Chronicles of The Omniverse Archived Lutetia City: The Den

as written by Tiko

"No, and if you don't take your arm off me you're going to lose it," she warned him. Her terran common was thick with her Lutetian accent, but she seemed fluent enough in it.

She took her shot at the pool table though, before she stood up and moved away from him around to the other side of the table to wait her turn as her opponent took his shot.

"Why don't you try your luck with the floozies at the bar," she told him as she leaned over to take another shot.

Her mind wasn't really in the game though. Normally she dominated the pool tables, but tonight she was lagging against her opponent, and she had botched two simple shots.
 
as written by barney_fife

He shot her a glare as he pulled his arm away from her, and then he moved away from her before he spoke again in Fluent Lutetian.

"So cruel." He slurred, before he flicked his wrist, and pulled his drink towards him through an unseen force. The mug flying across the bar and into his hand.

"Man! I still got it." He said, making his way over towards her. "I tell you what, give me your number and I'll show you my big Reverence." He said, grabbing his crotch in a fairly crude, suggestive way.

"Names' Raphael... Admiral Raphael McGregor... Aschen Empire... At your service." He mockingly bowed.
 
as written by Tiko

"And do all Aschen have such big Reverences?" she asked.

For a moment one might almost think she was being coy as she picked up her bottle of beer from the nearby table and took a swig of it. She turned then to face Raphael finally.

"Because with all of that heat you're packing, you could stand a dousing," she told him as she poured the remainder of her beer on his head.

The action drew a few chuckled laughs from the other patrons mingling around the pool tables.
 
as written by barney_fife

Everything seemed to grind to a halt, the drunken lechery turned to rage as the man stared at Vanessa.

"You Bitch!" He screamed. "You need to be taught a frakking lesson!" He barked as his hand went to his holster, which was of course empty because of him drunkenly leaving it somewhere.

He stood there, beer dripping off his head, and from his now soaked uniform. He was too inebriated to use his abilities, and his weapon was nowhere to be found.

"You bitch! I could have given you a good time! I'll have you hunted down and tortured to death!" He screamed before he drunkenly lunged at her.
 
as written by Tiko

Vanessa hadn't the faintest idea who Raphael was, but she had dealt with more than her share of drunken lechers around the bar. As Raphael lunged, she hooked a stool and kicked it into his path, while she moved to the side, leaving him to hopefully trip and collide with the pool table.

It was Desmond who moved to try and calm the situation as he disentangled himself from his chair where he had been flirting with a young woman sitting in his lap.

"Easy there," he said as he moved to help Raphael back to his feet. "Why don't we get your 'ome to sleep it off, aye?" Desmond suggested.

He tried to take advantage of Raphael's inebriated state to guide him towards the front door.
 
as written by barney_fife

He tumbled head over heels over the bar stool, splayed out on the floor for a moment, he quickly started to get up, wiping some blood from a wound on his head, which was already slowly starting to close up.

As Desmond moved to help him to his feet, he yanked away. The Nanomachines had been doing their job from his previous bout of drinking, but he was still a long way from Sober.

"Don't touch me!" He snapped, getting to his feet.

"Why don't we get your 'ome to sleep it off, aye?"

"Why don't I burn this city to ashes!" Raphael snapped back. "Maybe... I'll roll back here with an Imperial Fleet... maybe make something up to tell the Emperor... and then... sit back and burn this place to ashes! Don't you know who I am!?? I'm Raphael McGregor! I'm the Son of the Aschen Emperor!" He shouted, before he started to stare at Vanessa.

"All I wanted was to get a little from a hot redhead, and you had to be a stingy bitch... I could have given you anything you wanted!"

His stare was much more intense now, and Vanessa would likely feel a pressure on her throat, and on her chest as Raphael's stare got more intense. The pressure wasn't much, like a big dog sitting on one's chest. But it was slowly starting to ramp up.
 
as written by Tiko

"'ey, why don't we just calm down," Desmond said as Raphael shrugged his help off. "There's other woman out there, friend."

It wasn't until Vanessa started to double over, grabbing the edge of the pool table that he realized something was wrong. She was gaping as if she where choking, and Raphael was staring at her with an unwavering intensity.

"Aw 'ell," Desmond said.

His fist connected with Raphael's jaw.
 
as written by Saarai

It seemed Arya had picked the perfect time to enter The Den. It had been recommended to her by some of the VINDEX guys she was working with. A real hole in the wall kind of place that the Invictus operator could get down with. She hadn't counted on an Aschen being there. Not just any Aschen either.

The infamous Raphael McGregor.

