Post by Catsmate on Feb 4, 2021 13:11:22 GMT
The Rainbow Code
There are a lot of type bars, specialising in various clienteles (journalists, actors, cops, gays, military) or environments (sports, pick-up joints); on a back street in London1 is the bar named Rainbow Code2 that has a special clientele of its own.
It opened a long time ago, after the Second World War and was generally unsuccessful and, frankly, down-at-heel. Then something happened and it gained some new patrons, people (mostly men) who wanted a quiet place to drink and eat and unwind. Now most of the regulars are 'in the trade', in one way or another. Some are cops, more are military, some academics, some writers or journalists, some just more-or-less regular people. All know the reality: humanity is not alone and there is weird stuff out there.
Not all are actually human, but they're discreet.
The decor of the Rainbow Code is a mix of English pub tacky (there are still traces of the original "Olde Worlde" theme complete with horse brasses and fake beams) and the surreal. The walls, and ceiling, are covered with fake alien memorabilia and film souvenirs and posters. Just about every imaginable bit of alien-themed junk is there on the walls of the Rainbow Code
The walls have perhaps a couple of hundred photos stuck up, pinned, slued or taped; some are old, black-and-white prints from decades ago (at least two are actual daguerreotypes) while many are more modern. There's the usual collection of oddities in the sky, lights, blurred things and apparently actual spacecraft. More are pictures of aliens; coming out of ships, talking to humans or lying dead or broken on the ground. One has a saturnine man with a goatee being led in handcuffs by a pair of men in fatigues.
Some of the men, and a few women, in the pictures look rather like the patrons....
Then there are the other pictures: starting with 'Winkle' Brown next to Megaroc, astronauts in space-suits exploring a ruined city in a red desert, a dark cavern with a number of huge pyramids in the background and men(?) in what look like diving suits, a quartet standing next to an elongated saucer with UN markings, three photos of a lobster that (judging by the rifle on the sand next to it) most be three metres across and a bunch that appear to have been taken in space.
A sign in one corner says Digestive Residue Purging Chambers in a strange script and points to a door. Through it is a corridor that leads down a slight incline to the aforesaid bathrooms. They're all individual units, immaculately clean, and a few have showers.
The wall by the inevitable jukebox has a score or so of framed snapshots. Most are men, most are wearing fatigues, and they have the look of soldiers or agents. None bears a name.
The food and drink is, perhaps surprisingly given the decor, excellent. The drinks menu wide, almost no-one is dissatisified at the choice, be it the popular brands, something obscure from Europe or Asia, or a small microbrewery product. The bartender, called Tom by everyone6, can produce pretty much anything you can name.
The food is unashamedly "pub grub" with chicken, burgers and so on, though all is excellent. The curry is particularly good, and available in five grades.
The customers at the Rainbow Code are mostly a quiet bunch who keep to themselves. Nobody starts a fight (though they will end one), nobody gets rowdy, and nobody hassles any newcomers, if the newcomers behave themselves. More than half the patrons are armed, typically with (for 2020) new-model Glock or SIG pistols or old military sidearms, like Webleys or Colts.
Almost everyone is at least familiar with unarmed combat, many are professional and a few are true experts. And some aren't human anyway...
The regulars aren't fond of newcomers, generally tolerant at best. ID is required for anyone entering who isn't known to Jimmy the bouncer/doorman.
Some of the regulars.
Dr. Q is a very old man, his face weather-beaten and his white hair and beard rather unkempt. Mostly he keeps to himself, sitting in a booth alone (he's partly deaf) reading and making notes in a spiral book. If you can get him to talk his knowledge of the last fifty years (at least) of aerospace projects, aviation in general and "black technology" projects is encyclopedic.
He doesn't drink, sticking to Earl Grey and averaging six pots an evening.
<>
Comments? Ideas? Suggestions?
1. Or wherever is convenient. For a more sci-fi feeling it could have entrances in several places.
2. If you don't get the reference see wiki: Rainbow Codes. Loosely they were a system of random names for military projects used in Britain up to about 1960 in the form COLOUR NOUN. They're useful for adding verisimilitude to games, especially BLUE PEACOCK....
3. Though at least one saucer has no visible wires. It just hovers there.
4. Good advice as the 'glass' is effectively unbreakable. Though if you know the trick the lid folds up.
5. Fake, right.......
6. It's not his name but at least it's pronounceable for humans.
There are a lot of type bars, specialising in various clienteles (journalists, actors, cops, gays, military) or environments (sports, pick-up joints); on a back street in London1 is the bar named Rainbow Code2 that has a special clientele of its own.
It opened a long time ago, after the Second World War and was generally unsuccessful and, frankly, down-at-heel. Then something happened and it gained some new patrons, people (mostly men) who wanted a quiet place to drink and eat and unwind. Now most of the regulars are 'in the trade', in one way or another. Some are cops, more are military, some academics, some writers or journalists, some just more-or-less regular people. All know the reality: humanity is not alone and there is weird stuff out there.
Not all are actually human, but they're discreet.
