and Michalson]

"No berks like that here, at least. I'm twigged to the bub though, that's good stuff," of course, Harnel's slightly limited knowledge of the cant might be caught by Michalson right there. Bub usually refers to something cheap, after all, and this is anything but cheap.

Harnel also glances towards the stage, "Looks like the fun's gonna soon."

Michalson looks into the glass. Now, I wouldn't call that bub. It's pretty good stuff. And yeah, looks like it.

[Wenomir and KR]

Wenomir will lead KR to take a seat now that it looks the show is about to start. I wonder if our hosts will try to top the owner of this place in terms of putting on a show, he comments.

[Reinholdt]

[Cabaret - Rein(y) and Dena]

"Oh? Please tell me more Reiny, I always admired a man who could handle such elegant creatures." Dena asks curiously.

Reinholdt laughs a bit.
"Elegant! That's not one that I've heard in a very long time." Certainly not while here in the Nexus.

"I'll just show you." Reinholdt says, and with just the briefest of winces, he shapeshifts into his normal cat self, clothes melding in and pink eyes disappearing. He sits there on the table and watches Dena for her response.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Wenomir and KR]

"If they try then they're setting quite the challenge for themselves." Says KR, taking a seat.
"Magtok does not set the bar low, when it comes to theatrics."

[Morty]

[Wenomir and KR]

Who knows, maybe Magtok himself will appear as a guest star. Wenomir takes a seat as well. And I admit I'm curious about this... charity auction at the end. Something tells me this whole event will be risque, if you know what I mean.

[happyturtle]

Missy and Javert

Missy makes mental notes of anyone his gaze lingers over, wishing she had access to the MagSecurity system, but not willing to answer all the questions she'd need to answer in order to get that access.

"Good. It's not often I meet someone who can keep up with me." Missy says with a soft chuckle. And of course an inner pang, because Magtok had been an excellent dance partner.

Taul and Moff

Moff shakes on it. "I'll meet up with you during the auction then," he says.

[AmberVael]

Cabaret

"I've run into that sort of outlook many a time, and actively worked to change it. I work to bring happiness, however temporary, to those that I can, and trade favors with other, more brutish gods to ease the pain of those under their heels. It is not an entirely thankless task, I gain much from the adulation of those I provide for, but I dislike those who wield great power from high cloudtops and never see the true face of humanity. It is why I've come here, to the Nexus. I wish to see the people, be among them, and learn what ails them. Hopefully this will give me a better understanding of how to please my own followers." And if not, he can always go back to hosting revels and orgies and feasts of all sorts. Temporary happiness, to be sure, but it has sufficed for the past few millenia.

[Cabaret]

"That is certainly a much better outlook to have than most gods." Grace acknowledges. "But my objection is directed more at the root of godhood itself. I do not think worship of another being is wise, and I do not approve of deities as they- rather by definition- encourage such behavior."

[Lord Magtok]

Cabaret

The mage looks at the cyborg with (fake) confusion. "Now I'm not sure I follow you Magtok. As far as I can tell this whole argument started when I refused to tell you what I was doing in the privacy in my own home. I was just curious what the masks were doing just as you were curious what I was doing. As I just said though, you've won, I already shared with you what is going on back there. That is unless of course you want me to tell you more about my private life?"

Magtok opens his mouth to reply, and then stops, peering down at his wrist.

"Huh, look at the time. Sorry, as much as I would absolutely love to hear all about the beds, tables, counters, walls, and ceilings you and your husband have ruined together, I'm afraid I'm needed elsewhere right now. You have yourself a pleasant evening, Mrs. Mithar."

Not his best exit, and he didn't quite befuddle and perturb her as much as he'd hoped, but by and large, I think we can call this a success. When it comes to auctioning Magtok off, there'll probably be one more wallet on the line, furiously out for revenge, hoping to get the winning bid and make that cyborg pay by washing windows, dusting floors, painting walls, or whatever else it is that she'd be able to come up with.

