Blakurik of Zerinfrium's Party (IC, New Atlas Only)

[Zerinfrium]

Blakurik sat there upon his couch thinking to himself. Forty-nine years of age, cigarette in hand still looking younger than most pop stars. Hosting party after party under limited house arrest under the Zerinite government. Hundreds from across the world attending each month. A pretty nice gig for the ex absolute dictator of a country with over one hundred million souls. Interesting final result for a man who ruled for a decade. In that decade he turned that country around that is what he did. He heard this party on January 15th would be a blast. Many dignitaries and celebrities would be attending. He stretched long and hard. His pack poping like crazy. How long was he on that couch? He stands up and gets his phone going through his recent contacts to call his head butler.

"Yea, unlock the gate. Let them in, and NO letting any cars in. They can walk from the fucking parking lot. My yard just recovered from some asshole's motorcycle stunts from the last one." he stated. The butler replied his usual stuff. Informing him that all the alcohol, spiked drinks, and certain substances where all ready. Snacks in place. Security cameras in the HQ online. as well as hidden cameras in place. "Good. lets begin." he says as he hangs up. He puts out his cigarette on the bottom of his shoes that cost more than some households monthly payments. 'Why do I even smoke those when fucking weed is legal here?' he thought to himself. He then got back on his normal thought pattern. He opened the front door. Walking outside and onto his front porch.

A pretty big front porch. He saw the gate open, automatically. The federal guard who are suppose to stand guard vigilante at ready arms just smoking and passing a blunt. Just like they usually do at his parties. Hell a game of black jack had already started in their break room near the security HQ. He leans against the front rail. Whiskey glass in hand. A small amount just to get ready for all the people.

"Let us play this game we play every month you heretic bastards." He said to himself quietly as he downed the glass and threw it into the pool. By Thor's hammer does he still have an arm? He thought to himself as the glass landed in the middle of the pool. He saw as car doors opened, and a mass of people approached. This five day bender of a party will be quite an enjoyment to all involved, and unforgettable to first timers. He squinted his one eye. he eye patch on his left ruffling slightly from the facial movement. Let the game begin.

Blakurik

Banurik

Kanurik

Brenna

[Brytene]

Entering the palace

---

Antonio Botas, Fleet Admiral of the Confederate Brytisc Fleet, was on vacation. It was not a true vacation, not really - if shit really hit the fan he would be on the next plane home - but for now Fleet Commander Forge was holding the fort and so Antonio was free to adventure. Although he was a proud citizen of the rustic, rambunctious, hard-drinking Brytene, he was in fact Carlosian by birth. He had fled his home at the tender age of 11 and stowed away on a merchant vessel, and eventually found his way to Brytene and the military, rising through the ranks to become the highest ranking military officer in the entire Confederacy.

He had heard many things about Blakurik, or 'Blake', both good and bad, and whilst he wasn't quite sure if he would back the man in a political campaign, he sounded like a top notch gentleman for a party. Lighting an outrageous Carlosian cigar, he tucked his hands into his waistcoat and strolled lackadaisically through the gates, eyeing up the crowd as he went. Five days of absolute debauchery and revelry. It sounded estupendo!

He took the cigar from his mouth, spread his arms wide, threw his head back and let loose a loud grito, then grinned as people around him began to cheer too, caught up in the excitement.

[Zerinfrium]

On the Porch balcony

Blake smirked. Already the party is getting, as his youngest son says, 'lit' who is that man. He seems Carlosian. He waited for the man to step pm the porch before getting his attention. The man approached.
"What is your name? I never seen you at one of these before?" he said curiously but not concerned. His security team kept profiles for all who attended, from one times to constants.

Being an ex dictator does have it's benefits, he already seen a few of Brytish visit so he knows the style.

"Your style screams Brytene, but your accent, speech, and words say otherwise. Where are you from friend?" he says smiling, taking out a cigar himself. cutting it and lighting it near perfectly.

[Brytene]

On the balcony

Botas extended a hand with a grin, before turning to lean on the balcony railing beside Blake and gaze out at the crowd.

"I am Admiral Antonio Botas," he said with a flourish "of the Brytisc fleet. I was cast adrift as a young child, and found my way from Carloso to fair Brytene. And then fate cast me ashore here, to drink all of your spirits." he said with a wink

[Zerinfrium]

On the balcony

Blake chuckled. "Well drink away. Odin knows we have plenty." he says as he takes a nice puff from his cigar. "Admiral, have you ever had the pleasure of trying 'Kinlunder Surprise'? Its a excellent kush from the shittiest part of the country. I'm sure you'll have washed it out by the time you get back home." he says laughing

At the main bar

Three persons gather around at the bar. Each looking similar to the other. With the taller and oldest of them of course seeming different, as if he had a different mother.

