Discontinued ✪ Finweald Ale's Showdown

[Hanno Futaba]

With ale mugs clashing together, another round was announced with a cheer and a big ol' chug (or sip, for those with more caution).

The scorching drink burned the Faerin's throat, which leaned on his huge shield before letting out a sonorous 'pwaah~' and slamming the mug on the table. "Okay, now THAT is what I call a drinkin' night." Hanno laughed, only being interrupted by a hiccup that made him stagger for a moment before burping and tapping his chest. "Y'know-" He rose a finger, staring at Rumblehide and squinting. "You kinda look familiar, I'm not sure where, but hella-" He chuckled, peering at the lady Chimney, that at some point got there and he didn't even notice- But who cares?

"God- I mean, Goddess-" Gotta stay in character, Hanno. "- You too look so familiar." He squinted, then tilted his head to look at the man that was sitting there with them as well.

Wait, when he was there again?

"You look familiar too." He frowned. Why did everyone look so familiar? It took a moment for Hanno to realize, but maybe he was a bit tipsy at this point. Hanno tried to do another chug, but soon he noticed not a glimpse of ale remained in his mug, he frowned, looking around to try to find a waiter, but the only one he saw was one that was having trouble with a particularly troublesome table filled with buff and nasty people.

@Mighty Rumblehide @Chimney @Frey Elzeiros

 

[Mighty Rumblehide]

Rumble was still chugging the last of her beer. Granted, her mug was nearly twice the size of the wee little faerin's. With a mighty thunk!, she slammed it down on the table and sent little flecks of foam scattering everywhere. "My favorite kind of night," she grinned, killing a belch in the back of her hand. Memories of her favorite events pushed through the growing fog, crushing thirty-packs after the final bell with her wrestler pals.

Hmmm. She rubbed her chin for a moment. "You look a familiar too; can't quite place where, though." The thought was interrupted with the notion that, maybe, she should order a basket of wings for her strange drinking buddies. But it returned soon enough. "Have we met at a guild hall or something?"

"And you two--" She turned towards the sharp-dressed gal and the wiry man who filled out the table. Pointing a finger at each of them in turn, she continued, "Okay I definitely don't know either one of you. But so far, you've been good company. Here; the least I can do for you lot--"

With a shout and a wave, she flagged down a barmaid to see what greasy snacks she could order for the table.

@Hanno Futaba @Chimney @Frey Elzeiros

 

[Chimney]

Spoiler: Drunk Singing

The night so far had been one of raucous and rye, with a great many adventurer gathered in the area to slake their thirsts and drown their sorrows. While many seemed content to simply sit and nurse their drinks in quiet solitude there were myriad other more colorful characters that engaged one another in game and conversation. Though she did not know anyone here, the blonde had integrated herself quickly into one group and another, moving from table to table to strike up random conversations and make the most of the rounds being ordered. Free drinks were the best drinks after all, and even though she still couldn't taste a single damn thing in the game, the simulated alcohol did a fantastic job of simulating a happy buzz as well. Of course being unable to taste the alcohol or really feel its harsh burn, she had accidentally gone and drunk more than a simple buzz's worth.

Feeling the many drinks taking hold, she had stopped herself at the table that Hanno, Rumble and Frey seemed to occupy and simply decided to be a part of their strange little menagerie. Nobody had seemed to have much of a problem with it of course, or with the way that she seemed to ramble on and on about nothing in particular. Probably because the way that she droned in a drunken Brooklyn accent had a calming, almost soporific quality to it as words just continued to flow from her mouth with conviction and assurity. Whatever she was talking about, she portrayed it with a sense of calm and comforting resolve that helped to balance out the chaos and noise of the singing shitfaced crowd around them.

"..which is the underlying issue with the principle of aesthetics as we've come to understand it within our consumerist society, ya know? We as people have come to rely upon the establishment of an appropriate aesthetic sense through the consumption of media and mediums that make up our minds for us, by delineating into something concrete and easily digestible the enigmatic search that should be aesthetic understanding. Thus we look to influencers, popular brands, and even hostile concepts such as nationalism to tell us what is correct and beautiful. The more rely on such decisions being made for us of course tha more a sense of familiarity and aesthetic 'absolute' is ingrained into us and we begin to perceive with hostility that which fails to fall within our myopic understandings of what is beautiful."

Pausing, Chimney took a deep swig of the drink before her as she looked between Hanno, Rumble and Frey as if expecting them to be following along... but then continued to ramble on with her lecture, talking mostly to herself as she droned on hypnotically.

