(A/N: finally, I've procured the latest chapter of Elisir. After reading through this chapter, however, I found it kinda slow – I had intended to have a longer content, but I think that would've thrown it out-of-balance. Please enjoy)
Elisir
by The Great Red Dragon
Chapter 14
The bench stopped rising smoothly once Niki saw appropriate space between his knees and the bottom of the table. He turned his head, and saw Gomora only briefly illuminated in the laser lights. A song of the words "this is really dangerous" was playing over the sound system. He had still to make out who exactly was sitting across from Gomora and him. Whoever it was, his arm cast a massive silhouette as it reached across the table to take Gomora's hand.
"Good to see you again", the deep voice rumbled as the trunk-sized arm withdrew.
"Have you had a busy week? – we haven't heard from you in a while."
"S'pose I've been a bit occupied", Gomora replied, leaning back in his seat.
"What about you two?"
"He's been working overtime", the higher of the two voices chimed from the table's end.
"Too much. I hardly see him anymore during the day! People need to stop getting sick and shooting eachother."
Niki had no idea what exactly was being talked about, but he didn't feel guilty about it. Personally, seeing that huge shadow of an arm reach out from the darkness was a bit unnerving, and he felt content not to be drawn in just yet.
"Ah, I'm sorry, Aries", Gomora lamented in reply, leaning back against the bench's pads.
"What do you do with yourself during those lonesome hours?"
"…Sleep and watch TV", came the somewhat embarrassed reply from the high voice.
"…And sometimes I order food…for dinner."
"Oh – hello. Gomora, whom might this be?"
Niki knew that he had been discovered…rose yet, by the owner of the deeper voice and the huge arm.
However, before anything more could be said, the music faded somewhat abruptly, and a cheer went up from the dance floor.
"I've kept all of you on the floor long enough", a new voice spoke over the sound system, reverberating heavily.
"Have a break and sit down for a while, will you?"
With that, the lights overhead were activated, the dance floor became illuminated, and Niki saw who exactly he was sitting across from.
He saw a scaly face. Reptilian, but too large to belong to an Arhk. And notable curved ears on the sides of the head; Arhks didn't have ears like that. Shoulder-length black hair fell from the top of the creature's head in a tangly disarray. Shining eyes of a light pink peered out from beneath a small, boney forehead, and an elongated muzzle stretched out past the eyeline. Clearly, without doubt, this was a Dragon.
Niki had never seen a Dragon in-person, so to say. There had never been one in the pouf, as to his knowledge; not as his customer, anyway. He had seen a few on television, sometimes, and remembered a liberal Draconian senator from the news channel making waves in the Volcanov senate. Dragons, as to his knowledge, were in the upper-crust of the Intergalactic economy, and finding one on this planet seemed unlikely and surprising.
The Dragon was big. At least ten feet tall, Niki guessed, from this sitting position. Yet, this size barely even compared to the character sitting next to the Drake, whose massive left arm rested around the Dragon's shoulders. A bluish-gray arm it was, bare, and three-fingered – brazenly rippling with as much muscle as any appendage could, and connected to an equally-massive shoulder, wide and burly. Niki's eyes journeyed up a thick, broad chest, into a face that remained half-hidden in the shadows of the wall. The one visible eye shone an illuminating sky-blue, set over a large, sphering snout and nose flanked by twin, fleshy tusks. Niki found himself looking at one of the largest Shorcans that he had ever seen.
Still, this was, as in the case of the Dragon, a matter of some relevance: Niki had never actually seen a Shorcan in physicality, but he had seen enough of them on television over his time on this planet. Huge and stoic they had always appeared, appearing en-masse at political ceremonies and usually flanking the Grand Council Woman when she appeared in public. The entire Shorcan race, it seemed, were devotees to the Galactic Armed Forces, and were hardly ever seen out-of-uniform. God knows if one of them would even dare to enter a pouf. They served and fought for the Galactic Alliance, and were recognized as the brawny backbone of the Alliance and its prevalence in conflicts. They were dutiful, powerful, and patriotic…and Niki had never ever heard of any one of them being described as gay.
