Drink the Night

[Jacob Crawford]

Jacob was fairly certain [member="Aver Brand"] was cheating, he just wasn't sure on the how.

The game had pushed onwards with a steady beat. Good hands were lost in a single card draw, others were fated to remain bad until the next refresh. At one point Jacob had a good hand, only for it to suddenly be washed away by Aver. It was his first inclination something was amiss, but he never voiced it. If anything, he was more interested in how she was doing it.

There was no doubt in his mind he wasn't even going to win back his buy-in at this rate, but that wasn't really the point; at least for him. It was to have some fun, chat with others and get a good idea on those he was unfamiliar with. Which at least in terms of the table, was almost everyone.

Jacob grumbled slightly as he took another look at his cards, another poor hand. He plucked his Kubaz cigarra between two fingers, making an opening so he could take a sip of his drink; which had just recently been refilled for the second time. He had taken up one of the cigarra because well, why not? There was something to be said about partaking in new experiences.

Placing the glass down, he looked over as [member="Irajah Ven"] spoke.

He couldn't help but smirk slightly. The doctor never did strike him as a gambler-type, at least not the ones that played Sabacc and such. Jacob was glad to see Irajah hadn't changed that much, but that thought still gave him pause as he was reminded of that distant, icy moment at the beginning of the evening.

Jacob glanced as his cards one more time before throwing some chips into the central pile.

​

[member="Reverance"] | [member="Darth Ophidia"]​

 

[Darth Ophidia]

Her first rounds were downright terrible. It took Ophidia some time to get used to the absence of the Force. She had trained to fight without it, live without it, but never play cards in its absence. Then again, she had never been the one to play cards for fun before.

Her eyes narrowed and the cigarra rolled back and forth between her teeth, guided by a motion of her jaw.

Considering her cards, chips being played and the grins and frowns of the table, she thought about the many ways she could have cheated if she had the Force. Occupying another's mind would be effective, but a little ham-handed. Stealing cards, perhaps. If she had her apprentice close, then she could probably have altered the droid's programming from a distance, give Ophidia an advantage: No such luck. She had to do this all the old fashioned way: Luck and a keen eye.

Raise.

To see what others wished for her not to see was a skill she had given much practice; as a thief, as a scout, as a determined acolyte, and a dealer of timely demises. What could she see that others did not? The twitch of a finger, a glance, a micro expression?

Too short.

Her chips were raked in Aver's direction. She looked at the hands, the sleeves, the backs of the cards. She was one hell of a player.

"Miss Ven does not strike one as the gambler, not in the way of credits anyhow. Though I am certain there are games and gambles to which you are more accustomed."

Ophidia looked past the table for a moment. Their game had encapsulated them in more ways than one, and she was curious as to what occurred beyond. For instance, what did [member="Cerbera"] do? Who danced with whom? How long could Carach go on "Caraching". It was but a moment's glance, but it told stories.

[member="Aver Brand"] [member="Irajah Ven"] [member="Reverance"] [member="Jacob Crawford"] [member="Vereshin"] [member="Ameli Trahir"]

 

[Xena Amonali]

"This looks like the right place"

Opening up the door before herself, Xena took in the heavy scents of a bar. Her eyes gaze over everyone in attendance, a small smile creeping over her face as she sees at least one familiar figure by the sabacc table. She briskly walked to the table, wearing something a bit more casual than the others, but still fancy for her standards. Placing a hand on [member="Irajah Ven"] 's shoulder, she spoke quietly to the woman. "It's nice to see you again."

Xena had a knowing smile on her face, one that was genuine and kind. She gave a quick nod to the others, not being a big fan of the Ysalamiri in the room. "I'll talk to you later". A small pat on Irajah's shoulder and she was off, going to go and sit at the bar. She ordered something light for herself and sat down. Her golden amber eyes gazing across the room, though she had the distinct feeling of darkness all around her. It stuck to the air like thick, heavy tar and made her body feel mildly uncomfortable like a overly humid summer's day.

Rolling her shoulders a bit she tried to shrug off the feeling, but of course it was coming from everywhere. She was like a little bit of light trying to illuminate a colossal cavern, it wasn't working too well. She noted the individuals at the sabacc table, then the other person at the bar with her. Giving a small smile she decided to introduce herself

"Hello"

Good way to start it, yeah. She moved herself over so she was one seat apart from [member="Vaylin"] . At least they didn't seem to be as, well she would say dark as the others. Something told her that the feelings would be much more prevalent when the ysalamiri was taken away from the equation.

