Chương 28: Tom's

*Bling*

You have a new V-mail from MilkandBaths03 Open?

Zeph awoke to the sound of the V-mail notification going off in his head.

""Open""

Wakey, wakey. We can take a nap later okay. We might even help you get a good night's sleep tonight.

Sonya Kaineko

Struggling with opening his eyes Zeph guessed that he had fallen asleep during the ride to Tom's from the LDHQ building because of how tired he was.

"I am awake. Guessing that we have arrived, Squad Supply Officer Sonya Kaineko?"

"We just pulled up rookie, and your off duty. No one is going to say anything about you just calling your obvious pets by their first name, or even calling me Jack."

"How is it obvious Jack? I am not even sure if I mentioned anything about her and Laxana during our very short ride along. I was really tired at that point. I am not used to waking up before midnight or twelve-hour shifts. Training or otherwise."

"She called you meowstser about a dozen times before I am guessing sending you a V-mail message. Hard to sleep through a loud ding going off in your head. She is really cute, but hopefully you're not going to insist on her doing the meow and pur thing."

"It slipped out. I'm sorry I am just excited about lunch. I looked this place up on the net as soon as I got the chance. You humans might crave the big T-bone steak that sounds amazing, but this little kitty is drooling thinking about that black sea bass that was shown on the online menu."

"Dockside is better. Make him take you sometime."

Sonya Kaineko's ears perked up at the sound of even tastier fish being mentioned, and she grabbed Zeph by the hand dragging him off the Mobile Command Unit and all the way to the door of Tom's.

Inside it was just like how he imagined it looked when Jack Dean described it as a hole in the wall dive bar that catered to cops and NEO's. Well almost. He had pictured something a little less high-tech as he still had not completely adjusted his thinking to Vlaras standards.

Other than having a more modern look that cheap wooden slate board interior walls it was as Zeph expected.

Smoke filled whiskey scented air. Check

Law enforcement of Neph Enforcement memorabilia littering the walls. Check

Mixture of barstools and booths. Check

Off duty and on duty officers still in uniform. Double check.

Even what he guessed was a high-tech Vlaras version of a jukebox was playing music from where it sat in a corner. Only thing missing was a big scene T.V. playing highlights from the big game or local news coverage. Zeph could only guess that this was because everyone had a VGPIINNC in their heads capable of streaming anything and everything to a projection that only they could see and hear in ultra-high definition well beyond 8k.

"Find a seat Cadet, I am sure that you have no problem squeezing you and the two of them into one side of a booth so I and the XO can sit on the other. Your squad and temporary partner can sit wherever they want. I will tell the staff to put them on my tab as well."

"Yes, Captain Halt."

"No need to be so formal when off duty Cadet Demonbane. Oh, I guess that you did not run background checks on me like you did the XO. Just call me Nora, here or outside of HQ. That is my first name."

"Only if you call me Zeph. Same for all of you when not on duty."

Zeph found himself sandwich between Laxana on his left that put her safely between him and the wall and Sonya who sat on the outside end of the booth's bench seat with the other side of the table empty as Captain Nora Halt went to find the XO and que up her favorite songs on the jukebox.

Zeph was just glad that there were no time limits on when he could complete the extra task of getting 8 hours of restful uninterrupted sleep, because his bed fell worlds away from Tom's instead of the few miles that might as well be next door if he used the telapod located outside of Tom's. He knew that he would be the center of attention if he was not already thanks to the two rather attractive young ladies he had on each arm.

Hot was hot beast kin or not. The standards for beauty across many of the various races on Vlaras did not differ all that much. Mother Lilith was the standard that all women were judged against, even pure humans. Men had it worse as most of the FA were of the male variety after all. Sons of God was more than just a title.

It started as just whispers between the day shift NEO's trying to grab a quick meal, before returning to the grind, and the members of the night shift that were trying to unwind after a long night as not all of them had duty the next night allowing them to day drink without any care. But the eyes of half the bar turned around when...

*Clink*

"Here you go little rookie. The girls can take their time and order whatever they want using their NC's. Tom and Sal already caught wind of why Hard Ass Halt brought in a bunch of fresh meat. They said you're not leaving till the plates clean. Big bust, big steak. Eat up kid. Trust me it doesn't get better than Sal's T's here in LD and that is 72 oz of his finest work."

*Gulp*

Zeph was already drooling just from the smell of the perfectly seared steak that was placed on the table right in front of him before ever looking down. It was a feast fit for a king, or in his case an administrator.

He never got asked how he took his steak an knew that not attempt had been made to scan even surface level data of his VGPIINNC, so how was it that Sal had cooked it perfectly by his standards. Brown with a little bit of char on the outside and the perfect mixture of varying shades of pink on the inside. Not overcooked, not just above raw, but a textbook perfect example of what he thought a medium rare should be.

Even at a decent steak house on earth the closest thing he got to what he wanted was a good medium. It was juicy and not bloody, and not buried underneath a little mountain of mushrooms, or drowned in God sauce that should never touch a decent cut of meat.

Heaven on a plate. Thankfully Zeph could not see a certain little angel's reaction to the marvelous meat miracle he was cutting into ready to take him first bite of.

Salt, pepper, copious amounts of butter, a little bit of garlic and rosemary was the secret behind Sal's masterpieces on a plate and apparently the keys to Zeph's heart's secret door that lay hidden on his stomach.

Unfortunately, a taste of hell would follow this heavenly delight's journey across his lip.

"Did she just say that that lucky bastard between the most beautiful girls in this dump with great food is the little rookie that supposedly not only took down Six Fingered Joe and Zorodo the nose, but is one of the unicorns amongst unicorns."

"Sally said here little rookie. Who else could it be?"

"The XO just sat down across from him too."

Three bites in and Zeph knee that he was going to get more attention than the fish that the little kitty next to him ordered, regardless of how she kept looking at his steak like she was waiting for him to offer her a bite.

*Pat, Pat Pat*

"Hay little rookie, good steak hua. You leave any bad guys for the rest of us?"

*Bling*

You have a new V-mail from Your-Little-Angel613 open?

*Bling*

Additional bonus task : Finish your steak and endure all of the compliments and hazing from your fellow LD NEO's

*Bling*

Zeph wants to cry. All he wanted was to enjoy the best meal of both his lives and go burry his head in-between the softest parts of the two girls that were blocking any escape routes he had currently. He did not have time to even check to see what Siael wanted, and now the Valkyrie Protocol system was giving him additional tasks related to his so-called reward lunch form Captain Halt.

"You are only getting what you deserve Cadet Demonbane. Welcome to the force."

Commissioner Justin Vaughn said with a devilish grin that Zeph would not have even expected the father figure looking commissioner to even be capable of making. Did he and Captain Halt know that this was going to happen to him as a result of the outcome of the little bet she made not thinking that he would make an arrest or even see anything other than a drunk or two all night.

"Hay it is rude to wear a hat indoors rookie."

*Tap*

The next thing he knew the cap covering his mark was flying through the air and his Mark of Cain was exposed to everyone in Tom's.