Avalon in the Stars

[Felyn]

The grand opening was short, simple, and many weeks ago. By now, the name of the place had been circulated well enough and most folks stopped in for a drink or two fairly frequently. It wasn't as busy as it was when he'd first opened the bar up, but it was steady. All things considered, Felyn was fine with steady.

He finished topping off the glass in his hand with amber liquid and set it on the counter before another patron. Credits slid across the bar top and disappeared into Felyn's hands only to reappear as he moved to the register. Business was good, the alcohol flowed, and it was generally quiet. People who started trouble generally found themselves barred from the tavern, which was problematic as it was probably the only reputable place on the space station so far.

A server droid slid past as he rang up the beer he'd just served, the platter it held aloft carrying a number of mixed drinks and the typical bar fare finger foods. That was probably the only thing that regularly changed, he figured. Ironically enough, alcohol supplies were relatively simple to establish. It was food that was a bit more hit and miss. Last week it was sliced and candied fruit from Wayland as the house special. This week it was battered and fried fish imported from Manaan. Or, rather, he was pretty sure it was Manaan. Either way, it sold along with all the rest.

As he worked, the chronometer on his wrist chirruped twice before silencing itself. A frown creased his brow as he let his good eye rest on the reading a moment. It was almost the end of happy hour, which usually meant things slowed down a bit. At least, for him it did. The patrons fluctuated in number only slightly, it was the sales that changed. Late evenings and nights were mainly regulars with simple drink orders and those looking for a meal, both of which he could trust to the droids behind the counter. He left the more complicated fare for himself to tackle.

He reset the timer on his wrist and went back to work. With luck, the time would go by fast. He had work to do later on that he didn't want to put off any longer than needed.

 

[Jorus Merrill]

[member="Felyn"]

This place seemed as good as anywhere else for getting drunk among foreigners. The babble of their ugly tongue washed over Dorsca like the scent of their chemical-tainted lives. The air on a station or ship tasted foul.

He missed home, and he supposed he had that in common with many of the vagabonds here. He ignored them, went to the bar, and plopped down a tiny rough coin.

"No barter," said the metal man behind the counter.

"Is good coin. Aw-ro-dayum."

"Aurodium?"

Dorsca grunted assent. The droid scooped up the simply cast coin and trundled into the back of the bar, presumably to check with the owner. Metal men could be fools sometimes. Dorsca was well aware that that much aurodium could buy a good chunk of the bar - or its entire alcohol stock.

 

[Felyn]

Today's server droid rolled up and placed a small disc on the counter where Felyn stood. He gave the droid a look and the small machine chirruped briefly, something he had come to figure meant the rough equivalent of a verbal shrug.

"Male customer with long hair at the bar wants to pay with this," the droid said, the metallic voice only mostly monotone and grating. "He stated the coin was made of Aurodium."

He said nothing at first, instead picking up the small coin. It looked like aurodium sure enough, though he'd usually seen the things in bars, not coins. Thing was, if it was what the man said it was, he was looking at enough money to restock his bar at least twice in just this coin. Fingernails rasped against his cheek and beard as he scritched at his face in thought before closing his hand on the coin in his palm and heading towards the customer the droid had described. He snagged a stool from behind the bar as he passed and set it in front of the man at the bar, though ensuring he left enough room for the server droid to bustle on its way.

"Evenin'," he said as he took a seat, his lilting accent shining through as always. Felyn's hand moved and with a slight flick he held the coin between his thumb and forefinger. "Droid says you're sayin' this wee coin is aurodium? That the case, mate?"

[member="Dorsca Waverunner"]

 

[Jorus Merrill]

[member="Felyn"]

Dorsca nodded and grunted precisely once. His stomach growled; he'd eaten nothing but sand-like outlander ration bars.

"Is want food and drink. Is enough. Can check."

He glowered at the server; clearly this breakdown in communication was the fault of the metal man. Still, if this new arrival was the proprietor, the issue could be resolved simply. And - his stomach roared - quickly.