"Well you know what that means, don't you?" Commander Roy laughed heartily and reached down with his hand extended to help Koru to his feet.
"A drink!" Phoenix answered. It wasn't a guess.
"How'd you know?" Roy asked as he led the group to the bar located below the hangars.
"It's you, Roy. Everything calls for a drink." Phoenix replied.
"Yeah, you right." Roy said with a smile as he pulled two full steel flasks from his belt and offered one to each of his teammates. Phoenix took one and downed a mighty gulp without hesitation.
"Whew!" Phoenix shook his head a few times, with vigor, as the taste and burn of the strong alcohol caught up to him. "Good rum, Roy." He nudged Koru in the side lightly but the warlock didn't seem to notice as they descended the concrete stairs that led to the hangars. Ahead of them and beyond a high fence, guardians' ships were being landed and stowed away, piloted from afar by their ghost's AI.
They took a left and made their way down more stairs past the Tower shipwright Amanda Holliday, who gave a friendly wave as they passed, and the Dead Orbit recruiter tucked into a corner among crates and other cargo marked with the guild's logo. Their boots clanked on steel as they went down the long stairway lit with deep red lights that led to the bar.
Koru Sen walked on, eyes on the ground in front of him. His eyes danced, aglow as he contemplated the possibilities of the date he was about to go on. Would it go smoothly? Each step brought another of the infinite undesirable outcomes to the forefront of his mind. He shook his head clear of those thoughts and at last noticed Roy holding the unmarked flask out to him.
"Come on, have a little." Roy smiled warmly down to his teammate.
"What's in it?" Koru asked, taking it and unscrewing the lid. His gold eyes met Roy's browns and he took a light sniff of the stuff, and immediately recoiled. The sharp, almost burning fumes assaulted his senses.
Roy glanced down to the plain silver flask the Awoken warlock held, but shrugged indifferently. "Rum. Maybe whiskey, I never mark those ones. Just take a drink, it'll help you calm down."
Koru blinked in sudden realization. "Wait, aren't we going to a bar? Why are you offering me alcohol on the way there?"
"Because fuck you, that's why." Roy replied with a dry smile and took the open flask from Koru's hand. He tilted his head back and wrapped his lips around its neck, swallowing a huge gulp after landing on each steel step on the way down. He had emptied it by the time they reached the bottom. After wiping his lips, he remarked. "That one was whiskey."
Phoenix led the way to the right, past the robotic frame repair workshop and to the nightclub beyond. It had a steady red and blue glow and a strangely calming, quiet ambiance at this time of day despite the rhythmic beats playing over the speakers. "Hey, Roy's a walking bar, so next time just take the drink, buddy." He patted Koru on the back and led him to a seat at the bar. He and Roy sat down on either side of the warlock.
"All right," Phoenix started as he waved over to the bartender, a frame painted sky blue. It had a towel draped over one shoulder and was busy washing glasses, but hurried at the call of a patron. "It's less than an hour, right? You got a game plan?"
"How may I help you, sirs?" The frame asked with a deep, synthetic voice. In stood eerily still on the other side of the counter.
"Yeah," Phoenix looked over to Koru. "He'll have two shots of your smoothest whiskey. Get me a pint of your finest stout. And, ah, Roy," he called to the titan, "What are you drinkin'?"
"Everything." Roy answered simply, then continued. "Give me your strongest stuff in as many glasses as you have, and keep 'em comin'."
For a moment the bartender was perfectly still. Silence overcame the scene and only the dance music from the lounge broke its nearly maddening grasp. At last the bartender spoke. "Affirmative. And who shall I charge?"
Phoenix smirked and made a finger-gun to mock fire and Koru. "Put it on this guy's tab, pal."
Koru sat bolt-upright and clenched his jaw. Even as he opened his mouth to protest, the bartender's single lens that served as its eye flared a bright green and flashed Koru's face with an intricate display of lines in a grid that shone up and down his face.
"Hey," Koru grimaced, squinting to avoid the pain of staring into the light.
