WORK IN PROGRESS The Parlour

[Red Bulloch]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Image Source: Screenshot from the forum map (image can be sent via discord).
• Permission: N/A

LOCATION INFORMATION

• Location Name: The Parlour
• Type: Nightclub
• Owner/Controller: @Red Bulloch
• Region: Watson (across the street from, and two blocks North of, Lizzie's Bar)
• Purpose/Functionality: Entertainment - Both a meeting place and drinking establishment.
• Security Level: Middle-Security (standard levels for businesses in Night City's Watson District. While there are not that many advanced systems for security aside from the fact that the walls have ears. This is a mere rumor to those in the general public, but is indeed true.
• Access Restrictions: The main floor area is open for the public. There are rooms in the back available for private parties or "private performances". Said back rooms are reserved, and thus are slightly restricted to the general public. However, paid entry makes them not impenetrable. The storage room and office are off limits from the public, but employees are given permission. There is then a penthouse that Red Bulloch lives in which is not generally accessible unless Red herself allows someone to enter that room.
• Notable Features: What makes the Parlour notable is that it is themed like an establishment from the late 1800s. The decor is in the style of a high class saloon from America's past. The furniture and surfaces are made to appear like antiquated materials but are up to date. While the waitresses, barmaids, and dancers dress in scantily clad fashion from such old times. Male workers dress in similar antiquated attire, but are more fancy than alluring. While other clubs take on different images of the dark future people find themselves in, the Parlour harkens back to a long forgotten time of class and style. However, one should not let the posh aesthetics fool them as this club is just as seedy as the countless others in the city. The difference is it does a great job at hiding it on the outside.