Arya was frozen where she stood as Raphael went on his rant. She was unsure what to make of it. That was until she saw him get punched. That's when she whipped out her phone and nearly flew across the room. The camera was on and she was hoping the men would pput on a show for her. Something to send back to Sugar Bear and the others in Wing City. Maybe it would go viral.

"Throw a straight. Then a jab." She said, deciding not to be much help to anyone for now. Not yet, at least.
 
as written by barney_fife

It seemed to happen in an instant, the moment the fist struck, the hold on Vanessa was suddenly released. Raphael doubled over and something fell out of his uniform shirt.

The object hit the ground with an audible clunk, but it had hit the ground just right that there was an audible pop, and another object was launched from the first.

Raphael saw the small pistol hit the bar floor. He knew he was too fucked up to use his abilities, he also knew he didn't want to get his ass beat, especially with people filming it.

His eyes went to the pistol on the floor, and he threw an Elbow at Desmond to break free so he could make a grab for the weapon on the bar floor.

It seems he had totally forgotton about his backup.
 
as written by Tiko

Desmond grabbed hold of Raphael, but the elbow jab drew a grunt from him and he nearly lost his grip as the admiral made to grab for the gun. Desmond too saw the gun, but instead of trying to reach it before Raphael, he plowed into Raphael. His shoulder drove into Aschen officer's side to send both of them crashing through a few chairs and away from the gun.

It would be a mad scramble of Desmond trying to get on top of Raphael to hold him down, while Raphael sought to reach the gun only a few feet away.
 
as written by barney_fife

No thanks to heightened awareness, even through the haze of alcohol, Raphael could sense Desmond coming after him as he went for the gun.

it would be a quickly executed move. Raphael's left hand was outstretched, and in the foggy haze of Alcohol, he imagined the weapon in his hand.

Desmond was closing in now, and Raphael was whipping around as Desmond closed in, the Pistol now careening through the air. As Desmond pushed his shoulder into Raphael, Raphael's right arm hooked around Desmon'd head, and used the momentum to bring them both spinning towards the ground in an elaborate neck throw which transitioned quickly into a headlock.

As Raphael transitioned into the lock, the Pistol sailed into his hand and the pair would be on the floor, with Raphael holding Desmond in a chokehold, and holding the pistol to his head.

"This wasn't your fight, amacus." He said, sliding his weapon on the power switch of the pistol, moving to activate it, the Weapon however was completely silent, lacking the traditional whine of Aschen weapons.

"This is a Type 34A Disruptor pistol, issued to officers of the Imperial Navy, the most powerful handgun in the Aschen Empire... capable of blowing your head clean off." Raphael pressed the muzzle against Desmond's temple.

"You gotta ask yourself one question... do I feel lucky?" Raphael scowled, squeezing the weapon. "Well do you, punk?"
 
as written by Saarai

"Are you really going to murder a guy on camera?" Arya asked Raphael as she stepped closer to him and Desmond. Her phone stayed focused on the two with one hand holding it as the other moved towards the pistol she carried in the back of her jeans.

"Think about what you're doing there, Dirty Harry. Think of the example you're setting and what'll happen to you if this hits the net." Arya continued, tapping a finger against her phone. She wasn't sure if she should intervene. The Aschen had a habit of using disproportionate retribution, even if it was their fault something happened.

Shooting Raphael could lead to that, but so could letting him to get hurt or killed by someone else. The Den was a rough place in a rough area from what Bones could gather.

Who knew who would show up and take offense to Raphael holding a gun to a guy's head?

"Come on, bro. Settle down."
 
as written by Tiko

Desmond pulled at Raphael's arm to try and lessen the pressure on his neck from the choke hold, but as he felt the muzzle of the gun press to his temple, he fell still. He slowly moved his hands away, holding them open palmed in a show of surrender.

"'ey, listen to the lady. You don't 'ave to do this," he rasped out "Just put the gun away an' I'll buy you a drink. No 'ard feelings, alright?"

Everything in the bar had fallen silent as Raphael held Desmond there with the gun to his head. Not a one thought to call the police though.
 
as written by barney_fife

Raphael continued to hold the gun against Desmond's head, squeezing the stock and then sliding his finger onto the trigger.

"The price for assaulting an Admiral of the Empire is summary execution." He said, holding the weapon firmly to Desmond's head and even pressing into it some.

"Should have stayed out of it. No one fraks with me, no one tells me no. I get what I want, and you're about to pay the ultimate price."

His finger squeezed the trigger, and the subtle but audible click of circuits being connected could be heard. But nothing happened. Raphael pulled again, and nothing happened. It was then he noticed the glimmer of the energy cell on the floor, and he pulled the gun away and then he shoved Desmond away before going to his feet.

"This isn't over!" He shouted to the pair, as he started towards the door.
 
as written by Tiko

Desmond screwed his eyes shut as Raphael pulled the trigger.