Not that this one looked it, overall: dressed in a denim vest (with sleeves torn off at the shoulders) over a white t-shirt, the Shorca looked plainly casual, and slightly out-of-place in such a flamboyant place of bright colors and revealing outfits.
Niki was sure that he had supplied the deeper of the two voices that he had heard before.
The Dragon resting beneath his arm, however, was attired in a red flannel zip-up jacket over what appeared to be a blue t-shirt. The mane of hair that fell from between his ears looked as though it had been attempted to be tamed, but had temporarily won the battle between hair and brush. He appeared snuggled up against the neighboring giant's side, but leaned forward at the brightening of the lights to look at Niki.
"Gomora, you never told us you had a brother!"
Niki remained silent at this observation, and found nothing that he could reply; he didn't have the first idea of how to speak to a Dragon and a Shorcan.
There came a small (yet deep) sigh from the larger of the two beings, and the Shorca placed a hand on the Dragon's shoulder and, firmly (but gently), pulled him back into his seat.
"Don't be rude like that, honey", he admonished the Drake.
The Shorca's "honey" grinned up playfully from beneath the behemoth's armpit with a sheepish playfulness.
"Sorry, Argo", he apologized, reaching up his left hand to pat the thick wrist that rested over his shoulder.
"But Gomy's never told us about his relatives…"
"Oh, you know me better than that", Gomora interjected, waving a hand at the idea.
"I just thought I'd bring around my new room mate for you two to meet."
Niki might've laughed at hearing himself referred to as Gomora's 'room mate', but this didn't seem like the place. The large Shorca had raised his eyebrows (or the one that was visible) at this telling, as though he were as surprised as Nikita was.
"Room mate?", he repeated with curiosity.
"My goodness, Gomora – that's quite a leap forward for you, the master of seclusion."
Gomora eyed the giant with something close to annoyance at the remark and mumbled something about drunken Shorcas saying silly things. Niki considered for a moment that he didn't seem drunk at all, but at this moment, the Shorca had turned his head towards him, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"I'm very sorry – that was rude of me", he apologized, and once more, he extended his pillar-like arm across the table.
"I'm Argo, and this is my mate, Aries."
The Dragon likewise extended his arm across the table with a grin.
"Hiya", he greeted happily.
For a second, Niki sat stunned – not at all at being offered two large handshakes at once…but because as Argo the Shorca had leaned forth, the shadowy mask from his face had been lifted, and the face that had revealed itself from the darkness wasn't at all what Niki had expected.
True enough, Argo was bald-headed, large-jawed, and pupil-less from this distance…at least, in one of his eyes.
Argo's left eye was a glowing shade of ocean-blue, yet his other…he didn't seem to have a right eye – at least not a real one: a pupil which glowed laser-red was set inside a grey metallic casing that spanned from his inner orbital hollow to the Shorcan's temple, shining unblinkingly at Nikita, who found himself staring at the metallic proportion for a moment before he summoned himself to raise both hands in response to the initial gesture.
Aries the Dragon gripped Niki's entire arm heartily and tremored Niki in his seat with a shake. After this, the little Experiment was terrified of Argo's mammoth, three-fingered hand coming towards him (while Aries' hand had engulfed his entire right arm, Argo looked quite capable of closing his fist entirely around Niki), but the Shorca proved more restrained his comrade, as he gently took Niki's hand between his huge thumb and forefinger for a cordial shake/tug.
"…Nice to meet you", Niki managed, once he retained his appendages and sat back into his chair.
He was hoping that neither of the two giants had noticed him staring at Argo's right eye, oblivious that his visible determination to keep from looking at it was almost as big of a giveaway as his staring had been.
When he dared another look at Argo, he found the behemoth smiling at him.
"I'm glad Gomora finally found someone to share some space with – must be either fate or coincidence that it'd be with a fellow member of his ever-elusive species. How long have you been on this planet?...and forgive me for not asking before, but what's your name?"
Feeling a bit uncomfortable at what seemed to be yet another individual assuming a relationship between Gomora and himself, Niki answered softly;
"My name's Nikita…I've been here for two years."
