16362/Interlude: Cocktail recipes

Interlude: Cocktail recipes
Date of Scene:	13 June 2024
Location:	Club Lux, Melville
Synopsis:	New names for old recipes? Or brand new recipes. Any which way, good for an event
Cast of Characters:	Sinister, Phantasm (Drago), Lucifer

---

Sinister has posed:
Wednesdays brings with it the hump day blues. But it's also one of the lowest sales days in the Club. Whatever Lucifer's doing, it involves being elsewhere from here -- likely revising talent, trying out new things, or having an in person negotiation with someone. Or perhaps something.

Either way, the club is currently in quiet 'session' mode; for most mortals, this means very little. They come, they play and practice with the accoustics specific to the Lux, they go about their business and enjoy a five star experience in the Hotel. For others though, those that might be able to sense things not quite normal, it's a very sensitive experience. The walls of the club after all, are alive with almost sentient sensors, courtesy of one man. And he, through all of it, sits with a laptop and two screens, up at the perfect 'sweet spot' tuning things. A barman sweeps. A couple of other staff are having a chat, a few are looking over decorations, but overall? Quiet. And there's the scent in the air, like unto how it carries in water... of blood. Sort of, anyway.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Low sales days have their benefits. Most notably the low days don't go all out with the music bookings, which allows for one William Wilkenson to use his free time to prepare for some not so free time.

The impeccably yet comfortably dressed man makes his way into the club. With a gentle nod to a pair of ladies on their way out, he continues on, ignoring the turns as he makes his way further in.

While he may be dress appropriately for the environment, the notebook he has in hand is sufficient notice that he's not here to dance. The twenties-ish looking man seems much more interested with the layout of the club.

Sinister has posed:
The club has a certain flavour of roman amphitheatre, modernized. The stage and main floor is on the lowest level, with tiers of seating arrangements and rings of higher terraces around, most of which afford at least some view of the stage area -- the grand piano is virtually a fixture down there, under spotlights and bespeaking a more civilized era and memories of clouds of smoke hanging just below the ceiling itself.

Sinister looks up under his brows, tracks the shape moving its way into the club, in part alerted by the walls themselves, in part by those peculiar senses of his. He smiles, crooked and with the hint of a singular dimple and observes the vampire amongst the sheep.

A text is sent to his particular server, Janice, to have some of his special heinz 57 made up. And then, he simply waits. Most here don't stand out, at least not of the plebian masses. Virtually NONE of the staff are normal. Most aren't even slightly human.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Considering the general objective, William takes a moment to sketch out a layout of the stage area, approximating the size of each level. Granted, Carr doesn't do as much of the choreography Poe did with Rowl, there's still the need to assess potential movement.

Eyes set upon the piano, taking a moment to appreciate it before making note of that in the book.

The steps wander, movement slow as William lets his hearing guide him towards the sweet spot of sound. And consequently the one who currently occupies it.

Sinister has posed:
"Mister Wilkenson, a pleasure again..." -- says the total stranger that the vampire's never met before. It doesn't help that Sinister's not only looking particularly human and male, but his scent is also different from masculine to feminine, though one could imagine that the very sensitive of nose might suppose the two identities to be siblings.

He looks casual, but Sin rarely looks scruffy. A white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, is undone to the collar bone, his simple raven-embroidered waistcoat is neatly buttoned around his midriff. Jeans, rose tinted lennon spectacles and gunmetal grey eyes.

"I am afraid Lucifer is not here this evening. He's doing something that is probably far more social than I'm inclined toward. How are you?"

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
It is but a moment. William coming up to the one playing with a dual display. From the attire, the positioning and the equipment, he had briefly considered this to be an in house sound manager. Someone he'd want to speak with either way.

Perhaps he should have spoken a bit sooner but he was in a bit of an observational state. And there was quite a bit to take in seated there. A slight smirk forms which falters as he hears his names coming from those lips.

He met him before?