Cabaret

Missy's return message is an emphatic "No! "

"So he works for Dipsnig, then. Nifty. "

[Gullara]

[Cabaret - Nadia and Irena]

As they reach the bar Irena orders a bottle of vodka for herself. "If you are going to end up as a 'slave' for someone you might as well be happy doing it." She muses. No one accused her of being smart.

[Cabaret - Nadia and Irena]

Nadia blinks. A whole... "Irena, don't you think that's a bit much?" A whole bottle is way more than she needs to have! Irena's face reflects her opinion on Irena endeavoring to drink that much. It's mostly concern at least.

Bah! How could he miss an opportunity to be seen as a pillar of the community?
They've been keeping a low profile, yes... I'm not comfortable with not knowing much about someone.

[Cabaret - Dipsnig and Ramiro]

And we can probably just handwave small talk from now on. At least until the main event begins.

[UncleWolf]

Dressing Room

"I am." Jezebel says, entering the room behind him with a smile. She's wearing a robe that barely contains her figure, as well as her half-white mask. She heads over to the dresses, looking through them to find what she wanted to wear that night. "Congratulations on your freedom by the way. I noticed Feia hasn't arrived, so I can only assume you're out from under her thumb." After choosing a black dress, she sets it over her arm before looking back at Kirk with a sincere smile. "The ladies really do need help back here though, and I figured you'd appreciate the offer a bit more than most." She says with a wink.

As she speaks, several women dressed as "harem slaves" leave the room and head towards the stage, getting ready.

Bar - Icarus

"Well, this is your first big function. You're over here alone instead of wit someone else or mingling like ya should be." Vinny says, nodding towards the crowd. "Who knows, you might be able ta get a date."

Bar - Taul and Moff

Taul shakes his hand. "See you then."

Missy and Javert

Javert's gaze doesn't linger on anyone in particular. It was just a glance for him to see who all was here. At her comment, he chuckles. "I have no doubt that I'll be able to."

Reelshka and Pathfinder

The shaman nods gently. "As I said, it's something I can take care of later." He tells her before giving a gentle smile. "And if you're going to sign up, you should do it soon, before it passes."

[Slii Arhem]

[Cabaret]

"That is certainly a much better outlook to have than most gods." Grace acknowledges. "But my objection is directed more at the root of godhood itself. I do not think worship of another being is wise, and I do not approve of deities as they- rather by definition- encourage such behavior."

Cabaret

"And so too does man encourage his fellow man to worship him, beguiling them into believing in his altruistic ways. The only difference is scale, and the ability to reciprocate by blessing your followers. It is not a perfect system, and there are many working tirelessly to change what little they can." Dionysius reaches out across the table to attempt to grasp Grace's hand between his.

"And, at least in my case, worship is sustaining to a god in ways nothing else can be. Without people to acknoledge our existence, we simply fade, shrivel, and become naught but a myth in the annals of history. Some gods think of their worshippers as nothing more than cattle, but for me, they are my caretakers, keeping a tired old memory alive for another day."

[Morty]

[Reelshka and Pathfinder]

Reelshka chuckles nervously. Oh, yes. I have to admit, I'm nervous. I wouldn't normally do it, but since it's for charity... I'd like to know if you're fine with staying for the auction, though. Since he used to be an actual slave and all that.

[Reinholdt]

[Entrance -> Cabaret]

A late comer arrives, but apparently still in time to enjoy the festivities.

It's Ilpholin! A demon drow Ilpholin even. Wearing a red dress. Only the horns are real and more curved. And she does have an actual devil tail.

She hands over her invitation and saunters into the area where everyone's gathered and takes a look around.

There were just so many +1s she could have brought that bringing any of them would severely disappoint the rest! So none got the lucky choice. Besides. Having a +1 when you enter makes it that much harder to leave with a new +1.