"Charmed", Argo replied with a nod.
"I've been here three and a half years, myself. I'm with the emergency medical center a few blocks into the city. What've you been doing whilst on this planet?"
Niki was spared answering this question for a moment by an interjecting Aries, who stuck his head across the table.
"I've been here three years!", he proclaimed, seemingly for the record.
"I've lived with Argo, and kept our apartment clean all that time!"
"And I appreciate it, sweetheart", Argo replied to the statement, along with another small sigh, and once more he pulled the Dragon back by his shoulder, before adding to Gomora;
"I do hope you sought to tidy up your place a bit, Gomora, with a guest staying with you."
"Stop trying to be my mother", the red Experiment replied, tapping the table top with his clawed fingers.
"Any theme or specialty going on tonight?"
"Not really", Argo answered, looking up towards the second-story platform that overlooked the dance floor.
"Nebular's been saying that he's trying to get back on public broadcast, and that we should call the service to demand him, so he can premiere a project he's been working on."
Niki looked up to where Argo was gazing: led to by a way of stairs off to the far end of the bar (Niki's beliefs of it being a bar were now confirmed, for now its seats seated a number of brightly-colored individuals), the 'second story' was a railing-lined platform that roofed the bar. In the center of its edge, what appeared to be a half-ovalled pedestal, large enough to suit only one average-sized person, jutted out from the railing. Standing inside of this elevated pod was a blonde-haired Merurian – a smooth-skinned and bespeckled bi-ped with an even (yet sharp) face. Bending over what seemed to be a sort of control panel, Niki noted his spiked hair (unlike Mel's, whose hair had always been molded into shards) and a set of silver headphones suspended over his neck. He seemed busy inputting something into the controls of the pod's settings-board.
"That's DJ Nebular", Niki heard Gomora whisper to him, over his shoulder.
"He owns this place – been here for almost five years."
Aries leaned across the table and added, in an uncharacteristic whisper;
"They say he's got a rifle hidden with him in his platform, there – just in case somebody tries to make trouble!"
"Aries, he has Zephrian and the other bouncers to take care of that", Argo replied to his smaller mate.
"I know", Aries answered, turning back to Argo.
"But you know how he used to work at another place, and some group came in, because it was a gay place, and shot his boyfriend?"
At this, Niki turned back to the end of the table that Argo and Aries sat, surprised.
Against Niki's expectations, Argo didn't sigh, but stroked one of his pillow-sized hands over Aries' shoulder.
"That's gossip", he told the young Dragon softly.
"Besides, he's never told us about any of that, has he?"
With a grin, he placed his hand on top of Aries' bony head and rustled his hair; Aries giggled and pretended to push his arm away.
"Lovebirds", Gomora muttered with a small grin.
"But anyway, that's the rumor."
Niki said nothing, but looked from the inter-specied pair to DJ Nebular, who had stopped occupying himself at his pod's controls. Niki saw him take a large step onto the main platform and he walked along the railing and down the stairs. People still on the dance floor (a generic dance track was playing beneath the chatter of the house's occupants) either clapped, whopped, showed thumbs-up, or patted him on the shoulder as he walked through his electronic menagerie of colors towards the bar. He accepted the attention and approval modestly before sitting down on a swivel chair facing the bar, at least one empty seat away from where the next customer sat. A few feet away, a group of short, scaled individuals were whispering and giggling amongst themselves, all whilst throwing glances at DJ Nebular's back.
"Everyone wants the DJ", Gomora remarked.
Niki continued eyeing the back of the resting DJ Nebular for a while, and, whilst doing so, couldn't help but feeling a touch of loneliness in the air that surrounded him – it seemed akin to him, even from this distance.
Just then, from seemingly out of nowhere, something moved in front of him – something big, robust, and sparkling…and terrifically out-of-place: a pair of breasts.
Niki looked up in surprise, into the face of a female Luik – pale-skinned, long-haired, and wearing a dark, fabric top, across which was written in sparkly letters 'Nebular's Is Sexy'.