Curious he uses his other senses to try and pick up more about the figure.

There is something familiar. But different.

This leads to a longer study of the man's features. Which, while some might find awkward, William's finding not too bad a fate.

William is on the verge of offering an apology to Sinister before the mention of Lucifer draws him towards thoughts of the previous meeting. And the beautiful-

Theeere's the familiarity.

A curious look forms upon his face, lowering his voice for his next question. While he may wish for the knowledge, it would hardly do to be careless with the volume of his voice while pursuing it.

"Shifter?"

Sinister has posed:
"Amongst other things," Sin's grin spreads wider, inclining his head to take the sting out of his otherwise quippish reply. He gestures to the table, to the seating -- indeed, the dual screens display the audio balances, but with considerably more than the usually far more mechanical sliders. All this is digital, but no less calibrated for it -- the equalizer is constantly adjusting here and there, tiny amounts to keep the sound quality as near to perfect as it can manage to be. This, the sort of thing one of a musical ear would observe.

There was no shying from the study, quite happy it seemed to be a living work of art for the scrutiny. "Molecular metamorph. Although I've never decided to try it, I could spend quite an afternoon as a table. I suspect that it would be quite boring though, don't you suppose?"

At this juncture, Janice, the server who is considerably less well endowed and less aesthetically pleasing than most of the rest of the staff, arrives with an unabashedly fruity girly drink on a coaster and a tall, delicious... erm.... bloody mary. It could be a Caesar. You know, to the casual eye. It isn't. It very much isn't.

Both are set down, the blood within reach whichever seat is taken and Janice heads off in her athletic, no-nonsense stride. "You're doing the pre-check, I'm going to guess."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
With the confirmation given, William gives a nod, smile reforming. "Ah. Lucifer is quite lucky indeed. The best of both worlds."

Seeing the gesture, the manger turned sound technician looks over to the displays. "I would assume it to be less than appealing thing to try." He agrees, glancing back to Sinister, "But there are people who spend their time acting like food trays, so.." There is a shrug.

Eyes move back to the screen as Janice comes by, setting the red drink near him. "Thank you, Miss." he addresses her before Sinister's question is processed, "You would be correct. The last thing I'd want is for one of my band members to fall off a stage because they had it in their heads that it was much wider." A

As he speaks he notes the adjustments kicking on to accommodate even for his voice. "...Quite a sensitive system." He observes, "I should probably familiarize myself with the house policy here for sound system management for visiting bands. Normally we end up bringing our own equipment."

Sinister has posed:
"Nantaimono is definitely a thing. Exceptionally Japanese, in that it's a kinky art form, but I suspect you might be being slightly less generous in your statement," even if it was intended with utter innocence, there really are a lot of walking lunchboxes in the world. "Do let me know what you think..." he nods to the drink provided "...my own creation, from study, observation, control groups and personal experience. The trick is to have just enough actual human plasma in there, to slake. Cloned and mass synthesized, it actually does quite a good job when you don't add the spices, as an emergency transfusion."

Inventor, too.

That is all left by the wayside as he makes room for William to take a look at the sound management system. "This is also a system of my own creation, if not invention. Everything already existed, I just ..." he shrugs, pointing to the walls "...the panels have AI panels, interspersed with the speakers, self-adjusting doppler. There was a lot of mathematical calculation to get it all placed in the right spots, but a lot of it does its own job. If you want specific balances, greater bass, more treble, even decibel modulation and sonic control, it would be a matter of getting the band to sing and doing it the semi old-fashioned way."

Pause.

"But if you want to bring the more traditional equipment, we'll just do a scan of everything when it comes in. You get a lot of idiots in the world, after all."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
"Understood." William acknowledges, "As impressive as this might be my primary concern would be understanding the interface if there was need to do something that would go against the AI. If there is an approved user restriction involved, then it would be a concern of the person running the equipment not knowing the general sound the band goes for."

He pauses, "...also adjusting for joint performances."

