Soldiers And Beasts

6. Drinking Spree I

 ―John―

"I look great," I said to the others as I looked at myself in the mirror dressed in a velvet double-breasted hoodie; black jeans; and a pair of gray Chelsea boots. "Well, let's just hope you love it―that's all we could find you in the store near the hotel. We would have gone to the better stores to get you something better than this crap but they were... well, they were... on the other side of Affluence City, and it's like, a long drive over there." Sable said, standing behind me with his arms crossed, watching me take in my clothes. Sable was dressed in; a grey hoodie; black jeans; and a pair of black running shoes. "It doesn't matter whether they were expensive or not! I love them! I can't remember ever wearing any normal clothes!" I said, loving the clothes Sable got me. I could barely remember the time I ever wore any normal clothes; the only clothes that I could ever remember wearing every day of my life were my old Kingsman battle armor and the T.N.W.L battle suit. I looked at Sable's reflection in the mirror as he stood behind me, and I could have sworn I saw him smirking at me. "Thank you!" Out of sheer excitement, I turned around and hugged him, wrapping my arms around his much taller and broader figure.

I felt a large hand hesitantly settle itself on my head and another larger hand pat me on my back. "Don't mention it, John. But let's hope Lt. General Hoffman lets you keep them. Even when they were cheap, I still spent money on them and I want my money's worth even if it wasn't that expensive." Sable said bluntly as I let go of him. Hogan and Dario came into the room seconds after. Dario donned a navy blue track jacket; light blue jeans (with some tears on the legs); and a pair of white sneakers. Dario wore a velvet (similar to the color of my hoodie) double-rider leather jacket; grey jeans; and white sneakers similar to Sable only from a different brand.

"Shall we get going, guys?" We got some partying and drinking to do!" Dario said, presenting a bucket with a couple of beer bottles stacked inside of a mound of ice in the bucket. "We sure shall, but first, let's have a drink to it, eh?" Hogan said, grabbing two bottles of beer and handing one to Sable who practically bit down on the cap and spat it out into the trash bin. Dario took two of the bottles in the bucket and handed one to me; I would have asked for a bottle opener but I simply gripped the neck of the bottle and popped the cap off with my thumb.

"A toat to John," Sable said, raising the bottle in his hand. "To John." Dario and Hogan said thereafter, all of us raising our bottles in the air and then pinging them together and chugging them until they were empty. After putting my black leather gloves on―and after Dario wrapped the bandage mask on my face)―we all head down to the elevator. "Alright, fellas. It's party time." Sable grinned, rubbing his hands together excitedly.

•

―Faith―

All of the girls―except for me, Alice, and Frostine―were drunkenly cheering as we all walked down the stairs to the lobby. However, as we walked into the lobby, the elevator opened up, and out of it came Hogan's team.

"Hogan? Dario? Sable? Just what the fuck are you three doing here?" Ruth drunkenly stammers, pointing at Hogan. "For your information, we were invited onto this trip, same as you," Hogan said to Ruth, looming over her much smaller body. "Yeah, sure you were. Now, why would Lt. General Hoffman invite you, these two clowns―" "Oh! Ey!" Dario and Sable expressed, offended by Ruth's vitriol towards them. "And whoever the hell that is!" Ruth pointed at a stranger in a red coat with his hood on accelerating his walking speed to the exit hurriedly. I didn't know why, but my eyes were concentrated on whoever that was who just practically sped off through the doors of the hotel.