The Crystal Room

[doctorzero]

11:00 PM, Void City Plaza

---

People had been talking about the new restaurant being built at the plaza since the start of the month. Not very many knew much about the group that had bought that space, only knowing that it was a company that catered to all sorts.
A restaurant normally isn't anything special, but when multiple people received invitations in the mail a week in advance, what could they do but accept?
Now, at 11:00 PM, a whole multitude of people had gathered tonight at the behest of the owner, Lord Kavma Raleigh, who had opened the restaurant in a show of good will to the inhabitants of the island. And in all honesty, they needed a break from the constant chaos.

The Crystal Room
Restaurant and Theatre

---

"That's the place?"
After Gantz had warped them with his Teleport Spell ("Never again," James said woozily) they stood in the plaza a little away from the queue of the restaurant. There had to be dozens of people there, waiting until they could go in.
"It's a little extravagant," A.J. observed.
Max looked at him. "...A.J., you didn't even bother to change. What if they don't let you in?"
A.J. pointed. "Give those guys over there a look. See how ridiculous their getup is?"

[gantzgun74]

Gantz looked to said people but let out a breath. "Meh, it still counts as formal wear... But it doesn't matter." He looked to the front door and took in what could've been the club's bouncers; men that looked ripped with the classic 'Men In Black' appearance, they even had the ear-pieces and everything. Gantz looked at them carefully, trying to assess the threat level as the group approached the door.

"So, this is what it feels like to go someplace fancy in the modern day world." Rosaline muttered as she kept by Gantz. With Gene and Lilia, they kept close as well, looking around as they did.

Rolling her eyes at a few of the more ridiculous outfit choices, Lilia looked to Gene crossly. "There are some REAAAAL freaks living on this island."

Gene's returning gaze was flat and humorless. "And that honestly surprises you?"

[doctorzero]

"Believe me, in the modern world, this normally doesn't involve an omnipotent, immortal maniac," Kaitlin said to Rose as they headed towards the queue.
"Excuse me, pardon, out of the way, your wig looks stupid..." Kaitlin pushed her way through the throng, flatly ignoring the scathing glares and evil mutterings. Max sweatdropped as he followed her to the bouncers.
One of them looked down at them, lowering his sunglasses a little. "You on the list?"
"We're here to see Kavma," said Kaitlin, flatly ignoring him.
"You on the list?" the bouncer repeated. Kaitlin glared at him, wondering how well she could flatten him before being overwhelmed.
Max intervened before chaos could erupt. "Uh, we were given an invitation earlier today. Gantz Gun? Ring a bell?"
That changed the bouncer's mood instantly. "Ah, yes, you must be the VIPs that Mr. Raleigh told us about. Certainly, go on in."
The people at the front burst into protest. "We have been waiting out here for the past hour to get to our seats and these lowborn trash are permitted access?" a woman wearing a fruit-encrusted wig complained.
Max turned and stared at her for a minute. "...if you're not going to eat that, can I have it?"
Everyone sweatdropped.

[gantzgun74]

Gantz and Rose's sweatdrops were quite big as well. "AAAAAANYWAYS..." He looked to Max, grabbed his arm, and gave him to Kaitlin, before helping Lilia and Gene through the crowd. "Anyways, yes. I'm Gantz these people are my friends. We can go in?"

The guards only opened the door to let them in, moving the rope blocking the way. "Oh sweet. Thanks." With that, Gantz and Rosaline walked in, Kaitlin and Max right behind them. Before Gene and Lilia could follow through however, a small beep was heard.

The guard pulled out a metal detector and ran it over Gene. "You got any weapons on you?"

"I'm a cyborg, and no. Thank you you insensitive jackasses." With that said, he and Lilia walked in, Lilia blowing a raspberry at one of the guards backs.

When AJ walked in, one could REALLY hear the bluebloods of society acting indignant. "Come on!! He isn't even wearing anything formal!!!"