"Hey, Luna", the three voices behind him chorused.
Her made-up face smiled.
"Hi, y'all", she chirruped, before looking back down at Nikita.
"Gomora, how nice of you – you brought your sister to the club!"
Niki could feel himself burning up at the exclamation; in all of his life, he had been known as small, and, just a while ago, had been mistaken for Gomora's brother…but never had he been mistaken for a girl.
He supposed for a moment that it might be better to be thought a girl than Gomora's boyfriend, but, in a second, Gomora spoke up in response;
"Luna, ya starry-eyed nut – Niki's a guy!"
"Oh, you brought your boyfriend to the club! That's so sweet, Gomy!"
Niki didn't set his forehead onto the edge of the table, but he lowered it slightly, in hopes that the glow of his reddening wouldn't be too obvious.
Even Gomora was set back by this (Niki thought that he felt him going red, too), and the two of them might've very well remained speechless, were it not for Argo who spoke up for both of them.
"Oh, Luna – not everybody's here with he a date", he told her, in his deep, calm voice.
"Nikita here is Gomora's room mate – don't jump to conclusions."
Luna the Luik smirked innocently at this and placed her hands on her spangled hip-hugging pants.
"Sure…'room mate'", she remarked in playful suspicion.
"Oh, Gomora – I played that 'room mate' nonsense on my parents, too; don't think you can fool me."
"Speaking of room mates, what're you doing over here, anyway?", Gomora replied, still glowing a bit.
"Left Sula behind the counter again?"
He motioned towards the bar where DJ Nebular sat, now (Niki saw) being served a martini glass by a black-scaled female creature with short, silver hair - Niki couldn't recall the name of her species. He couldn't make out her appearance completely, but she seemed to be wearing a silver-spiked collar and a sleeveless t-shirt…and if Niki's eyes served him right, he would've sworn that a lizard-like tail occasionally flicked above the counter behind her, as she spoke shortly with the DJ before looking up, in the direction of the table where Luna was standing
"I saw a new face over here, and I wanted to say hello", Luna insisted, now leaning onto the table, showcasing pink-lacquered fingernails.
"…Which you've all kept me from. Heya, little guy!"
She extended her hand towards Niki so quickly that he feared she'd be able to slice his nose off. He took it, tenderly, and had it wrung vigorously while he heard;
"How ya doin'? Your name's Niki, huh? I'm Luna – please to meetcha'!"
"…Pleased", Niki managed, retrieving his quivering hand.
"So, you're not Gomora's new boy?", she asked (more or less – it wasn't really a question to him).
"That's a shame. You look like you'd be good together. Same species is one thing, but you being so lil' and cute and him so big and tough…you'd be the dream pair!"
Niki said nothing.
"So, your first time here?"
"…Yes."
"Ever been to a club or disco?"
"Not really…"
"Plan on coming back?"
"…"
"You should. It's a really great place. Dancing all night long, and Nebby plays his own mixes. It's a softcore place, really – Nebby's got his bouncers, but that's really only to keep the bad people out, 'cause all we got in here is gay guys who wanna dance and find a date. Nebby watches out from his top-box. There's a room in the back for guys who find eachother in here and want some time alone. No sex allowed, though…but you can dance on the tables when they go up during trance hour."
"So here's where my sugar got to!"
The dark female barhand had approached the table from behind and had wrapped her arms around Luna, who gave a small squeal of surprise and immediate delight as the claws of her surpriser folded over her exposed belly.
"Your squishy cuteness saves you the rage you deserve for leaving me alone behind the bar…again."
The dark one's voice was low, and carried a small, snake-like 'sss'ing noise with each syllabant. If he hadn't seen her face (which rested on Luna's shoulder; red lips lay beneath a sharp, hooked nose and sharp eyebrows, which, redeemingly, held bright, silver eyes), he would've been wary of her.
Luna chuckled and put her hands behind her head, to rest them across the scaled girl's decored neck. Aries leaned across the table and informed Niki;
"They're lesbians!"