Click.

He opened one eye. Still alive?

Well that was unexpected. Luck it would seem was on his side tonight, but rather than taking his good fortune graciously, he decided to flirt with it a bit more.

"Don't worry. It 'appens to all of us. I won't tell if you don't."

He rubbed at his neck as Raphael released him, and he watched the man move for the door. Once it was apparent that Raphael was clearing out, he dusted himself off and picked himself up out of the topped chairs to go check on Vanessa. He lay light hand on her arm and gave her a concerned look.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Who was that creep anyways?

"I don't know, I've never seen 'im around before," Desmond answered with a bit of a frown as he glanced towards the exit where Raphael had left.

"Well hopefully that's the last we see of him. I think I'm going to clear out for tonight though. The place is closing soon anyways," she said.

"You want me to give you a ride 'ome?" he asked.

"No, I brought my car. Thanks though. You'll let Baron know about what happened?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it."

It didn't take long for the silence of earlier to gradually rebuild into the low din of conversations as the bar patrons seemed none the worse for wear after Raphael's outburst. Apparently that sort of thing wasn't terribly uncommon around the place.
 
as written by Tiko

Several days later...

Baron was behind the bar fishing out a bottle of whiskey to pour himself a glass, and only vaguely payed much mind to the goings on within the room.

The Den wouldn't be open for another three hours, but the establishment served as a general hangout for the pack, and it was rare that it was empty even when it wasn't yet opened for customers.

Bastien and Jacques where currently engaged in a game of pool, while Ulrich was waiting his turn to have a go at the winner. So far the game seemed fairly level, and it could go either way.

"I don't remember you being this good," Bastien noted dryly as he leaned on his pool cue and waited his turn.

"I play on the weekends," Jacques answered. "How's your kid?"

"Better," Bastien answered.

The conversation droned in the background as Baron sipped his drink.
 
as written by Sentry and Alara

Jeanne never did expect herself to come back in. She'd said she would, made comments about it to Iago, but she didn't think she was serious.

But here she was, poking her head into The Den, looking for Baron. It had been a particularly long day at work, and the previous night speaking to the children had given her a headache. She needed to wind down- something she rarely did. It's not as though the boys at the office wanted to run into her at a bar.

Almost sheepishly, she smiled at Baron once she'd spotted him, and glanced around at everyone else as she approached him.

"Opened early today?" she asked, smirking at him.

Suspicious eyes turned on Jeanne as she entered, and a few even murmured quietly before turning back to what they had been doing before she arrived. Baron's eyes never looked away though and they followed her as she approached him.

"Not for a few hours," Baron answered as he took another sip of his drink. "Do you play?" he asked as he gestured to the pool tables. There was a wolfish gleam to his eyes as he watched her intently.

The detective lifted her chin as she took a gander at the pool tables, hands coming to her hips. She ran her tongue along her teeth in a grin. "It's been a while. I might need a little refresher," she said, giving him a sidelong glance.

He finished his drink and set the glass down before making his way to the tables where he picked up a pool cue and tossed it to Jeanne. He never played with the pack, and his presence at the tables was a bit unusual, but he remained seemingly uncaring of the eyes that lingered upon them.
 
as written by Knosis and Alara

Chloe frowned slightly. "I really hope I don't get bitey then.." She said, half serious.

"To be honest.. Things have gotten worse.." She added meekly. She didn't explain further though, so she unbuckled and slid out of the car, closing it behind her.

"You think they'll allow me in, then?" She asked.

"Course they 'ill. You're wi' me today. An' what do you mean worse?" he asked.

He got out of the vehicle and closed the door, but he didn't head towards the bar yet. He imagined she'd rather discuss it out here before being immersed into a room of strangers.
 
as written by Knosis and Alara

She paused and shifted uncomfortably where she stood. "I'm.. Losing memory."

"An' you never used to forget things before?" he asked.

"Not this bad." She said quietly. Other things had been happening, but she didn't feel the need to go into those details until she judged the reaction of this news.

Desmond could see the hesitation and uncertainty in her.

"'ey now, there's nothin' to be ashamed of," he reassured her. "Come on, we'll get some drinks an' talk about it."

She nodded her head. "Alright.." She murmured.

With that the pair headed inside the bar through the back door.
 
as written by Tiko

Desmond had led Chloe to one of the available tables, of which there where many at the moment. From there he had seen to putting some glasses out, and acquiring a pitcher of beer.

"So 'ow is this for a plan," he said as he joined her at the table. "We drink, we talk, we get drunk. We share some stories, an' then we drink some more."

The others in the bar mostly seemed occupied over at the pool tables, though there where a few other pack members lingering at the tables situated around the bar.
 
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