"In effect ya wind up in a peculier and dangerous situation in which ideal becomes ideology, and people begin to view with revulsion all that fails to fall in line with the aesthetic sense that they have subscribed to. And I say subscribed quite literally in this sense, 'cause again it's all tied up in the way we've confined ourselves to capitalist lifestyles. Product placement has replaced samaritan values; ya got people literally killing one another over brand loyalties, sports team loyalties, presidential campaign loyalties... This sort of intensity is endemic of a lack of aesthetic understanding! One would think that as you move away from what one finds personally aesthetic the sense of familiarity would simply diminish into indifference, but instead it jumps immediately into opposition and outright revulsion. Now why do you think that is?" Chimney asked, but the question was not directed at anyone she had actually been talking at. Instead it was aimed at the barmaid who had come over to deliver some snacks to the table thanks to Rumble's helpfulness. The barmaid gave a confused frown and shrugged her shoulders before walking off again. She paused to stuff a few peanuts into her mouth. No flavor, not even saltiness... Damn. Then, as if processing that Hanno and Rumble had spoken to her for the first time, she slowly blinked.

"I look familiar? Well, I ain't seen y'all around personally but uh it's possible ya seen me running to and fro I 'spose?" She leaned back in her seat and threw a peanut into the air, catching it in her mouth and chewed it pensively for a moment.
"I guess ya might've seen me on 60 Minutes or something? Er uh.. Nevermind that. What was I talking about again?"

 

[Bradwynne]

After a day's successful training regimen including hunting down whatever could be hunted down, may it be bird, beast, human (bandits, of course), or robot, Bradwynne found himself in a bar, taking in its very atmosphere. Although he looked like an overgrown teenager or even a child of a giant, he was in his twenties and should definitely be of legal drinking age. And he seemed to have been also a regular of this establishment, as he called out to the barmaid to bring him "the usual". He then seated himself at the table nearby what seemed to be a raucous bunch of people, and his table mates seemed to have passed out from excessive drinking. It seemed like these table companions only went in here to get hammered, and they seemed to be lightweights too, having passed out with just two jars of beer. Soon after, the barmaid entered with the drink part of his order: a jar of a really dark ale, and an accompanying tankard. The tankard was quite large, but Bradwynne took hold of it without much trouble, and started to pour some ale onto it, filling it to the brim. He then thanked the barmaid and then started drinking.

As he drank from the massive tankard, he then watched the scenery unfold around him. Not the scenery that could be seen from that nearby window, but what could be seen from the patrons in the bar. Truly the exact replica of the society at large. There are celebrations and singing, there are mourning and lamenting about misfortunes. There are people laughing and smiling, there are fighting and bickering...of course if the fighting would get out of hand, a fist would definitely fly from him to silence the fighting parties. There are people asleep from too much alcohol, there are people who were too inundated from drinking that they spout random nonsense about capitalism... wait. Bradwynne stopped not because of the realization of Travelers being near his table, but because he realized that the tankard was empty. As he then glanced at his right towards the obvious group of players near his table while refilling his tankard, he then thought to himself, "Wait a minute, what had happened in that world if people are speaking out loudly about this?" But it dawned instantly on his mind. Of course, desire. It transcends all ideologies and political inclinations and is the inherent nature of man or animal: to be above someone or everyone. People might think that this was a new phenomenon, but, as Bradwynne learned from his experiences in this world, it was a tale old as time. Social media just amplified this desire, and one can express their beliefs there without abandon, to impress unto anyone and everyone that their beliefs are nobler and loftier than most people and they should be listened to as their belief was infallible. Honestly this applies also to every noble, king, queen, prince, princess, emperor, whatever title in any era whether in his origin world and in Terrasphere. Example: those supremacists who were killing off every person who was UI-locked in this world. But hey, social media was not all that bad, at least they got cat pictures shared all around the world with a single click.

Bradwynne then finished refilling his tankard, and to his immense delight, the second half of his order had been served by the barmaid. It was a smorgasbord of different kinds of meat available currently to the bar, and its accompanying dip: a bowl of melted cheese, with a magical stone under the bowl to keep it hot. He then had it slow as he had his snack already and he wanted to savor it. He knew that if he kept eating like this he would get really fat, but he also knew that he would burn these meats all off when he go out to train again anyway. He then ate and drank as he watched the person in the nearby table drone more about something that he did not know, as he had been away from that world for four years, when he had noticed something else on that table. Wait a minute... did he just return even after all that?

He then waved his hand towards the faerin at that table, saying, "Hey, Hanno Futaba! Do you remember me?"

 

[Frey Elzeiros]

"Mighty Rumblehide!" He presses a hand to his chest, flattered that the elven woman would order snacks for their entire table. "You didn't have to!" Oh, but it is certainly appreciated.

He does not partake in any drink that he hasn't prepared himself.

A habit carried over from his real-life counterpart, one that he performs subconsciously so by unassumingly sliding his mug across the table to the companion of choice sitting at his table.

"Familiar? I assure you it is but our first meeting, but I expect this familiarity to fade once you sober up..."

The first is for Hanno for the stories he shares of his deeds and because those high spirits of his might only get increased after a strong enough buzz, and he would be delighted to be there to see the other Faerin letting a thing or two slide.

His second goes to Rumble who, although of the boisterous variety, blends in all too well with the clientele of the establishment. He catches a few of the more muscular types sizing her up out of the corner of his vision, but does not make anything out of it. Not immediately.