The scaly barkeep removed one of her hands from Luna and patted Aries on the head, showcasing formidable black claws.
"Oh, Aries, sugar", she lamented with a smile, sounding and looking more serpentine than before.
"If you weren't so cute, you'd have earned a few beatings."
Aries grinned, and settled himself back against Argo's side.
"That's why I got my big daddy to protect me!"
Argo grinned, and looked at the female pair.
"Tough night, Sula?"
"Oh, end of the week, sugar", Sula replied, shaking her head.
"Was doing fine until this sweetheart decided to go and socialize. Neb was wondering where you'd gotten to."
"Oh, Nebby's a sweetheart", Luna insisted.
"Don't you worry about him."
"I'll worry about getting paid for working, honey", Sula retorted, giving Luna's ear a nibble.
"You gonna get back there with me?"
"Oh, but you haven't met Niki yet!", the Luik exclaimed, turning back to the smaller Experiment.
"Niki, cutie, this is my girlfriend, Sula – Sulie, this is Niki!"
Wondering if there was any reason at all for him to open his mouth, Niki gave a timid nod at Sula, whose silver gaze had finally found him.
"Nice to meet you, sugar", she greeted deeply, as the two of them shook hands.
She eyed him with some interest for a moment with her diamond-like eyes, peering out from the depth of her dark face.
"You two related?", she asked both of the Experiments, with some note of natural authority in her voice.
Niki turned to Gomora, and he seemed to actually be pondering the question's fundament.
"…No…not really…I think…", he answered, eventually.
"…Or we're separated by three hundred or so single generations."
Sula didn't seem to give the oddness of this answer much thought, but nodded curtly, and gave Luna a frisky smack on the behind.
"C'mon, sugar – let's get back to work, before the liquor piles up", she coerced Luna, and gave her shoulder a slight tug.
"Oh, but these guys aren't set up, yet!", Luna remarked with dismay, looking across the table, set only with the resting wrists of Gomora and Aries.
"We have to bring them something! They're dry!"
"If they want something something, they can come to the bar like everybody else", Sula insisted, with the hint of a groan as she continued to tug at Luna's shoulder.
Argo shifted slightly in his seat.
"It's really no problem for us to go up there and get something ourselves", he said.
"It's really no problem at all."
"But I want to serve my favorite guys!", Luna insisted.
Sula sighed aloud and looked annoyed at her girlfriend's insistence.
"Fine", she said, flatly.
"But you're bringing the stuff. And don't be surprised if everybody else in the place wants to be served afterwards, too."
She turned on her heel and walked back in the direction of the bar, her steps illuminating the color-tiles of the dance floor.
Luna watched her retreating apprehensively for a moment before turning back to the table with a smile.
"So what would quench the fine gentlemen's thirsts tonight?"
"I want a toffee mix!", Aries was first to exclaim, raising his hand as he did so.
"I'd like a blue wine of Zel", Argo said, pushing down Aries' arm as he did so, adding;
"We're walking, so no need to worry."
"I'll have a Makatoo", Gomora decided quickly, before rethinking his decision.
"…On second thought, water it down a bit; I'm driving with someone, so I guess I can't get smashed tonight, huh?"
Niki figured the same; he didn't know how to operate any kind of vehicle.
Lastly, Luna turned towards him.
"What'll it be, cutie?"
Niki wasn't sure how to answer – he had plenty of drinking experience, but all that he ever had was beer that he didn't necessarily enjoy. Beer had taken him a few steps from consciousness, during times when he felt that he just couldn't take his toil anymore, but aside from that, though, he hadn't drunk anything very alcoholic – alcohol was, after all, more expensive than food, and he doubted that Mel would've allowed him to get completely 'smashed', anyway.
He gave himself a moment's thought, and his mind settled on some beverage that he had seen not-too-long-ago on television.
"…Do you have 'Red Bison'?"
"We sure do", Luna answered, pretending to write down his order, as though she were a waitress; she looked around the table.
"Okay, will that be all? Really? Okay – I'll be right back!"
She hurried from the table, across the dance floor, and Niki felt sure that she was asking Sula if she was mad at her.
