Ezekiel Walters sat in the corner of the long bar counter. In one hand was a dusty notebook while the other nursed a glass of dark bourbon on the rocks. His eyes were transfixed on the scribbled notes inside, paying no mind to the raucous transpiring around him. "Are you serious?" Carmina, the bartender groaned at the unfazed Ezekiel. She had successfully catered to the bulk of requests from her boisterous patrons and decided to reward herself with a break. The Outer Shell-born gypsy girl was unaccustomed to serving more than five people at The Consortium HQ, whose establishment had two bars total: This oddly placed saloon in the basement level, and the more polished bar in the ballroom the 1st floor. The crowd was beginning to overwhelm her and she needed a momentary distraction. She leaned over the table in an attempt to peak at Ezekiel's reading material. "It's your day off and you're spending it with your face stuck inside some poor sap's diary?" 

"Unfortunately Miss Carmina, time is not a luxury I can afford." Ezekiel's low-toned southern drawl was more filled with indifference than condescension or annoyance.  His blue eyes zigzagged like two snowflakes, synchronously floating across pages without eliciting any sort of emotion or reaction. 

"You and me both, Bones." Carmina shook her head as she glanced off to the side. A growing number of hand gestures were respectfully trying to grab her attention at the other end of the bar. "Hold your horses!" She sighed, peeling herself away from the counter top. "Try not to work too damn hard, you hear?" Carmina waited for a response, then rolled her eyes when she realized that it was pointless. She stomped over toward customers more deserving of her affection, letting Ezekiel be.

"You're quite the ladies man." A female voice called out from behind. "Are you always this charming?" Ezekiel easily identified the owner's rich accent dripping with sarcasm. 

"Only when it matters, Latika." He grinned. Ezekiel finally set his notebook down and turned to face a brown-skinned woman. A silver jeweled accessory was placed perfectly on her forehead, contrasting with her emerald color eyes. She smiled mischievously as she plopped down on the bar stool next to him. Latika was a second year graduate that came out of graduation swinging for the fences. She holds the record for most captured Wraiths at a whopping 30. Her success brewed quite a bit of jealously from most of her contemporaries, but in the grand scheme of things, she could care less about what anyone thought. Restoring Aegis Luna back to normalcy was all that mattered in her eyes. 

"So, I see you're still alive." Ezekiel muttered.

"As are you." She nodded, eyeing his drink now diluted with melted ice. "What were you reading?" 

"Just a piece of an ongoing case I never closed." He glanced at the ragged cover then back at Latika. Before she could pry any further, the double door entrance of the Testing Floor swung open. Tom Reitz, Dr. Isaacs, and Professor Hartwell entered the area, causing everyone to immediately straighten up and stand at attention.