William glances over to the stage area. "Another point of concern is knowing what areas will be designated for the musicians and what areas will be designated for the drag show."

He takes a moment, reaching over to bring the given drink towards his lips, tentatively tasting the tomato tinted thirst quencher.

Sinister has posed:
Sinister turns the tablet screen a little, so that it faces the vampire more fully and indicates it with a gesture of the hand, sweeping and open palmed. The laptop he keeps in front of himself fully. "Instead of sliders and dials, you have ... virtual sliders and dials, but the sound control is the same, outside of the automatic levelling. Only I know how to get the walls to do more than just what you'd think they're meant to do... I do hope I never have to test that particular function as a defense system, it could end up with some intereting consequences."

The blood tastes spicy, but not burning hot, seems to not be clumpy and has some herby over and undertones. Depending on how refined the palate, there are nuances of some rare blood types and some rare non-human blood variants in there, that makes what isn't technically 'real' quite palatable, overall. And sustaining. Some of this isn't entirely mundane after all, so there must be some kind of treatment that gets done to the vital sanguine humor.

"As to the drag event, I am not wholely sure about that yet. The mass amount of social liasing is something I've left to Lucifer to do, I am not... particularly gregarious most of the time."

He awaits a verdict on the cocktail though, eager to hear opinion, it would seem.

"So... if it isn't a gauche question and I offer no apologies if it /is/... what kind are you? There's a few that I've observed."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
William looks to the glass as he lets the sip linger in the mouth for a few moments, intrigued. While not visible, there is movement within as the tongue swims within the small blood pool. The levels gradually lower as they rinse down. "Hmm..."

Commentary is not directly offered upon the blood as he takes another sip. Glancing to the turned tablet. To the mention of using the sound as a defense system a brow arches as he swallows his second taste of the drink.

"Considering that, Is this a system you would trust others to run?"

The glass sets down. Mindfully away from the equipment that Sinister is working with. "The beverage will do nicely... Are we still to use Sangria as a term for asking for it, or has the key word changed?"

The question to his type doesn't get immediately answered as he seems to consider the best way to do so. "Well, you already know that I'm a hemovore." William responds, "...But do not lump me in with the ones that tend to favor Sunnydale. We tend to be raised by a different set of rules."

Sinister has posed:
"Well, I mentioned it and then caveated that nobody knows how to use it but myself. I severely doubt that you can operate the defenses without my unlocking them. So no, I have no worries at all that someone will accidentally set something off. There's plenty of idiots in the world, but I'm not one of them." Nathaniel watches intrigued by the process, then fixes his gaze upon William, straight in the eye.

"You're also not one of Tepes' brood. They tend to be a bit more visceral. Trust me, I know that first hand." Cocking his head to the side to watch the other man across his cheekbone, he contemplates. "You'd be more the... technically meta sort of individual, I'd wager. There has to be several that don't stick out like sore thumbs, or you'd all have been erradicated millenia ago."

A painful truth, no matter how powerful individuals are, there's a lot more of -them- than there are of you, so to speak.

"I expect you're a little like me."

Lucifer has posed:
"Not to mention..." Comes a voice from near them as Lucifer walks up to join them. "...there are plenty of other fail safes. For the just in case..." He smiles to the pair and gives them a small bow before taking a further moment to offer Nathaniel a proper kiss of greeting. "Good evening. I hope discussions are going well?" Asking. Though he might know. Or he might not know. There is no telling how long Lucifer may have been listening in, or if perhaps he was using that mental link with Nathaniel to sort of play the spy game. As best he can anyway.

"And yes. Sangria is still the code word that I would like to be used." Further offering this as he gives a look around before glancing back. "I can come up with a little menu if you'd like for me or my staff to use it in any kind of cocktail. Or just ask for the cocktail 'sangria style'..." He seems to think on that and then nods. "Yes. That works."