The decor of the Rainbow Code is a mix of English pub tacky (there are still traces of the original "Olde Worlde" theme complete with horse brasses and fake beams) and the surreal. The walls, and ceiling, are covered with fake alien memorabilia and film souvenirs and posters. Just about every imaginable bit of alien-themed junk is there on the walls of the Rainbow Code
- There's a Men in Black film poster mounted over a dartboard. It's full of holes.
- There are more 'Grey' images than any sane person would consider reasonable; the eyes follow you from scores of posters, magnets, dolls and more.
- Wires attached to the ceiling beams hold a collection of toy and model spacecraft; they hover over the tables and booths3.
- There's a large glass(?) case by the bar there are a collection of sci-fi prop weapons, complete with labels. On the wall is a sign: In Case of Emergency Do Not Break Glass4.
- A smaller glass box has a lump of pale grey rock, complete with fake Apollo astronaut signatures5.
- On the opposite side the reddish "Mars rock" box has the signature of two of the British Mars Probe astronauts.
- Another case holds the contents of a NAZ-2 Soyuz survival kit, complete with TP-82.
- Over the middle of the floor wires support a 'Sputnik' type satellite, about 60cm across excluding the antenna wires. It has a pair of odd burns through the casing.
The walls have perhaps a couple of hundred photos stuck up, pinned, slued or taped; some are old, black-and-white prints from decades ago (at least two are actual daguerreotypes) while many are more modern. There's the usual collection of oddities in the sky, lights, blurred things and apparently actual spacecraft. More are pictures of aliens; coming out of ships, talking to humans or lying dead or broken on the ground. One has a saturnine man with a goatee being led in handcuffs by a pair of men in fatigues.
Some of the men, and a few women, in the pictures look rather like the patrons....
Then there are the other pictures: starting with 'Winkle' Brown next to Megaroc, astronauts in space-suits exploring a ruined city in a red desert, a dark cavern with a number of huge pyramids in the background and men(?) in what look like diving suits, a quartet standing next to an elongated saucer with UN markings, three photos of a lobster that (judging by the rifle on the sand next to it) most be three metres across and a bunch that appear to have been taken in space.
A sign in one corner says Digestive Residue Purging Chambers in a strange script and points to a door. Through it is a corridor that leads down a slight incline to the aforesaid bathrooms. They're all individual units, immaculately clean, and a few have showers.
- Though it's considered tacky to use the bar just for cleaning up.
- There's actually one bathroom off the bar, for patrons who aren't as mobile as usual.
The wall by the inevitable jukebox has a score or so of framed snapshots. Most are men, most are wearing fatigues, and they have the look of soldiers or agents. None bears a name.
- At closing time some of the regulars will raise a glass or bottle in a toast to the pictures.
The food and drink is, perhaps surprisingly given the decor, excellent. The drinks menu wide, almost no-one is dissatisified at the choice, be it the popular brands, something obscure from Europe or Asia, or a small microbrewery product. The bartender, called Tom by everyone6, can produce pretty much anything you can name.
The food is unashamedly "pub grub" with chicken, burgers and so on, though all is excellent. The curry is particularly good, and available in five grades.
The customers at the Rainbow Code are mostly a quiet bunch who keep to themselves. Nobody starts a fight (though they will end one), nobody gets rowdy, and nobody hassles any newcomers, if the newcomers behave themselves. More than half the patrons are armed, typically with (for 2020) new-model Glock or SIG pistols or old military sidearms, like Webleys or Colts.
- Some of the latter are surprisingly capable...
Almost everyone is at least familiar with unarmed combat, many are professional and a few are true experts. And some aren't human anyway...
- Stashed under the bar is a combination locked footlocker with additional weapons. Most of the regulars live by “just in case”.
The regulars aren't fond of newcomers, generally tolerant at best. ID is required for anyone entering who isn't known to Jimmy the bouncer/doorman.
- Who's rather more than two metres tall and looks like he could arm-wrestle a Cyberman into submission. A jovial man who's very slow to anger and very quick to act in a situation. There's something about him that screams ex-military
- Occasionally he's replaced, or very rarely supplemented, by Janice. A small woman whose look can terrify. She's even fast, and stronger, than Jimmy.
Some of the regulars.
Dr. Q is a very old man, his face weather-beaten and his white hair and beard rather unkempt. Mostly he keeps to himself, sitting in a booth alone (he's partly deaf) reading and making notes in a spiral book. If you can get him to talk his knowledge of the last fifty years (at least) of aerospace projects, aviation in general and "black technology" projects is encyclopedic.
He doesn't drink, sticking to Earl Grey and averaging six pots an evening.
<>
Comments? Ideas? Suggestions?
1. Or wherever is convenient. For a more sci-fi feeling it could have entrances in several places.
2. If you don't get the reference see wiki: Rainbow Codes. Loosely they were a system of random names for military projects used in Britain up to about 1960 in the form COLOUR NOUN. They're useful for adding verisimilitude to games, especially BLUE PEACOCK....
3. Though at least one saucer has no visible wires. It just hovers there.
4. Good advice as the 'glass' is effectively unbreakable. Though if you know the trick the lid folds up.
5. Fake, right.......
6. It's not his name but at least it's pronounceable for humans.