Scene 1 - The Washboard

[Samanos]

The rain doesn't let up while the crew makes their way to the Washboard. The club is hidden inside the labyrinth that are the alleys of the city. Dirty brick walls extend on each side, lined with rusty fire escapes and overflown garbage cans. There is music somewhere up ahead. In a corner, a shape wrapped in a sleeping bag and old newspaper's shifts momentarily. Then the crew moves on and the figure gets swallowed by the mist.

The music grows louder. It's sorrowful. Piano and cello and the voice of a woman. The alley ends in an old building with an iron door. Flyers decorate most of the door and the nearby walls.

 

The flyer has the photo of a red headed woman. She looks middle aged, dressed in a black dress and black gloves reaching past her elbows.

"Downtowns greatest jazz voice, Martha Ellis!" The flyer reads along with the dates of her appearances, which is basically every night.

A bouncer stands against the door, letting a group of people in. He is tall like an old wooden closet and almost as wide.

Yet his voice is surprisingly smooth.

You here for the show folks?

 

[Feirgon]

Brianna Lopez

"Uh, yea, we are here to see Martha."

Brianna didn't have the best ability to lie, so she often layered some amount of truth to her attempts at deception.

[LuckiDays]

Theo Richardson

Theo follows close behind; looking down at his smartphone. He had just received some tips from a contact(s) in the news industry & is currently, either sending it to the rest of the group or letting them look at it from where they are now.

The meagre tip is about the Bancrofts. The husband & the late wife of that family are... let's say, potentially, not a happy couple.

[raschlain]

Declan L'estrange

 

Declan brushes some water off his hat, relaxed and asks, "How's business tonight?"

Edited March 16 by raschlain (see edit history)

[Perlin]

Allan Rodriguez

Allan smiles at the bouncer before receiving a notification on his phone for the Bancrofts tip. He is currently reading it.

[Samanos]

The bouncer shrugs at Declan's question.

"Not a weekend, so less busy than usual, but not empty either."

He looks at each of the crew in turn as he speaks, briefly looking at Allan, and Theo, then his attention fixing on Declan and Brianna. If he made any note of Theo's age, he shows no sign of it.

"Martha is currently doing her show, there's time enough left to grab a drink, sit back and enjoy that voice."

He opens the door and red light spills out of the doorway. The music is loud now. Somber. With it, it carries the echo of a woman's voice.

The place is spacious but this might be because there aren't many people here. The lighting is low, mostly small lamps on tables while the stage is illuminated by bigger lights on the ceiling.

Smoke from cigars and cigarettes dances in the air, the red lights giving it an almost unearthly hue.

As the crew enters a short man with thinning hair turns to look at them from the bar, while the rest of the crowd seem absorbed by the singer.

Martha Ellis seems tired. She's middle aged or close to it, and a few silver streaks can be seen on her red hair. Yet her voice is powerful.

[Feirgon]

Brianna Lopez

Brianna takes in the atmosphere within the bar for a moment. She hadn't spent much time in such an establishment since she Night Hood was born. And she had spent even less time in them since she had awoken. She realized, in this moment, that this is something she had missed. One of the few bright spots in her military career was hanging in a bar with her squadmates.

A half smile formed on her lips at the thought before she walked up to the bar. She thought about saying something to the bartender, but instead just ordered a beer and sat down in an empty table to drink and listen. She wanted to enjoy the time she spent here in the bar, it also helped that the one person she wanted to talk to was currently unable to answer questions at the moment.

Edited March 21 by Feirgon (see edit history)

[raschlain]

Declan L'estrange

Declan steps into the building, pausing for a moment to observe Martha, expression distant. He then joins Brianna at the bar, holding up a hand, knowing he'd get his usual.

He was no stranger to bars and the comforting din of the customer's conversation was generally good cover for important conversations that you didn't want others to hear.

Edited March 23 by raschlain (see edit history)

[LuckiDays]

Theo Richardson

"Erm... any orange juice?" asked Theo to the bartender before immediately checking his wallet. He turns back to the bartender. "Erm... how much is for... a glass of glass water?"

 

Other than that, the teen tries to find a seat close to his crew; but away from the room where the smell of cigars is thickest.

[Feirgon]

Brianna Lopez

Brianna watched as Theo took a seat at a nearby table. She raised an eyebrow as she figured out why had done so. She gave Declan a look and tilted her head towards Theo's table before taking her beer and sitting at the same table as Theo.

She gives a glance at the glass of water in front of him as she sits down.

"We have a saying in the military: experience supersedes age.

Look around this room; you've probably experienced more than most of the people here. So don't be afraid to try things you think are too young for. That being said, I can't deny that some things are an acquired taste."

She takes a big swig of her beer and places the nearly empty botte it between the two of them, well within his reach. She then leans back in her chair and continues listening to Martha Ellis sing.

[raschlain]

Declan L'estrange

Declan notices Brianna's look and sighs, figuring on getting himself one of those cigars a little later, maybe. He hoists himself over with his drink and takes a seat to the other side of Theo.

"She's not wrong, you know. And some things you're better off not getting a taste for in the first place," he says with a laugh.

"She's not bad, today. A little tired, but damn can she sing."

Declan watches Marth with a distant look to his eyes.

[LuckiDays]

Theo Richardson

Theo eyes the empty bottle & just ponders. Miss Martha's voice is wonderful, indeed, but the youth is distracted... something about maybe... sampling a taste of... beer?

"Just asking... if I want to say order... maybe a quarter can of cider or beer, who would be paying?" said Theo. "I... never had much cash on me,"

[raschlain]

Declan L'estrange

"Don't worry about it," Declan says, flashing Theo a smile. "I've got tonights tab."

[LuckiDays]

Theo Richardson

"Then... Can I have one can of beer, please?” said Theo to the bartender.

Edited March 24 by LuckiDays (see edit history)

[Samanos]

The bartender -a man looking to be around late twenties, maybe early thirties- grabs a cold can of beer and slides it gently to the youth. Tattoos depicting characters from The Nightmare Before Christmas decorate his arms, extending all the way up past his elbows, into his sleeves.

He then produces two little bowls of peanuts, and a waiter brings them over to the crew. Allan sits down as well, his eyes absorbed into his phone.

Good to see you again sir, says the waiter,awhile nodding to the rest. It has been a while.

Martha's song reaches a climax at this point. The bar falls silent, mesmerised for a few moments as the voice washes over everyone. Then she slows down, her voice dropping in both volume and intensity, returning to a smooth humming.

Applause erupts from the crowd.

You picked a good night to come back sir, the voice of the waiter can barely be heard through all the commotion. Miss Ellis is back in top shape today. It's been a rough couple of weeks.