"This is bullshit why am I here?" said the tall man in a suite.

"Oh come on brother can't you just for once show support to dad." said the youngest

"No I won't the man was and still is a criminal who got out of death by mere luck."

"Well he is out father Banurik, we have to support the family. We are Takario after all." said the eldest

"You guys better stop arguing. Father is having fun for once and I don't want to ruin it." said the youngest

"Whatever. I'm telling you I am leaving after the third day."

"You said that last time."

The two mens exchanged stares before going back to their drinks and listening to their sister's talks about how another boy at school suddenly stopped talking to her. These bickering children were three of Blake's children. Kanurik, a logical man who cared about work. Banurik a emotion driven alcoholic who cared about image, and Breena a ditz who cared about family. Each child seemed to represent a aspect of their father. Whereas the brother no longer living and the brother far away represent his two extremes pushed to the extreme. This is going to be a interesting party.

[Allied Connurist States]

Arriving at the party

Finally, it was that treasured time of the month that the Emperor and Empress of Castarcia had been waiting on, a week off and away from their responsibilities, assuming there were no national emergencies. As far as anyone else was concerned, it was entirely coincidental that this time off had lined up with this particular party in Zerinfrium, which had promised to be an unforgettable experience to first timers - as long as they didn't experience any blackouts or gaps in memory that came with excessive intoxication. They were however pretty confident that this would be a different party than the ones they had grown accustomed to. Of course, one would expect it to be somewhat rowdier than any official state event like the 'parties' people like them held for weddings, anniversaries and the like, and most of the invite only parties they had been to behind closed doors had either been their own or run by some of their friends in nearby Brytene. It was fair to expect something else entirely from the brazen ex-leader of this land, infamous for his relaxed tolerance of the typically illegal substances everyone knew and loved.

Still, this free time wasn't entirely free in the sense that they didn't quite have the licence to do whatever they wished. Perhaps the host would not stand in their way for anything short of a heinous crime, but it would not be okay if they did things that got them in the newspapers. Every important person in the public eye did things that they wouldn't be too proud of having the whole world know about, but as long as any and all allegations could be plausibly denied, you'd be fine. The maintenance of image was key, but depending on your company, you didn't have to be too wary of that behind closed doors. For some reason, people liked to view monarchs as role models, and that meant no smoking in public, amongst other things, because the moment you gave someone half a reason to call you out, chances were that someone would. Connor and Alice knew that well enough by now, and had long exercised caution about when and where they would put all the seriousness of their day to day lives to one side and indulge in drinking and dancing and other hedonistic pleasures so often pursued by the rich and powerful.

The Imperial Couple had heard about Blakurik, or Blake for short, and his antics on more than one occasion in the past, in fact being already reasonably well-respected by the Emperor of Castarcia at least, though they had not crossed paths in person. He wondered how true his basic impression of him would end up becoming - Connor had the hope that he and his partner would get on with their host and enjoy his hospitality, a man that he didn't always completely agree with when it came to politics but could at least see where he was coming from, the kind of person you would enjoy chatting to with drinks in your hands. Meanwhile Alice was more concerned with the exact nature of the party, and the need for each other to retain at least some measure of control over themselves. A five day party would require pacing themselves to a degree, and it represented a change from the more innocuous parties she was more used to with fine wines and whiskies where people were at their best and someone was playing the piano softly in some corner of the room. Being the Empress, of course, meant that you had to be somewhat adaptive to change, but regardless, the longer her and her husband's relationship went on, the more they pushed boundaries and tried new things together to keep their life exciting. It was going to be seven years of marriage by this summer, and spicing things up, keeping it fresh and generally expanding the comfort zone was what helped keep them sane. It kept boredom at bay and it gave you the motivation to get to the end of a long hard day of work.