---------------------------------------------------------

The lobby of the restauraunt was big and deluxe with a big chandelier hanging from the cieling in the center of the room, along with many plush fancy rugs, marble desks, well sanded wooden tables, the works. It looked like the theater was in a room just beyond.

Gene looked around, almost impressed. "Give Rayleigh this, he has style."

Meanwhile, Gantz refused to answer him as he looked around, his fist clenching tightly.

It was already pretty clear there was one person he was looking for... And he wasn't looking to shake hands or wave hello.

[doctorzero]

A.J. considered replying to those high society knockoffs--maybe saying something that would throw them off completely--but then again, did they really deserve it?
He shrugged. "Eh." He followed the others into the restaurant, ignoring the onlooker's expressions of outrage.

---

The grand lobby already had people in it when they entered--more 'high society' people who were obviously normal people wearing outrageous outfits for some reason for another. Monocles and fans abounded.
"I think he's overcompensating," Kaitlin grumbled.
"Like the other guests, you mean?" Max asked.
"Exactly. I think I see the Monopoly Guy in that corner over there."
A.J. leaned against the wall and sighed. "Well, what do you guys suggest we--"
"We bid you welcome to the Crystal Room!"
"GAH!" Max jumped back in shock as a waiter came out of nowhere holding a menu. He bowed deeply. "Welcome to our humble establishment. How many in your party?"
Kaitlin recovered from her shock and demanded, "Where's Kavma?"
The waiter twitched his nose. "Ah, you must be the VIPs he warned about. I regret to inform you that Mr. Raleigh is running late tonight--"
"Late doing what?!"
The waiter sighed. "If you could be so kind as to wait for your seats, you will be informed when Mr. Raleigh arrives."
"Probably after the five hours of appetizers," A.J. whispered to Gene.

[gantzgun74]

Lilia grinned. "If they have Garlic bread, I won't complain."

If the waiter could feel magical energies, he woulda felt Gantz's energy spike... If he couldn't a nearby wig suddenly exploding, seemingly out of freaking nowhere would clue him in that something was wrong.

"IF YOU SEE HIM..." Gantz growled dangerously. "Do tell him I can't wait to CHAT." He emphasized that by punching his open hand.

The waiter looked a mite nervous. "Umm... Of course... Sir..." With that, he quickly gave the young man the menus and walked off. "A server will be out momentarily to escort you to your seat."

"Thank you." With that said, he looked through the menu as if nothing had happened.

The blue-blood who's wig blew up meanwhile looked panicked as to how it happened. Nobody else took notice. Rose looked to Gantz with a raised eyebrow. "Was that really necessary?"

"Hey I can't control what happens when my energy spikes. The magic has a mind of it's own when I lose my temper." With that said, Gantz put an arm around Rosaline. "Anyways, nice place eh?"

The gria woman looked around a moment with a sweatdrop. "I feel like we're in an Ivalician freakshow..."

[doctorzero]

"I wouldn't say freakshow," said Max, sweatdropping.

A.J., on the other hand, looked at Gantz with something akin to reverence. "...Please blow up more wigs. I'll pay you for it."

More sweatdrops. Kaitlin, in a desperate attempt to change the subject, took one of the menus and perused it. "This isn't a menu, this is a freaking paperback novel. There has to be at least twenty pages to this thing! Look at the selection, there has to be five variations of the same dish. I think he's trolling us."

"Rather rich, from a troll herself!"

Kaitlin turned at the sound of the voice, annoyed. The nearest group of ladies and gentlemen weren't looking at them, but it was clear that one of them had said the remark. "One second, guys, I'm gonna--"

Max stomped past her before she could finish. "Max--?"

As a gentleman with a monocle laughed at some joke someone had cracked, Max stepped forward and leaned onto his shoulder, smirking. "Nice glass. Did it come with a yacht?"

The man leaned back, affronted. "What the--who the devil are you?"

"Max Chadi," he said nonchalantly. "And, hold on, lemme guess, you're the Monopoly Guy, right? How're things on Kentucky Avenue?"