DESCRIPTION

• Appearance:
  • The exterior of the club looks just like many others in Watson. The sleek and semi-brutalist architecture Night City is known for has not spared the Parlour's building exterior in the slightest.
  • Peering through the windows of this establishment creates a different scene. The floors are made to look like wooden planks. While the furniture is made from modern material, the veneer on them makes it all appear like a social club from the late 1800s, particularly the American South. One first walks through a plain looking vestibule that separates the club from the world outside, but then are greeted by tall wood-veneered double doors. These doors would then give way to the main bar area, which is a large atrium two stories high.
    • The ground level of it his host to several tables and booths for patrons to have a few drinks. The booths often have smaller tables with polished metal poles where select dancers at the club would be hired for private dances to patrons willing to pay.
    • To the left of the large doors one enters from is the bar, which takes up the entire side wall to the left of the entrance. Its counter has a dark wood veneer, contrasting with the more lighter wood tones on the rest of the furniture. It appears ornately carved with ornate designs engraved on the flat surfaces of the out-facing parts of the bar. Behind it would be a wall of near-countless liquor bottles on 3 rows of shelves. The tabs are positioned close to the counter, and the counter is lined with padded stools where more patrons find themselves enjoying a drink.
    • There is a staircase along the right side wall that takes one up to the second level of the bar room which is host to gambling tables. There are black jack tables, poker tables, as well as roulette tables and a few slot machines. This level is built like a ring around the walls of the bar room providing a view of the ground level below. Along the walls of this level are also antique-looking paintings showing various scenes of old-timey hedonism, picturesque landscapes, or portraits of people none of the patrons would know anything about since they were likely from times long forgotten by most Americans by now.
    • Towards the center of the back wall from the entrance is the main stage where bands may play gigs or routines of the Parlour's dancers perform numbers. Two doors are on the periphery of the stage that go to private rooms that can be rented out by patrons for a decent price.
  • The rooms in the back are removed from the main bar room's activity allowing for private meetings to be held, deals to be struck, or more illicit transactions could take place. There are eight of such rooms, where two are designated as more for large crowds, two for a small group, and 4 for more personal parties. Much like the main bar room, these private rooms have the antiquated looking furniture made from modern materials.
    • The conference and meeting rooms are equipped with mini-bars that patrons could arrange to have service from.
    • The smaller rooms have are furnished with antiquated looking changing screens, a large soft bed, and a few comfortable chairs and small tables, all in the same style as the rest of the establishment.
  • There is a door leading to a hallway behind the bar which hooks around to the the private back rooms of the establishment. This hall way also has a stairwell attatched to it that leads to the office of the Parlour, where its owner may hold meetings of more official business. These could be with city officials, business partners, but also may be the leaders of some of the more illicit organizations the establishment partners with at arms length may have meetings with the owner arranged for this office.
    • The office is tucked away deep in the Parlour's domain. There are no windows to the outside or inside. The only way in or out is through that stairwell to the hallway tucked behind the bar. If anyone is in this room, only those within the room are in the position to know about it.
    • Much like the rest of the club, this back hallway is decorated in that antiquated style with modern materials. What looks like wallpaper lines the walls, the same wood plank veneer continues on the floor, and a dark wood-veneer baseboard and ceiling trim is found in respective locations.
    • The office is a dark space aside from the lamps arranged purposefully to light the room but allow for shadows. Two wood-veneered padded chairs are arranged for any of the guests to take a seat at facing towards the desk but away from the door entering the room. Meanwhile, the desk in this room is actually made out of a polished mahogany wood with ornate floral carvings engraved in its drawers and the legs being carved with what look like ivy vines. The desk is equipped with modern technology for intercom, standard net access, computing functions for the storage of club files and other kept information, as well as a control panel to have the building's security systems go on lockdown in the case of an emergency. On the side behind the desk, facing the one door entering this room from the rest of the establishment, is an ornate wooden chair carved in similar fashion to the desk with crimson synth-leather padding. One may see this chair and equate it to a throne with how high its back goes and how it was clearly designed for both comfort and conveying a message of status for whoever sits in it. There are cosmetic book shelves along the walls, and some antique paintings hung with lamps lighting their scenery. The only other doorway in this office would be ornate elevator doors to the right side wall from where one would enter from the establishment.
  • Going up the elevator takes one up a single level of the building to a third level only accessible by this elevator in terms of public knowledge. This third level is the penthouse in which the owner of the club takes up residence.
    • Exiting the elevator has one find themselves in a small vestibule ornately decorated in the same antiquated style as the other parts of the club. However, the the padded benches are more ornate in appearance than the ones below. Carpet can be found on the floor of this vestibule, and a small refrigerator is hidden to look like a small end table that is filled with prized liquor.
    • White ornate doors would open up to what looks like a living room space. A large crimson couch with rich brown wood veneer trim is found, as well as various comfortable looking large chairs of similar coloration. A large round rug is found overtop the carpet in this room where a white ornate coffee table stands and is usually host to either used liquor glasses or data-pads the owner was looking through. This living room has a small kitchen tucked away. While the tile of the floor is ornate, and the walls are made to look just as fancy as the rest of the space, the appliances are fairly typical of the modern age while the countertops are polished granite-looking. All there is a standard refrigerator, oven and stove, and a few cabinets to store items.
    • Behind a set of set of ornate white doors is then a lavish bedroom with every seat padded and made comfortable in the same antiquated style. The bed itself is obscured by a screen of red silks that have a black trim, and the same coloration goes for the covers and pillows on the bed too. Twin night stands made in the same rich brown wood veneer are found on either side of the bed while a large blue carpet with ornate designs and white trim is found in the middle of the room's floor. A desk and padded chair can be found in one corner, while a large padded chair can be found in another.
    • To the right upon entering the room is a bathroom where there are no doors to it. A large vanity is set up with an array of cosmetic items neatly arranged on shelves can be seen. Going further in there is a door to where the shower and toilet can be found, yet this wash closet is surfaced on floor and walls with ornate tile.
    • A walk in closet is then found if one turns right upon entering the bathroom section where several dresses, all of them various shades of red but some white, other black, and a few blue ones, are found. In addition that other clothing and apparel items would be found in this space.
  • The same stairwell that leads up to the owner's office also goes down to a cellar where supplies for the club are stored. Most of this is akin to that of a warehouse for kegs of beer and similar drinks. However, there are also walls lined with wine racks, and shelves of unopened liquor bottles waiting to be brought out to the main bar area.
    • There is the entryway from the stairwell that most employees use to access the cellar, however there is another door to a back alley behind the bar where the club's loading bay can be found. Said loading bay works as both a backdoor for any employees not wanting to use the main doors, but also is used to receive supply shipments for the club's operations.
    • Along a wall there are kegs attached to hose-like pipes going up into the cellar's ceiling. These kegs are the ones currently in use on the tabs of the bar upstairs, with these flexible hoses being used to transport the drinks from the cellar's dank storage space to the glass of patrons.
  • Along the path leading to the private back rooms is a set of twin smaller doors where they lead to the public toilets of the establishment. This can be found tucked in around the hallway that circles behind the bar, but the section for only employees is sectioned off by a door that seems to be locked at almost all times.
    • While the toilets themselves are modern, the stalls, tile floors, long mirrors, and painted walls still reflect the antiquated style.
  • Behind the bar, and near the stairway to the cellar, is where another doorway is found that leads to establishment's decently sized kitchen. Inside this part of the establishment are all the machines to make some simple meals to go alongside drinks. However, everyone knows that one goes to the Parlour for the drinks and pleasure rather than the food. However, patrons are seldom starving.
  • Behind the exterior walls, and running alongside almost every room in the establishment is a network of hidden corridors used for spying on patrons who believe they are in privacy, or spy on patrons in the main bar area to pick them out from the crowd without being obvious about it. These corridors have always been part of the building, and the current owner kept them for what seems to be the purpose they were initially constructed for as well.
    • These corridors are completely unknown by the public and almost all employees of the Parlour.
    • The only ones who both know of them and are able to sue them are the owner and her inner circle.
• Atmosphere:
  • The main bar portion of the establishment is a bustling and chaotic place where patrons enjoy themselves in the relative open amidst all the attractions one could pay for. Music is blasting from the stage at all hours of the club being open aside from whenever the DJ or live band with a gig pauses between tracks/songs. The sounds of clinking glass, raucous laughter, numerous conversations being had all at once then add on to the symphony from the stage. On the upper loft of the bar room is where things are slightly quieter, but still just as jovial. The conversations are quieter and more direct all the while a scent of cigarette and cigar smoke fills the air and trickles down to the main floor below like a waterfall of smell.
  • The back rooms that can be rented out are for more quiet with muffled music drowning out what could potentially be overheard from the rooms to the halls. However, things are more sultry and private with some of the servers at the establishment walking to and from entertaining clients. Otherwise, patrons who rent the conference rooms also contribute to this quieter atmosphere as each of these patrons are meeting the back to discuss things out of public and away from other ears. Thus, they make effort to be discreet.
  • The kitchen and spaces for employees behind the bars are fairly bustling with activity but in a more orderly form than what is seen in the patron areas. Here the few culinary staff, and the majority of bar tenders go back and forth as needed to retrieve supplies to prepare whatever patrons order, as well as keep inventory on the club's supplies.
  • In the office, things are quiet, orderly, and professional, yet with an imposing undertone. This is in the very heart of the Parlour where chances of proverbial or literal escape are slim. It is the nerve center of the Parlour's operations, thus there is always a slight tension in the air for those who are guests to this part of the establishment. However, many who are associated with the Parlour and its owner find this place hardly menacing at all.
  • The Owner's Penthouse is quiet, private, and extravagantly opulent. Entering from the elevator has one's senses immediately hit by a scent of various perfumes and aromatics, which makes this room among the more sultry locations as well. Hardly anyone but the owner herself enters or leaves this room. Only those with specific permission enter, thus making this room get perceived as some alien territory to the very few guests who do get invited.
  • The hidden corridors that snake between the outermost walls and the rooms of the establishment make for quick getaways in emergency, but also allow some of the higher ranking workers, and the owner, of the Parlour full ability to spy on patrons as well in nearly all rooms. The one exception for spying is the owner's penthouse, where the only corridor attached is a hidden escape hatch. These corridors are dark, silent, and eerie in nature due to the their secluded and insidious nature.