Niki turned back to the table, where Argo was talking to Aries.
"You shouldn't be drinking anything, you know that", the larger male was admonishing his mate.
"You know how it affects you; it's not good for you."
For the first time of the night, Aries looked visibly discomforted; in what was a surprising change it brought about in the Dragon's face, which, at the scolding, had dropped from its curious, cheerful state to an uncomfortable and embarrassed visage. He looked, simply, as though he wanted to disappear.
"…It's not fair", he said, after a short while; quietly.
"Everybody else gets to drink; why not me?"
He spoke the last sentence a bit angrily…and Niki, being unsure of the situation, felt a bit uncomfortable as a spectator.
Argo, likewise, looked a bit uncomfortable, too…but more so, saddened. Tenderly, he placed a hand on Aries' back and petted him.
"…It doesn't mix with your medication, honey", he said, softly to his mate, his single blue eye quite adept to displaying sadness.
"You know that…and I don't want you to feel any worse than…"
He broke off, and simply continued to stroke the back of Aries, who had leaning with his elbows on the table.
Niki sat back in his chair and looked down at his stomach (flat and furry). This conversation, exchange, or situation (or whatever it was) between Argo and Aries was something that made him feel uncomfortable. He didn't know why – but it was, after all, a problem (or whatever) of theirs that he was witness to; he hadn't known too many problems in his life (other than his own, which had been massive), not any between other people. Mel never seemed to have any problems that Niki could notice (although he was having his doubts about his own omniscience by now), and he hadn't known anyone or had any friends whose personal problems were confided in him…and now, as Argo and Aries sat across from him, immersed in something uncomfortable for them…Niki felt uncomfortable.
The feeling (and his thinking about it) confused him, and he turned to Gomora for some sort of clarification. He found none, as Gomora looked away from both Niki and Argo and Aries; Niki thought for a while that was feeling guilty (or at least uncomfortable) at having ordered a drink.
"Hey…Aries, honey?"
"…Mmm?"
"A Shorca goes into a pharmacy…"
"Argo…leave me alone…"
"A Shorca goes into a pharmacy, Aries…"
" …and?..."
Both Niki and Gomora looked up: Argo was rubbing Aries' back with one hand, a smile on his face as he set up what appeared to be a joke.
"Well", Argo went on.
"He goes into the pharmacy and says 'I need some Viagra; give me six pills and I'll cut them into little pieces'. Says the pharmacist, 'Sir, I don't think that'll last you through sex'. Says the Shorca, 'Sex? I haven't had sex in years. I'm eighty-five, and I just needing something to get it up so I stop peeing on my shoes'."
Aries snorted so loudly and so violently in laughter that saliva flew across almost the entire table, whilst Gomora and Niki ducked for cover; Gomora himself had burst out with a laugh that he had been unable to control, and as they rose together, Niki saw him still trying to restrain himself, whilst holding a hand to his mouth. Aries giggled incessantly, and moved back underneath Argo's arm, sniggering into Argo's chest while the Shorca hugged the Dragon against his body.
"…'so I stop peeing on my shoes'…", Aries giggled breathlessly, hugging Argo back across his torso.
"…Talking about my grandfather, there", Argo chuckled to himself, giving Aries a kiss on top of his head.
"…Because that's what doctors do, y'know – just stand around the lounge all day and tell jokes."
Despite his abilities to contain himself, Niki had also found it to be a pretty funny joke.
Just then, Luna approached the table hurriedly, balancing a quadroon of glasses on top of a metal tray.
"Sorry it took so long!", she apologized as she neared the table, the tray tipping dangerously.
"Other people were in line, and Nebby's just gone up to – whoa!"
With split-second precision, the Luik managed to slam the tray down on the table top (Gomora quickly withdrew his hands) without spilling more than a drop.
"There!", she expelled, looking positively exhausted at her effort as she straightened back up.
"I had to get the drinks mixed, and Nebby's just gone back up to his top-box to start the music again…I wouldn't have been able to balance with the lights off and people on the dance floor!"