A.J. burst out laughing. The Monopoly Guy (TM) remained unamused. "I beg your pardon, Mr. Chadi?"

"Sorry, out of pardons, you can cease your begging. But seriously," Max's eyes narrowed. "I don't appreciate your comment about my friend, mister." His hand reached into his pocket.

The Monopoly Guy looked to his companions and smirked. "With all due respect, Mr. Chadi," he said snidely, "Perhaps, if you were a tad more observant, you may find that the young lady's apparel is quite...unbecoming of her. And I'm afraid to say that the same applies to your other companions as well..."

Max grinned. "Yeah, bet that's what your mom said about the glass."

SPLOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!

The Monopoly Guy stumbled back, sputtering and dripping wet. "Agh--pfft--How DARE you!"

"I most certainly dare," Max said cooly as Buizel jumped onto his shoulder. "Now, good day to you sir!" He turned on his heel and walked away as the Monopoly Guy's companions attempted to dry him off with some spare wigs.

A.J. regarded Max with admiration. "That was awesome. Wish Jaron was here to see that!" The two of them high-fived.

"Thanks, A.J.," Max said sincerely. He turned to Kaitlin, who regarded him with a faint smile.

"You do know you didn't need to go and do that," she noted.

Max shrugged. "I've had a hard day. Besides, if YOU went we'd get kicked out."

"Fair enough."

[gantzgun74]

Gantz grinned and laughed at AJ's offer, which was followed by him laughing at Max showing up the Monopoly mascot. Gene meanwhile, grinned for the same reason. "Still, great job man! That was genius!" He said as he lifted a hand to high five.

As this happened, Lilia smiled and nodded to Max, before turning her attention back to the menu, which, she had apparently found very interesting. "Heheheheh." Rose giggled along with a few of the others as Max took in the praise. "Max is certainly the brave one," She said as she looked to Gantz. "eh, my love?"

"Sure is." Gantz said as he calmed down his laughing. "But hey, a genius prankster can do better." He then looked to AJ and winked. "Hey, AJ." He pointed to this nobleman that looked more akin to a pig then a man. "Prepare to pay me 10 bucks."

Gantz wiggled a finger subtlely.

.....

POOM!!!!!!!

The man's poofy wig was quickly replaced with a ball of fire. The man took notice and instantly started rolling around on the floor, panicking, trying to use the 'Stop, Drop, and Roll' movement.

[doctorzero]

Cue massive sweatdrops on Max and Kaitlin's part as the pigman threw down his wig and started stomping it in a vain attempt to put it out. "Subtle."

A.J. snickered as he handed Gantz his ten dollars. "You are the best."

"Excuse me!"

"GAH!" Another waiter had shown up out of nowhere. A.J. was beginning to think that these guys could teleport. "Your table is ready in the theatre."

"About time," Max muttered.

"Is Kavma--" Kaitlin began.

"No, he has not arrived yet."

"DARN IT!"

[gantzgun74]

After going up a few steps, the group found themselves on a balcony overlooking the theater, sitting at a table on said balcony. Gantz and Rose sat next to each other, as did Gene and Lilia. "Do make yourselves comfortable. Mr. Kavma should be with you momentarily."

"You better hope." The Waitor looked at Gantz a moment, wondering what to make of his threat.

Before he could leave however, Lilia raised a hand. "Come on guys, let's get some food and some drinks. I'm starving... Hey waitor! Get me a glass of water and some garlic bread to start me off."

"What sort of Garlic Bread miss? We have several. We have regular, no crust, all crust, with cheese-"

"Olive Garden style if you can." Lilia said with an impatient stare.

The waitor nodded. "Of course ma'am." He pulled out a notepad and wrote that down. "And for the rest of you?"

"Dr. Pepper... A BIG cup." Gantz said with a growl. "No appetizers."

Rose gulped a bit, but held up her hand. "Ummm, just water here will be fine."

