[hr] Episode 2: Mass Rave [hr] If Poole hated Venus, Gray loved it. Really. There was so much going on at any given time that he could literally turn his head and be entertained. Because really, what [i]was[/i] that thing dangling over there?[sub]Dried axolotl frills.[/sub] And that little old lady was selling [i]what[/i] exactly?[sub]Improperly labeled soy-based supplement.[/sub] And what the hell did that guy have on his [i]face![/i][sub]Tumor. Hopefully.[/sub] His heads up display was alive with crawling lights and translations, so many small green boxes drawing and calculating and redrawing at any given time that he could barely keep up. Mandarin, Kanji, Arabic, English, a dozen and a half different languages in the air and on the walls and-- The loud [i]clunk[/i] of his helmet on yet another doorway brought him back to attention, his breath hot in his ears. As much as he relished the chaos, this was not a great place for Gray. Skipping the obligatory ADHD jokes, there really was just too much for him to process at any given time. While the rational part of him said that he was getting too worked up, that his heart beat was well over optimum, but he was much too busy trying to cover for the clay pot he'd broken turning to look at the seemingly endless drawers and cavities of Ginseng Joji's. The man would probably say it was hundreds of years old or something and charge them an arm and a leg for it if he noticed, but a careful navigation of a few jars had the mess carefully concealed from sight. Gray's whirring thumbs up to Poole was very subtle. Really this was all Yeva's doing. She was always off after this herb or that herb, and while normally Gray had no interested in hopping along for the ride he wasn't about to miss the chance to head out into the Venusian concrete jungle and muck about with the natives. It was one of the few places he didn't stand out [i]too[/i] much at that--yes, his exoskeleton was bulky and sure, his coat tended to get caught on the odds and ends of the bizarre marketplaces and tchotchke shops, but nobody [i]cared[/i]. They were all to busy trying not to get caught doing whatever the criminal activity of the day was to care! Sort of. Kind of. Not really. Between Poole and Gray both nearly filled a hallway each, but while the massive man had a sort of swaggering self-awareness Gray was a walking disaster. They probably wouldn't have let him come, but in a place like this-- [i]Hippie-dippie music festival. Layer Q, Venus. Techno. Yearly.[/i] "Tipbucktu!" Gray's vocalizer spat out, mechanically excited, as massive exclamation mark appearing pointedly across the orange of his visor. On the other side, strings of green data were scrolling invisibly over the world as page after page of young people getting fucked popped up on his visor. Not literally, of course--well, sometimes literally--but they sure as hell weren't sober. Mister Beeftips had seen to that. The orange faceplate turned expectantly towards his comrades, swiveling between them, before growing an exasperated chibi that dripped sweat above an enormous forced smile. "Seriously? As in, you guys really don't--" As per usual, Gray didn't wait for a response. He could already tell that neither of the other two had any idea what he or the old man was talking about and was already ahead of them, pulling up one of the vid-logs he'd found and streaming it over the front of his helmet. An excited youth, some Asian variety with a tattoo instead of an eyebrow and a string of Kanji running down from below his right eye, was obviously tripping balls. Pupils the size of saucers, he was babbling almost as quickly as the voice recorder could pick up, its granulation obvious as the picture blocked and unblocked itself in odd increments. The downside of using what was no doubt a hacked wrist-com was obviously lost on him as he babbled. [i]--gonna be crazy tonight, man, gonna get wrecked![/i] He was saying, chugging from a plastic bottle of water before tossing it off to the side and throwing his head back. [i]Let's merge, babies, let the vibrations make us one! See you at Tipbucktu, losers, I am so--[/i] "Going. We are, right? I mean, come on. We basically have to." The video cut out to Gray talking, his exoskeleton whirring to keep up with him. It was a very strange thing to see a seven-foot exoskeletal giant basically bouncing on his feet. "This thing is supposed to be ridiculous. It's the only time Mister Beeftips gives away handouts in person, the rest of the time he's like a ghost." Did they know who Mister Beeftips was? They had to know who Mister Beeftips was. It was hard to tell if Gray was more interested in the party or the bounty, but did he really have to choose? "Forget the ginseng, let's get some Beeftip!" [hider=Summary] Gray's a fish out of water on Venus but digging it, especially when he hears about Mister Beeftips sweet dance party down below. He's got a pimp Robot and an empty wallet and hoping to get some use out of both.[/hider]