He's definitely and simply stuck his nose into the middle of their conversation, so this is all he provides while letting William answer to anything more that Nathaniel questioned or commented on.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Blue eyes look over to the display once more as Sinister assures there's no way someone could accidentally trigger the surprise feature. There is a general curiousity to the tech. "...In that case, perhaps I could try it out at the rehearsal to see how it would fare with what we have planned? If it suits, that will be less equipment going in to have checked."

William listens to Sinister's general observations. There's no move to correct any of the things said. There has always been caution. The rules exist for a reason. So they can continue to as well.

The last statement causes for him to look to Sinister curiously to that.

Hearing Lucifer's voice. William blinks, turning to reach for the drink to take another sip. Listening to the club owner speak. The drink is very good. And...if has the properties to help maintain the strength, it could be worthwhile to get information on obtaining more. Products that reduce the risk of exposure? The elders would likely approve of that.

The glass sets down, "Discussions are going well." William answers, giving a nod. Although, I would like to hash out some details on the general timeline of the event as well to what areas of the stage will be accessible at each point at a point when you're feeling inclined to do so."

Sinister has posed:
"As Luci says, Sangria will suffice. But there -are- different flavours of that..." Sinister nods toward the drink in William's possession. "I had a need to make it so," a pause "...and necessity is the mother of invention as they say." He returns the kiss to Lucifer, even as the devil is confirming the choice of names to be applied. "Perhaps a cherry fizz for one? A Julius blood orange?" There's a quiet little chuckle with it, but he then nods. "Feel free to fiddle with it now a little... alter the quality of the current session band --" one of the regulars doing a small set, it would be easy enough to fiddle with the levels and give them more or less bass, swing the balance of vocals a little.

"William was also inquiring about the designated Fierce zone, for the upcoming events." He supplies, then watches the cogs slowly turning in the vampire's head. Maybe questions will be asked. Maybe not.

Lucifer has posed:
"Still coming up with that.. I was thinking if we move the piano we could cover the dance floor with a temporary stage extension. Perhaps make a dedicated runway for the drag show, and also open up a little more room to the side where the band could play music while the runway is in use and then they can swivel out somehow to perform a song or two between runway sets." Lucifer has been thinking about it likely more than he is willing to admit in all truth. It's little things like this that get him excited. If this works, then it opens up even more opportunities for him to run certain events from the club.

Think of the publicity!

"If you want, you could bring...uhm...well one time after closing you could bring the band in and we can see how it would work maybe? Cause I'll have to install the temporary stage early anyway to make sure." He offers this, but also remembered on a last minute thought that the band would have to come late and after closing. For secrecy's sake.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
William glances back over towards the stage area and then to the piano. Taking out his notebook, he starts to do another sketch of the area, trying to detail what Lucifer was saying. "The rehearsal area you visited will be marked off by tape to figure out placements. It may be easier to work it out there before you go through the effort of putting in the floor."

There's a pause. "... Also if you plan to swing the bands around, we might need the wheeled risers for the percussion sets. Or have a dedicated area for percussion to remain while the stringed instruments are the only things that move."

Sinister has posed:
Sinister keeps quiet for now. Event logistics are not his cup of tea. He listens to the band and the two at the table though, just without commentary.

Lucifer has posed:
"Bands? We've only hired your band to play..." Lucifer says this and then procures a piece of paper and a pencil to begin drawing out his idea. The stage and the dance floor, then placing the temporary stage extender. Where the runway would be - sort of just off center to the left (from the viewpoint of looking at the stage from the crowd) and then marks where the band would be while the runway is in use. "So this, and then when we're taking a break from the runway being used, we can swing the band out a bit more so take up more stage presence, bust out a few tunes and then swing them back when they aren't...in full performance per se. Likely three sets, two songs each. Doors will open at...eight? Show begins at nine. This way we can go until two am with the performances and...well...how does this look and sound so far? Make a little more sense?"