It took a few more seconds for Gene to order. "Coke Zero, and be sure to bring PLENTY of those mint chocolates."

[doctorzero]

Kaitlin gave Lilia the look. "Lilia, we're in a restaurant owned by our greatest enemy next to You-Know-Who, what if there's mind control drugs in it or something--"

"I'll go with a large soda, and can you triple that garlic bread order?"

Kaitlin facepalmed. "MAX..."

"I haven't eaten anything all day, Kaitlin!"

"But--"

"I'll go with some water, thanks," A.J. interrupted.

Kaitlin buried her head into her arms. "...Nothing for me. I lost my appetite when I came in."

The waiter jotted down their orders and left, though not before flipping Kaitlin the bird. She didn't notice, having her face down, but the others did.

---

The waiter descended the steps, shuddering. "The looks on their faces...ugh."

"Problem with our special guests?"

The waiter jumped and turned at the sound of the voice. "Ah! Lord Autumn! You've returned, I see!"

"Mmhm. Hey, why don't you go on break."

The waiter blinked, bemused. "Lord Autumn? I'm sorry, but I have an order to--"

The notepad was taken out of his hands. "Just leave it to me."

---

A.J. looked over the balcony at the stage, which was unnoccupied. "You don't think he's going to make us stay and watch that play of his, do you? Granted, I like classical theater as much as the next guy, but R.J.'s probably wandering around down there without food or water and--"

"A.J., we're just as worried for him as you are," Kaitlin interrupted. "But it's not like we can just leave. This is Kavma we're talking about, if we try to bail out he'll just warp us back here or something."

"Here are your drinks, sirs and madams."

Kaitlin sighed and turned. "Thanks, pal--"

They all froze. Well, A.J., Max, and Kaitlin did. They could recognize that visage anywhere.

Evan, wearing a waiter's uniform, stood there holding a plate with their beverages, grinning mischeviously. "Hey, Kate. Long time no see, eh?"

The three of them jumped out of their seats, A.J. summoning his Keyblade while Max released all three of his Pokemon. Kaitlin clenched her fists. "YOU. I should've known you'd be here."

Evan raised an eyebrow. "This is how you react to seeing me in years? Somehow this was downright predictable."

"What do you want?" Max snapped. "Whenever you show up something bad always happens!"

Evan placed his hand over his heart in fake shock. "Now that's not a very good accusation, Maxy! I am shocked--shocked!--at such a suggestion!" He smirked. "Nice to see you anyways. Same goes for the other three. Gene, Gantz, Lilia--nice to see ya."

[gantzgun74]

Gene, Lilia and Gantz were up on their feet with narrowed glares... Rose however looked to the bunch with a look of confusion. "Um... Gantz... Who is that?"

"Trouble personified Rosie." Lilia muttered, as she put a hand to an opening in her dress. "Okay tough guy, the hell are you up to?" He looked to the drinks. "So what'd ya slip into those drinks?" Rose dropped her drink in an instant having heard that.

"Slip into the--" She stood up having heard that. "Why would you think that? Who is he?"

Shaking his head, he looked to Rosaline. "Simply put Rosie, this guy is higher up here at Crystal Room. To say he could be our worst nightmares if he wanted to is an understatement."

Gantz reached for Soul Calibur. "What are you doing here?"

[doctorzero]

Evan snorted. "If I wanted to spike your drinks I'd be more subtle about it. Also, Gantz, lemme remind you tha I can easily snap both that sacred sword of yours and your neck like a twig, so quit it. Be VERY thankful that Kavma favors you so much."

"What do you WANT?" Kaitlin demanded.

Evan threw out his arms, exasperated. "I just got back from a monthlong mission and this is what I get? Is it too much to ask for a simple hello?"

"YES!"

Evan facevaulted. After getting back up, he shook his head, sighing. "Come on, kids, I'm just trying to be friendly with ya. Can't we just bury the hatchet for a bit?"

"After you tried to kill us almost a dozen times?" Max retorted. "I don't think so."