The two of them were accompanied by the trusted Baroness of Castaris, the lovely Lily Powell. Lily had been described by others as a bit of a socialite, often seen at concerts, music festivals and exclusive parties. She wouldn't really have agreed with the moniker herself, it made it sound like she didn't have responsibilities and although she liked being at events at high society, she wasn't one to ever really be the centre of attention there. She enjoyed parties, but was skilled at judging how far was too far if things began to get out of hand. No doubt that was part of why she was here, because not only would she be perfectly happy in some corner of a room making new friends, but also had a role to play in making sure her friends did not go overboard, though not literally she thought as they walked down the path and past the pool towards the steps. Over five days she would be surprised if it didn't get some use, or at least someone unwittingly falling in it. All in all, at the party she would probably be doing mainly her own thing whilst occasionally crossing paths with Connor and Alice, who walked slightly ahead of the Baroness and had already clocked the faint whiff of marijuana, looking at each other knowingly.

Their sharing of the same thought lasted only fleetingly as they were interrupted by their red haired companion, unsure as to where the proper point of entry was located.

"Where do we even get in here?"

"Fuck knows." said the Emperor of Castarcia. "If there aren't drinks and people behind the first set of doors then is it really a party?"

It was a response that seemed to satisfy the Baroness, judging by facial expression at least, as they aimlessly wandered the last stretch up the steps. Upon reaching the top of the stairs in question, it became much clearer as to where to get inside. There were grins all around as indeed, there was a bar in the first room they entered. Emperor Connor eyed up the rest of the room, though for once this wasn't really to get a good look at people and more so to find an ashtray. he took out a cigarette from the packet in his right pocket and deftly lit it with a zippo lighter that he had retrieved from the same pocket. He always hated when it took more than one go to do the trick, it made him feel like he looked silly. His eyes fell upon an ashtray well placed at the bar and went over to take a seat so he didn't make a mess of the floor or anything else. This party had the potential of being messy, but that was no reason to treat the place like shit, especially as it would be a rude thing to do as a guest. He flashed a smile at his wife, whose own smile disarmed him as she grabbed the bottle they had taken from Castarcia in his coat pocket.

[Brytene]

On the balcony

---

Botas laughed. "I have heard of it, although it is still quite expensive in Brytene. If you were to offer me una pitada I certainly wouldn't say no!"

He pulled a bottle from one of his voluminous pockets. It was glass, beautifully blown, with writhing figures between faux columns, topped by a stepped pyramid. It had no label, but it was a fine, smoky mezcal. He jammed the cigar back in his mouth, twisted the cap off the mezcal, removed the cigar and held it neatly between his fore and middle fingers whilst gripping the glass lid between his ring and pinky, then took a swig of the glittering liquor. He gritted his teeth and hissed in appreciation, then proffered the bottle to Blakurik.

"So tell me, señor, how is it you convinced these Zerinites to let you keep your mansion and live this lifestyle? You must have the silver tongue, no?"

[Zerinfrium]

On the balcony

---

Blake smiled as he took the bottle kindly taking a nice swig. Breathing heavily as it burned. "Well damn! I defiantly know you got a iron stomach."

He then thought long and hard about the question. As he pulled a pair of perfectly rolled joints from his pocket. protected by a small plastic bag.He placed his cigar on the nearby ashtray so that it could sit and wait to be picked up again.

Well Admiral I must say. I do not know. Silver tongued? Yes, of course! Have you seen my Wikipedia article? However, I do not know why they kept me alive. Now!" he said as he offered the other blunt to the Admiral "Care for a light?" he said smiling

At the Main Bar

---

The conversation abruptly stopped as Breena immediately jumped up out her chair dashing to the royals. Just a few feet away to prevent a crash and a pile of hurt bodies.

Oh...my gods! I can't believe its you. The Emperor! and the Empress! Brenna said nearly squealing with joy. She quickly composed herself into her usual stone faced self when in actual public. She performed a curtsy before speaking I am Breena Takario. Daughter of the Dictator of Zerinfriüm it is my pleasure to meet you... two great people. she said nearly breaking out of her stone face near the end from excitement

Her brothers looked in disbelief. Here they are known throughout the world due to their positions in Zerinite politics, and here is their sister making a near absolute fool of herself. They looked at each other and nodded mean that they were just going to watch the situation unfold. Dad will love to hear about this.

