The Club (before battle)
The location, as marked by the pirate's blood, led us to...
... The entrance of a club. Faint music could be heard echoing out from behind the doors.
<So... this is the place?>
... Any of us been to a loud, flamboyant, deluxe dance club like this before?
Well, if I had to guess... My bet would be on you.
Oh, come on~ A flashy bar like this? At my Backstreets?
I doubt it would've had much business back there, hmm?
People would sometimes host secret Backstreets parties, but Sonya somehow always caught on~
<So, why are we talking about this?>
Don't you see, Dante? Bouncers, at the gate.
Welcome; how many do you have with you today?
Two. Come on, man. Don'tcha remember me? I'm on the list.
Ah... my apologies. Please, enter.
Look, look! They're checking something with the guests before letting them in. We gotta squeeze in there all smooth somehow...
Welp, since Rodya's out... Next in the line is...
Huh? What, me?
The hell are you blathering about? I'll smash your skull in!
Mm~ I'd take that as a compliment if I were you, Heath~
Ahem... S-should I?
Khm. Sorry to disappoint, but my Syndicate was less about music and dance and more about... blood, loyalty, things like that.
I'm more of a small watering hole or an old pub bloke than a fancy clubber. Gettin' sloshed, drinkin' from old rickety tables... Yeah, that's more like it.
Me.
Music: Screams of fear and pain. Deluxe: Walls painted red with blood. Dance: People with crushed joints, forced to dance...
Yeah, that's... not a club.
Well, I can't think of anyone else, then...
I have been to such a club.
Quite often.
<......>
... Y-you're joking.
I am not. I fail to see why that is difficult for you to accept.
It was merely one of the places I visited when I used to wander in search of life's joys.
A cursory observation of their procedures reveals that it is, in fact, a private club. As a general rule, visitors must receive the bouncers' permission prior to entry.
Most bouncers are of above-average mass and are likely to be armed.
Key elements to getting past the bouncers are...
You'd be right... if this was just any other club.
Ishy...?
Ishmael walked past us and up to the club entrance.
This is a home to a leader of a Syndicate. The question you should be asking is... what are the *other* ways of entering this establishment?
And I'm sure the answer lies with a Syndicate member.
Easy enough, right?
What brings you here, if I may ask?
I...
...?
I'm... Queequeg's... friend.
You're... whose friend?
Queequeg.
You recognized that name, didn't you?
At the mere mention of that name, the bouncer's expression changed from that of indifference to disbelief.
Wait...
$@$#@$@#….
The bouncer whispers something into the radio.
<Is he really going to let us in?>
Are you truly a friend of this Queequeg?
... What if I am?
Where is Queequeg?
…….
It's the Boss askin'.
Right... so your Boss is in the club, huh.
I ask again. Where is Queeq...
The Twinhooks are on our way. I repeat. We are...
<I thought we were trying to sneak in?!>
No.
I just wanted to know if their Boss was home. We should be able to get all the intel we want from them.