She leaned against the table again, and looked willing to take a sip of one of the beverages, herself.
"We commend your effort, our efficient Luna", Gomora stated with a smile as he took his own glass from the tray.
"Oh, shut up, you…", Luna retorted, searching for an adjective-rich name to fling at Gomora before she gave up.
The tray was quickly emptied of glasses, and Niki studied the contents of his own martini-shaped glass.
Odd, he thought – the drink he had seen on television was red, not orange.
He didn't give it too much thought (after all, everything looked better in advertising, anyway), and looked around at the mixtures of his comrades, ranging from caramel-colored to evil green to azure blue.
Just then, the lights overhead began flickering. A rustle of voices fell over the dance room, and a moment later, DJ Nebular's voice boomed over the loudspeakers.
"Get your asses out of those seats – it's time to move it, move it!"
Luna gave a yip of surprise: Sula had sneaked up behind her again.
"Want to?", her low voice asked, huskily.
"Of course!", the Luik replied happily, turning around and planting a quick smooch on Sula's lips before taking her hand.
The two barhands skipped away from the table and onto the dance floor, which was calling people from their resting places, and moving them towards the lighted panels like filing ants.
Argo gripped his glass and lifted it off of the table.
"A toast?", he suggested.
Gomora and Aries took hold of their drinks, too, and raised them high. Niki followed suit, aware that his own glass reached the lowest into the air.
"To a new friend", he proclaimed, and motioned towards Nikita with his glass.
"To a new friend!", Aries and Gomora chimed in (Niki was too busy straining his arm to listen if Gomora had been forceful or not on the word 'friend').
Niki smiled very softly, embarrassed, as he muttered a soft;
"Thank you…"
"I hope we'll have more time to get to know eachother, Nikita", Argo said, his glass till raised elegantly, his electronic eye shining the in the flickering light.
"Gomora's lucky to have someone living with him."
Gomora's reaction to this, Niki didn't see – as the four of them took their first sips, Niki lowered his head, and didn't look at Gomora. His drink wasn't half-bad.
A moment later, the lights went off with a loud, electronic pang; people on the dance floor cheered loudly. Niki took another sip of his drink. Simultaneously, the rainbow lights and an upbeat and feral tune began to pulsate from the amplifiers, and DJ Nebular was spotlighted jamming in his top-box, earphones on his head, as his customers began dancing beneath him. Niki sipped from his drink again. He thought he saw Sula and Luna close-grinding somewhere amongst the sparsely-illuminated crowd. He sipped again. Now, they seemed to be expanding, until there were two of them. He wondered for a moment whether this was some psychedelic effect that the club had to offer and sipped from his drink again. The beats of the music reverberated in his head like two heavy weights, going boom, boom, boom, boom. He looked away from the nauseating motion of the dance floor across the table he sat at ("Am I sitting?"), and found that Argo and Aries had tripled. He turned his heavy, drowsing head towards Gomora, who had likewise quadrupled. The music, sans the incessant thumping in his head, seemed to be growing distant.
"Oh, shit", Niki thought to himself, unaware that he was speaking aloud as well (in slurred words, as a line of saliva escaped his lips).
"Am I having a seizure?"
The next thing he knew, he had slid out of his chair and onto the floor.
(A/N: whoa – I introduced five new characters in one chapter…please, ladies and gents: hold your applause!
Oh, well. I tried some new elements in this chapter, and I do hope that you, the readers, find them palatable. Argo and Aries (Argo, by the way, belongs to my buddy BlueFox) will be somewhat-important characters throughout the rest of the story, and will definitely make a few more appearances. We can count on seeing Sula, Luna, and DJ Nebular again, but to a lesser extent. Oh, and Argo's joke? – I also got it from Blue.
Forgive the cliffhanger ending…I really couldn't help myself.
The mentioned (and obviously potent) 'Red Bison' drink is indeed inspired by the Red Bull energy drink, which I do not drink and do not own.
Thank yous to everybody who took the time to read and review chapters twelve and thirteen – I'll do my best (as always) to have the new chapter up ASAP. Until then, hasta la vista)