"Facial scan complete. Checking database. Thank you. You will be notified of your debt tomorrow morning at nine o'clock, Mr. Koru Sen."
Koru sighed and looked to his teammate as the bartender went about fetching their orders. "You're getting next round."
"Gotta be quick on the draw, buddy." Phoenix smiled and caught the glass mug that came sliding across the bar toward him. He inspected his drink. "Nice head," he took a sip, "Good flavor. Hey Koru, tip that guy for me when we're done here."
The two whiskey shots were poured from a deep green bottle with perfect measure and not a single drop spilled. Koru looked at them long after the frame had left to set Roy's order up.
"So anyway, got a game plan, buddy? Maybe reorganize the rocks in the trenches, categorize debris alphabetically?" Phoenix chuckled and took a bigger drink.
"Phoenix, I've never been on a date before, but even I know that's moronic. It's only lending a hand during patrol. So I'll help her on her missions and we'll come back to the Tower. Easy stuff." His eyes stayed locked on his untouched drinks.
"So what's the problem?"
"I don't know what to talk about. What if I say the wrong thing? It could get awkward, or end early, or she could get mad at me-"
"Hey! HEY!" Roy shouted and slammed his fist on the bar as he stood up a little from his stool. "I said your strongest, damn it, don't try to skimp on me, jackass!"
The bartender frame paused and jerked its head to the side as it reached up to the top shelf. It set down one bottle and grabbed another. Almost sheepishly, it responded. "Subroutine: skimp-nine-dash-nine terminated."
"Better." Roy sat down again and turned to face Koru. He gently pushed one of the shot glasses toward the warlock's hand. "Here's my advice. Take a drink, then the other one, loosen up, and relax. Just don't fuck up and you'll be fine."
Koru lifted a glass and took the shot, tilting his head back. The alcohol went down smooth but still burned in his throat like liquid fire. He shook his head and took a deep breath. "But what if I do fuck up?"
Roy shrugged and tossed back three shots of various alcohol that the bartender had set in front of him before answering. "Then don't."
"Thanks." Koru responded almost absently.
"Hey," Phoenix said, "Talk philosophy or whatever to her. That works for warlocks, right?"
"I don't think she's that kind of girl." Koru took the second shot, and it burned as badly as the first.
"Try a story. We have some good ones. Or maybe a joke?" Phoenix took several big gulps of his drink and slammed the mug down on the counter. "Another!" he called. The bartender finished pouring another drink for Roy and went to address Phoenix's order.
Roy downed one drink and another in rapid succession, then grabbed the bottle that the barkeep had left in front of him and tipped it into his mouth.
"Yeah, that could be effective. What's a good joke?" Koru asked, pondering.
"Your face!" Roy exclaimed, laughing. "Ahh, but really, all else fails, just try seducing her. Here's a good line." He cleared his throat. "Hey girl, did you fall from heaven? Because I always wanted to fuck an angel. Classic" He took another swig from the bottle, and the frame firmly yanked it away from his mouth. "Hey, what?"
The frame glanced down at the bottle and scanned it with the same system it used to identify Koru. "Label identified. Price recorded." It then handed the bottle back to Roy, who resumed drinking while it prepared others for him.
Koru sighed and glanced up to the clock above the top shelf liquors. "You already told me that one, Roy. Half an hour ago."
Phoenix lightly clapped Koru on the shoulder. "Dude, don't stress. Just breathe, relax, and… Okay, crazy idea. Leave your radio on and me and Roy will listen in and help you if you get stuck! We'll make sure to stay hidden, too." He beamed with pride at the idea.
Koru focused his gaze on the ticking clock, tapping his finger on the counter in rhythm while he rested his chin on his knuckles. "Hmm. That eliminates possible failures in the four-digit range. Just might work."
Roy tipped the bottle back completely, slamming it down on the bar hard enough to shatter it, glass shards flying across the room. "Holy shit! Stealth mission?"
"Stealth mission!" Phoenix exclaimed, reaching over to fist-bump Roy.
Koru held his face in his palm. "Stealth mission…"