Then he looks over to Sinister and gives a little sheepish smile. "Sorry for stealing your limelight a bit here, lover."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
As Lucifer points out his usage of the plural, William gives a slight nod. "Ah. But I consider Mr. Drago to be an act of his own." He responds, cracking a smile. As he leans over to get a better view of what Lucifer is drawing. "If we can keep the percussion stationary and leave it to the guitarists and primary vocalists to swing out to the stage area, that would cut down on transition time considerably." A finger sets upon the edge of the 'aside stage area closest to the runway, "That'd be the prime spot to position them...So. Three sets, of 2 songs each... Plus the runway playlist?"

There's a pause as he glances over to Sinister for a moment before looking back to the layout. "Do you have enough room set aside for dancing? We could adjust the selection at the end to make sure they're not the wildly jumping around type."

Sinister has posed:
Sinister smiles faintly to Lucifer, raising his extremely fruity girly drink to his lips in toast, then to suck through the twirly straw. He turns his gaze to the stage and the session band, though his closest ear shifts slightly. Maybe he can keep the corner of his eye on the two of them.

Lucifer has posed:
"Oh I suppose I can understand that but he's not going to be doing any solo performing...at least. Not to my knowledge. I thought he was only going to join your group." Lucifer offers this much at least and then nods. "Yeah the percussion could be stationary here, perhaps?" He points. Then looks and listens...the back and forth might go on for a bit. Lucifer agreeing and confirming most the things William is pointing out.

"Dancing...for who? The band or the people in the crowd? I don't expect anyone in the crowd to really dance much which is why I'm fine with sectioning off the dance floor. If you mean the band... well... we could leave that open for marking if needed..." Saying this much while giving a smile. Planning is -definitely- something Lucifer is good at and certainly a thing he enjoys.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
"Well, even playing alongside us, he is still his own brand." William replies. "Maybe in fifty years time he'll don a mask and join whatever variation of Five times there is at that point." But that's definitely not happening at the moment. That boy can be quite...skittish.

To the question to those who may dance, eyes set upon each member of the couple before him. Is it possible that-

"...Very well I'll rephrase the question." William concedes, "After the show is done, are you two intending to dance?"

Sinister has posed:
"Oh, possibly." Sinister replies mildly, almost absent because he's watching one of the audience to the band rather closely, with narrowed eyes. "We do that sometimes when there's not even any music--" he sighs, a soft smile hinting at the edge of his eyes. Memory, it is a golden thing as well as a death-trap.

"Excuse me a moment," he inclines his head left and right, rises and moves toward the small crowd by the band. How a man THAT tall can blend in is anyone's guess.

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer flushes a bit. Then he blinks. "Oh. Wait..." He begins to put things together himself, especially when he catches that look from William. "Ahh...yes...we might have a dance or two..." He says this much to confirm what Nathaniel says. "But it doesn't really need to be anything special to put music to. I know the band sort of needs to skirt away so they can sleep and perhaps slip away into the night to get away from the club and the crowd."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
THERE we go...

"We'll add a couple near the end to wind down the evening. Something to pass the time for those filtering out or finishing up their last drink. Nothing overly energizing but a good nightcap to the evening."

Hearing the 'excuse me' William pauses to watch as the Devil's better half slips into the crowd. Considering the look he caught upon the features before the departure, he tries to determine which one triggered the behavior. "Hmm."

Sinister has posed:
There isn't anything particularly obvious that might have visually triggered Sinister. But something clearly did -- it doesn't seem to be an immediate threat though, as nothing has 'gone off' or triggered anything particularly extreme.

Maybe if they strain to look at him or focus to find him, they'll spot him walking up behind a youngish couple, both who are dancing to the set piece being played. A whirl of a hand, a twist past and he claims hairs that have come loose, like a Brujah. But there's also a shoulder-check and a glare at the male, then the female of the duo. A smile, quietly and subtley malicious, "...I do beg your pardon." -- If lips can be read.

Then he's making his way back up the stairs, carefully placing hairs in his waistcoat pocket.