An Outing (2)

All around the many sounds of humans could be heard; laughter, despair, excitement, flirting, drunken revelry and even anger. Varied and colorful lights shone down from above, perfectly accenting the varied luxurious and vibrant décor which dotted the interior while a beautiful yet vigorous petit orchestra played song after song in the background.

" I never thought of all the places Imran would wish to meet in that it would be in a place like this…"thought Cyrus somewhat baffled as he easily dodged yet another group of semi-drunk people on their way to burn through more of their wealth on the various games arrayed all around. Yes, he was currently on the floor of a large casino in one of the entertainment districts in Meridianam. A casino so large that not only did it feature a wide array of games, slots and lotteries it also had its own eatery and bar attached to it as well.

Cyrus looked at the directions and instructions that Imran had given him, which conveniently left out what type of place it was, and looked around for access to the second floor. All the while he began pinning a small badge onto his chest, which was of a copper color with a symbol of dice etched onto it.

After one quick scan of the place, he easily found the spiral stairs that led to the second floor. With a steady pace he walked over to the entrance, which had a burly guard wearing a simple tunic and trousers with his chest somewhat exposed. As Cyrus passed, the guards eyes merely flicked to his chest and back upon seeing the badge. Having past the simple check, he moved up the carpeted wooden stairs.

Upon reaching the top and opening the door, Cyrus was once again greeted with the familiar feeling of all the lower level's sound dissipating quickly.

"I really need to take some time to learn how that is done… alas I have so much on my plate already" thought Cyrus as he looked around the new floor.

If the previous floor was a perfect microcosm of all the aspects of humanity, for all its good and bad, the second floor was one that displayed the human race's love for excess and indulgence. The floor was entirely carpeted, aside from the granite floors of where the tables and booths sat, and each and every fixture was of unbelievably fine detail and make. The men and women that inhabited this floor no longer wore the varied simple cotton tunics and trousers but form fit and snug quasi-linen clothing paired with various rings, glasses, and other jewelry that Cyrus knew little of. Much to Cyrus confusion, many of the men seemed to have their clothes worn lower than normal and some of the women were merely wearing long one piece dresses that hugged their curves tightly whilst simultaneously having the tops of their breasts shown off to the world.

"Do these people have some kind of fetish for voyeurism?" thought Cyrus as he was bewildered by the men and was distressed like any young man would by the women.

Put into such an unfamiliar environment all of a sudden, especially one so heated, Cyrus' heart rate quickened ever so slightly as his emotions began to be affected in ways he had not even known were possible. Nevertheless, he was one who had gone through several life or death fights, so he used this fact as a method of consolation… although it did little more than that.

"Would you perhaps be Sir Cyrus?" asked a man wearing more formal clothing, most likely a member of the staff.

"Yes I am" replied Cyrus, inwardly annoyed at how he was just snuck up on.

"I now know why I always complain about how terrible my normal emotions are with my mask on. They can indeed be so…distracting, at times."

Putting his thoughts aside for now, Cyrus followed the man from the main lobby to a more secluded area that was made up of several large booths of noticeably finer quality than the rest. The walls and doors of the booths were made of fine redwood that were adorned with silver and gold lining, with a silver symbol of a dice in mid roll engraved on the doors.

Cyrus was led toward the middle booth by the man, who knocked on the door thrice and waited for an answer. After but a moment, the door swung open and a voice sounded from within:

"Ah Cyrus, you finally made it" said the familiar voice of Imran.

Cyrus, with his keen eyesight but more importantly his magical sense, saw that Imran was not alone in the room but was also accompanied by two girls of similar age to himself. One was sitting by Imran's side, with the other sitting opposite him closer towards the wall and opposite to the door. She sat in a way that was no doubt to allow Cyrus to take his place directly adjacent to her and opposite Imran.

"Such a trial so soon, oh how Mundus toys with me so" bemoaned Cyrus inwardly as he felt is anxiousness rise and his nerves tingle.

"I had wanted to interact with Imran without the mask, but it seems that Mundus has other plans for me today. Until I find a safe way to get used to these foolish reactions it seems I will be relying on the mask" thought Cyrus as in one quick motion he unhooked the mask from his side and donned it.

Sighing at the stupidity of his other half, which made even the masked Cyrus somewhat embarrassed, he walked into the room to finally meet Imran once again.