---

[member="Aver Brand"] | [member="Reverance"] | [member="Jacob Crawford"] | [member="Vereshin"] | [member="Ameli Trahir"] | [member="Darth Ophidia"]

 

[Aver Brand]

“Oh, I don’t know…” Aver husked out with plumes of smoke, “I think we just ain’t playing her game yet.”

It came on soon enough, though. First round over, credits redistributed, droid reset. The merc eyed its settings, then gave it a gentle pat on its metallic cover and put it back into the suitcase. Naturally, along went also the Ysalamir.

Skin crawled, fingers itched, a cool spike lanced down her spine – for different Forcers, the feeling was different. She’d heard people say it was painful, like all the senses rushing back in at once; though Aver herself was too used to the feeling to pay it much mind.

“Miss Ven asked about house rules earlier,” she spoke through the veil of cigarra, “and I’d like to introduce her… esteemed guests to a time-honored tradition.” Red lips pursed – amusement and a faint hunger curling the edges. Blue eyes slid over to [member="Carach"] who lingered on the stairs.

“Join us?”

It was simple, really. Instead of egregious sums of credits, they would now bet egregiously expensive pieces of clothing.


[member="Darth Ophidia"] | [member="Irajah Ven"] | [member="Reverance"] | [member="Jacob Crawford"] | [member="Aria Vale"]

 

[Vereshin]

Shying away from Ameli, Vereshin felt his fingers shake violently around his pocket in search for his cigarette case while forgetting he already held a cigarette in his other hand. He watched the woman walk away as he clenched his teeth behind his lips and sighed through his nose. Stepping backwards sheepishly, he found the bar once more and his cigarette case, which he flipped open to find another smoke which he lit directly off the one in his mouth. The habit calmed his nerves in the least.

Vereshin slid by the bar and leaned backwards on a chair. Another young woman had arrived and sat between [member="Vaylin"] and himself, to whom he slyly turned his head and offered a shy smile. In the wave of doubt he suddenly realized his black teeth and tried not to open his mouth as much. He felt strands of hair tickle his forehead and fall down by his face. Raising a hand, he brushed them back and slicked over his hair while he faced the new guest of the party.

"Erm, hello. I see you just arrived, my name is Vereshin. I am an Acolyte in the Sith." Talking quickly while the cigarette bounced between his moving teeth, he leaned an arm back onto the bar and tried to relax himself. "but you can call me Vi, everybody does." He arched his neck over to try and catch the attention of the bartender, he finally felt like a drink. "Vodka, please. Ziosti." The man caught his order and swiftly poured a shot, which he slid over to the Sith who gripped the small glass with his fingers.

"...and hello Ms. Vaylin." Vereshin motioned towards the woman on the other side of Xena. "How are you finding the evening?" He lifted the glass to his lips and took the smallest sip, instantly feeling the strength of the alcohol and shaking his head involuntarily. "Tell me, Xena, what are you interested in?" He took a long drag on the cigarette and sat on the taste of the drink, already feeling his nerves subside.

[member="Xena Amonali"]

 

[Vaylin]

While the majority of the others were busy playing their little card game, Vaylin had kept herself to the bar where she was just about beyond the range of the Ysalamir. But that wasn't saying much as she could literally step away from her seat and be within its effects in a couple strides.

Instead she remained watching from a distance, as cards were drawn and hands were dealt.

Gambling was not something the Zabrak had any interest in, and frankly bored her. Now, if there was a decent fight pit going on, then she'd be interested.
Hell, she'd have probably jumped in and joined for a fight or two.

But that was Vaylin talking, someone who was most used to combat and surviving, than playing card games.

The Zabrak turned her attention back to her current drink, bringing the glass to her lips and took a sip. That's when she arrived; [member="Xena Amonali"]. She was like a small light trying to swim through a dark bog. And Vaylin was like a moth to the flame, her eyes immediately snapping over to the younger woman as she made her way through the establishment.

She stopped briefly to greet Irajah, before moving over to the bar. Vaylin quirked an eyebrow at her at first, not responding to her greeting. The Zabrak was curious how someone like her had managed to find herself amongst such darkness.

"Hello, who are you?" She asked, downing the last of her drink before waving the bartender over for a refill. That was when Vereshin decided to saddle on up to the bar too, having parted ways with Ameli. "Having fun, [member="Vereshin"]?" It was clear that Vaylin was in more of a better mood than she had been earlier in the day.

Vaylin felt a prickling sensation crawl down the length of her back. She turned her head and looked to see as [member="Aver Brand"] effectively turned of the Ysalamir. The Zabrak looked over at Xena next, wondering how she'd react now that she'd truly feel the darkness surrounding her.