History:
The history of the building itself has gone through multiple phases. The very initial usage of the building has been lost in the sea of records and bureaucratic forms of Night City's administration. What has been known is that it was a club owned by a man who went by "Cuban Rich", as his name was Richard and he enjoyed Cuban cigars. He would run the club as a relatively high class establishment, or rather an establishment with a high class veneer. Loud music still blasted in its halls, various people arrived as patrons for some reason or another. Many were there for the drinks, others were there to make deals, and then there were those for more illicit dealings. Either way, many enjoyed what was called the "Cuban Room" nightclub until Cuban Rich was found mysteriously murdered in his penthouse bath tub. What came of this time for the building was a specter that loomed over it, but also much of the layout that is present today. The hidden passages unknown of by the public but well known to the high ranking Parlour staff were made during this time. It was also believed Cuban Rich's operation was affiliated with smuggler tunnels beneath the city like those out of Earth's history. However, instead of smuggling drugs or alcohol. Some alleged that it was people that were being smuggled in those tunnels to be sold for whatever purpose. Spare parts for shady ripper docs, sex slaves, organ harvesters, and other illicit businesses few have the stomach for. However, such things are merely rumors in the eyes of much of the public. Whatever secret dealings or tunnels may be linked to this building, they went with Cuban Rich and his suspicious suicide.