The latest is for Chimney, whose voice he has somewhat become accustomed to over her small speech, confident that now he'd be able to discern her voice from a crowd after such prolonged exposure. He guesses that, even if he wanted to, he would not be able to just tune her voice out as white noise.

"Something about our lack of unbiased sense of aesthetic dictating what is familiar to someone else and not? Something, something, people questioning it and killing each other over what determines it..." He gives an easy smile to the one meant to receive it before he leans against the back of his chair and tips it back, holding himself from falling by sticking his feet to the underside of the table, eyes stuck to the ceiling. He procures a golden coin from his pocket which he throws into the air with a hand and catches it with the other, balancing and twirling it between a few not bothering to even look down before he throws it again.

By the fourth time he repeats the action, a blonde person had raised their voice from another table causing Frey's coin to drop to the ground, addressing not all, but one.

"Pull up a chair, friend of a friend! Not that you asked but the rest of us unfamiliar sorts are Frey, the Mighty Rumblehide, and Chimney. Sit, sit, don't be shy. Yet know that if you do so, it's this table's tradition to invite the next round of snacks and drinks."

@Chimney @Hanno Futaba @Mighty Rumblehide @Bradwynne

 

[Hanno Futaba]

"Hah, man, you are amazing. Thank ya!" Hanno grinned widely at Rumblehide when she ordered a bunch of snacks, and Hanno, encouraged by her kindness, decided to order a barrel of ale just for them. Tonight they were going to leave that tavern with another death tally in their count. "I only leave this place when I get to zero HP!" He said stubbornly the famous last words.

He then shifted his attention to Chimney, pausing to try to understand just what she was talking about. If anything, that all sounded smart, something that Hanno was working on, but even then he was so drunk that he couldn't really pinpoint what she was saying, so instead, he chuckled. "Well, if I know you for sixty minutes, then no wonder you are goddamn familiar-" He said, crossing his arms. "You were talking something about--" But before he could answer, someone else had already done it, and it was the same person that made Hanno frown.

When Frey revealed the sad reality, Hanno's ears dropped. "Oh really? That sucks man, I like feelin' that I know you for years. But y'know, nothing stops us from knowing each other for years in... A few years, of course!" He grinned, raising a mug and going for another chug, only to notice that there was not a drop of ale on him. A severe sin for someone in a tavern, something that he tried to solve by trying to catch the attention of a waiter.

When someone waved and called his name, Hanno immediately stood from his seat and saluted playfully. "Futaba on duty!" He chuckled, frowning and leaning in. Okay, everyone was looking fairly familiar, but that guy? That guy looked TOO familiar.

"Woah, of course I remember you. You are the angel face guy! Bre- Bra... Bread?" He frowned, pausing for a moment and snapping his fingers once, twice... Then beaming and slamming his mug on the table- "Bradwynne!" Hanno cheered, enough to make his shield stretch out a tentacle and smack his protected head, making sonorous 'clank' as he blinked twice and relaxed. "Hell dude, I thought I would never see you again, join us, c'mon." He encouraged his friend and ex-"guild" mate along with Frey, who already took the initiative of introducing everyone.

@Mighty Rumblehide @Chimney @Frey Elzeiros @Bradwynne

 

[Mighty Rumblehide]

For the first and quite possibly the only time tonight, Rumble's raucous, jubilant façade dropped as she threw an arm around her little buddy Frey's shoulder and pulled him close. The beer on her breath was a little overpowering. "Yes I absolutely do," she whispered, stone cold sober. "Our friend here? The Faerin? The moment I butter him up enough to get him on my Friends List, my climb up the ladder can get that much easier!"

The meat elf let him go, and gave his hair a quick tussle. "But you and the blonde? I'm ordering just because both of you are just so damn cute!"

Rumble flashed a toothy grin, and the barmaid had finished making her way to her side. "What can I do for y'all, honey?"

"Can you get us a big basket of wings?"

"Sure can--"

"Okay, but I mean a biiiiiig fuckin' basket." Rumble held her hands out at a distance usually reserved for fishing tales. "Whatever you're thinking, throw in, like, twenty more. The lot of us are a little hungry. And a selection of sauces, if you have any."

Hanno threw in his request on top. The barmaid paused, an unreadable look in her hazel eyes as she sized up the table--but remembered that monster orders usually meant monster tips before returning a smile. "I'll get right on that, sweetie."

"Much obliged," the elf said. As the woman walked away, Rumble noticed a small group of rough-looking grumps at the other end of the tavern, their eyes glued squarely on her, the tin can, and the others. In what Future Rumble would consider a big mistake, Present Rumble flashed them a wink and paid no further attention.

She turns to Chimney. "Sorry about that. I believe you were talking about how people are greedy and shitty and tribal, and all the world's problems stem from those?"

@Hanno Futaba @Chimney @Frey Elzeiros @Bradwynne