[Allied Connurist States]

The Castarcian entourage looked up, fleetingly startled by the young woman's sudden burst of excitement... the Empress nearly dropping the expensive bottle she had just retrieved, which would have been a shame. Luckily, she had both a steady hand and quick reflexes, and if there was going to be any spillage it would have to wait until they were all several drinks in. The Emperor had just had his eyes in the direction of the three siblings, but he looks away for two seconds and the pretty young girl was already performing a curtsey and making an eager introduction. She had seemingly composed herself though not before already betraying her enthusiasm, almost reminding him of the younger woman his wife had once been, a time when she hadn't quite yet perfectly adjusted to handling herself in public social situations in what he had found to be an ever so endearing fashion. That alone meant that he liked her already. He grinned as she finished saying her piece... standing up from the seat he had only just put himself into and offering an outstretched hand, the other one holding the cigarette he was smoking.

"Pleasure to meet you, Brenna." he said cheerfully. "No need for titles in a place like this, at least as far as we're concerned. I certainly don't trust myself to remember everyone elses by the third day!"

"Great people?" laughed the Empress, who had started to pour some shot glasses, always a trusty method to get up to the speed of a party quickly. "You must have us confused with someone else!".

Her husband smiled, ever entertained by silly comments. Clearly when Brenna had said two great people, she had meant Alice and Lily. Speaking of which, he looked about for the Baroness. Perhaps she had gone to find a bathroom, he thought, and now his mind was on that subject, he wondered if that was where people would be powdering their noses. Her redheaded locks were never difficult to spot in a crowd - so much so that the press had once questioned her fitness to be an associate of the royal family on account that as many eyes were on her than on the Imperial Couple themselves - and he quickly spotted her taking a seat closer to Blake's sons as he was handed a generously filled glass.

[Zerinfrium]

---

At the Main Bar

---

The two boys looked at the attractive redhead who took a seat next to them. Quickly playing a game of rock papers scissors while she wasn't looking. Kanurik won. The two brothers fist bumped before she turned to look back at them again.
Banurik gave here a smile before speaking.[b "Why hello, and who might you be?" he said in his voice full of focus. The common language wasn't his best but he could hold his own. Banurik laughed."Can't you see brother. This is Baroness of Casaris.. Lily Powell if I can remember correctly. What brings you to our father's infamous party?" he asked respectfully

Meanwhile with Breena and the two royals. She smiled at the Empress's humbleness. "I do know who I mean your highness. I mean the two celebrities standing before me. Royal may have no official granted political power here in the Federation, but they are celebrities. Why some people have forgotten that us Takarios have royal heritage due to how involved my family gets in the government. My two brothers and of course my father. I would also like to welcome you two to our country, but despite my language this isn't a political gathering, this is a party through and through." the young lady was right to a good degree, but doesn't stop agreements or plans being made. She was especially right however as there was a man at one of the poker tables within the house downing some sort of power from his hand.

This sure will be quite the party, and unforgettable to first timers.

[Allied Connurist States]

The Main Bar

Lily nodded at Banurik as he informed his brother who exactly she was, his memory serving him well. "It turns out that most Empresses do have a favourite court lady... though in all seriousness, I am supposed to keep half an eye on my friends, make sure things with them don't get too out of hand. Parties are normally pretty good fun, though I imagine the two of you have a better idea of what to expect than I do."

Whilst the lads eyes were on her as she finished speaking, her striking green eyes beginning to settle on a bottle of wine after breaking the eye contact she held in conversation. Before either of them could wrap their tongues around beginning any reply, she already had a question on the tip of hers. "This is one of those parties where anyone can take whatever and it's cool, yeah?"

Over with Brenna and the Emperor and Empress, the term of celebrity could not be disputed in the same way great people could have been. There was always an argument to be made about the competency of politicians, leaders and royalty, but one could not dispute their significance one way or another, they were plastered throughout newspapers, magazines, television screens and internet pages, always somewhere on the agenda.

"Good." responded the Emperor. "I find that politics often has little place at a proper party, parties should be an escape from people's work lives."

"Thank you for the welcome, Brenna." chimed in Alice, thrusting shot glasses in his and her direction. "Plus, a bar like this is always more than welcoming for the first thing you do in a new country."

[Zerinfrium]

---

At the Main Bar

---

Kanurik chimed in "Well yes we do. We usually find a way to make it to each one. At the very least make a appearance" he said light heartily and yes it is one of those types of parties.

Breena was still with the two royals. Slightly smiling and enjoying the conversation, as she took the shot glass. "Why thank you. My father will enjoy your compliment." she said properly "And I do understand the feeling. I just finished Upper school, and now my father wants to send me to university, and quit honestly i don't know which to pick." she said innocently as she downed the shot expertly. The age of alcohol consumption was 16 after all.