After that, the building went through various owners. It was then that the "Cuban Building" was seen as commercially cursed by the people of Watson. A club would open, but then close its doors after only a year or two of operating. The owners may have had tragic ends like the first occupant to be recorded and remembered by today. Such endings may be similar suicides, less disputable suicides, or even getting gunned down by gangers. Others merely ran out of money to keep the lights on. Then there were those that contracted terminal illness and could not properly manage the place. Yet, it would eventually fall into the hands of another semi-famous man who went by "Sly Silver", or "Mr. Sylvester." This man changed the face of the building forever. He had two goals, to serve the cheapest drinks out of any of the clubs in Watson, and ensure that no one left the doors without spending a fistful of eddies. Working girls were used, gambling tables were opened, and drinks were so cheap no one in their right mind would turn them down. For over a decade, Sly Silver ran the "Watering Hole" nightclub. He would get rich. He would gain some notoriety as a man who could facilitate a proper party. However, he too would face a violent end like many other owners of the before. As he was driving in his car in the vicinity of the Combat Zone, gangers would attack him and many of his close staff members. From there, it was clear this was extremely violent and armed robbery, as all valuables and noteworthy possessions were stolen and taken to the depths of the Combat Zone that only few mercs would tread.

Following the death of Mr. Sylvester, one of his workers, a woman by the name of "Red Bulloch" would almost seamlessly take over the club. The smooth transition made some suspicious, however Sly Silver had many enemies, and armed robbery with a side of extreme violence was nothing new to Night City. So, the NCPD saw the case of Sly Silver's murder as a grizzly but closed case. Meanwhile, Red Bulloch would transform the club back into an establishment that had the veneer of high class. While the Watering Hole was known for cheap drinks, easy pleasure-company, and good times to be had, Red Bulloch would embrace the gimmick scene of Night City's businesses. Some clubs were about characters from Night City's mythos, while others had particular themes. For the new phase of the building, now named the "Parlour" nightclub, it was as if one stepped into a saloon from the late 1800s American South. All the staff dressed in a particular fashion that alluded to such times but with more modern appeal. The furniture was made out of modern materials but made to appear antiquated. All the while, the Parlour made itself to be a place of fun yet also privacy if one could afford it. In addition, it is well known that booze, gambling, and pleasure aren't the only ways the Parlour stays in business. The information trade is well known to be facilitated in this place. It is known that the walls of this building have ears, yet no one of the general public is aware of how pervasive such a fact is. Rather, they believe it's just the girls that work the place and bed a few patrons that manage to get secrets out of people in the club's domain. Today, the Parlour still stands as the new face of this building that has seen countless others come and go by various means. However, something feels different this time. Things feel truly secure, which has not been a feeling since the days Cuban Rich owned the place.

• Role in the World: This is a nightclub open to the general public of Night City passing through Watson. Watson is known as an entertainment district for Night City, making its location fairly standard and sensible. However, while it is a hub for those seeking entertainment in the form of drink, games of chance, or sexual pleasure, but is also a place for private meetings and information gathering. It is well known that the owner of the establishment is keen on "networking." Thus, in OOC terms, the Parlour presents a place where mercenaries could find work just as well as entertainers could. However, one must be wary about the rumors of how the walls have ears in this place. No matter how private you make your arrangements, there is a good chance someone who works at this establishment will hear about it. Yet, such dealings are carefully covered by good drinks, decent food, pretty women (and a few men), and other entertaining activities.

EXTRA NOTES

• Story Potential: As a nightclub, it can be host to a myriad of things for narratives. People can meet up at this place, or network with workers here to find gigs of varying kinds. Entertainers can perform here, gangers could privately meet in the back rooms. Men and women of the Night City streets could enjoy the company of some of its workers, have a few drinks, and then gamble what remaining woes they have that the drink didn't take away. Nightclubs are the hubs where many people meet up for various reasons in Night City, and the Parlour is no exception to such a nature. If anything, the Parlour thrives off of such happenings.
• Future Development: In short; yes. In long; it highly depends on the narrative of its current owner @Red Bulloch. However, the social networks, gigs that can be heard about, and general enjoyment of this place could make for rather interesting developments in the future.
• Player Interaction: Players are free to come here to chat, grab drinks, or enjoy any performances as well as gambling activities. However, for anything related to robbery, acquiring gigs, or any sort of disruptive violence, it is asked that whoever plans any of such things to ensure that whoever owns this establishment OOC (currently @Tmanator as of this post) in order to make a plan accordingly.
• Map Update: A screenshot has been made, but still have to figure out how to upload it to this forum since there is no url link.