"Hey, I wasn't actually--"

"And don't think we forgot about that thing you pulled at Castle Oblivion," A.J. added.

"Long story, tell you later," Kaitlin muttered to Gantz.

"Now, hold on, that--"

"And let's not forget about what your boss did to Jaron," Kaitlin seethed.

Evan pinched the bridge of his nose, exasperated. "Hey, we had a very good reason for that."

"Oh, and what reason is THAT?"

"None of your business."

Oh, that was the WRONG thing to say. Kaitlin grabbed the front of his shirt, incensed. "None of our BUSINESS?! Jaron is our FRIEND, and you CRL MORONS mindwipe and rob him and stranded him here! How can you POSSIBLY justify THAT?!"

Evan glared at her, saying, "Watch it, Kate." He pushed her away. "Kavma will be here in a few minutes to talk to the audience. Once he's done, I'm going to take you to him so you can have your little chat."

[gantzgun74]

Gantz growled at Evan, wishing that wouldn't be the case. He wanted more then anything to teach this jackass a painful lesson... But even so, the mention of Kavma made him lower his guard. Evan wasn't worth his attention... Kavma was. "Why doesn't he come up here? I'd love to chat with him about current events." It looked like said current events would make sure chatting wouldn't be the ONLY thing he does.

Gene, in the meanwhile, decided to scan the drinks... Hmmm, nothing seemed to be wrong with them... But still. "Why call us up here in a public social setting though? That doesn't make a lot of sense does it?"

Deciding not to reveal what she had on her person, Lilia took her hand away from her dress and crosses her arms at Evan. "So long as your here though Evan, I want to ask you something." She looked to the man with a glare. "While I'm here I was hoping to meet with one of your co-workers-"

This earned her a few stares but she ignored them.

[doctorzero]

"He's a busy man, Gantz. There's almost half a thousand things that need his attention right now."

"We don't care," Kaitlin said flatly. "And Gene's right, why bother calling us here of all places?"

Evan crossed his arms. "Think we're going to risk bringing any of you onto the airship? Knowing you guys, you'd wind up crashing the thing within the hour."

"Nice to see that you think of us so highly," A.J. said sarcastically.

Evan was just about to respond to that when Lilia mentioned her intent. He stared at her blankly. "...why? Who the hell would you want to--"

He suddenly realized what she meant. "...oh."

Any further conversation was interrupted by the sound of applause, as spotlights were directed at the stage. Take a guess who was standing on it.

Kaitlin almost bolted forward, only for Max to restrain her. "Max--"
"Not now!"

---

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you all for coming tonight!"

Further applause.

"I am your host, Kavma Raleigh, the CEO of Crystal Room LMT. I'd like to say a few words before we begin, if no one minds. Don't worry, I won't be long. Now, before I begin I'd like to say that whoever owns the horseless carriage in the parking lot left their lights on."

Laughter erupted as the Monopoly Guy got up and left the theatre grumbling.

"Now then, tonight, you have all been gathered here for the grand opening of our humble establishment. When Club Lobazotah was shut down, it left a void that needed to be filled--and we here at CRL chose to fill that void ourselves, in the form of a place where people can meet and sample the finest dishes we can offer as they enjoy our entertainment. We are not just any restaurant, ladies and gentlemen; we are a way of life. Now, you will all be given twenty minutes to order your dinners, which will be brought to your tables as swift as possible. In forty minutes we will begin our play Draco and Maria, for your amusement. Please be silent and respectful during the performance, and I sincerely hope you enjoy your time here at the Crystal Room!"

The audience burst into applause as Kavma left the stage.

---

"Someone likes to hear themselves talk," A.J. observed.

"He's a lot calmer than how he was earlier," Max observed.

"That's 'cause he's a good actor."

They all looked at Evan suspiciously. "Meaning...?" Kaitlin asked.

Evan ran his hand through his hair. "You guys have no idea what he's going through right now. You have no idea at all."