[Casino Image] The massive construction project on the corner of Vinewood Park Drive and Mirror Park Boulevard is nearing completion, radically changing the skyline of Los Santos forever. When the brand-new Diamond Casino & Resort opens its doors, one and all are welcome inside to play, or just to stay in the most luxurious residence in the entire state. More than just a place to let go of your inhibitions and your sense of the passage of time, The Diamond is the one-stop destination for quality entertainment, high-end living and a range of experiences you won’t find anywhere else.
The Casino
[Roulette Table Image] If you're looking to dive into the action, the casino floor has a selection of activities to enjoy. Play against the house using Chips in Three Card Poker, Blackjack and Roulette. Slot Machines with a variety of prizes are also at your fingertips, while Inside Track offers a lounge to watch and cheer along with friends as the drama of virtual horse racing unfolds. Spin the Lucky Wheel in the lobby for chips, cash, and clothing or even the new Truffade Thrax supercar that can be found whirling on the podium during opening week. And be sure to check back each week to see what new high-end vehicle can be won. Check Rockstar Support for details and limitations. Guests looking to push the limits of high-end resort fashion can also choose from the carefully curated rotation of new clothing and accessories in the Casino Store.
The Penthouse
[Penthouse Image] Sitting atop The Diamond is an oasis of luxury for those shopping for a lavish pied-à-terre or just a feature-laden property in which to entertain friends. The Master Penthouse that sits beside the Roof Terrace with infinity pool and stunning views entitles the owner to VIP Membership status including access to VIP Lounges, High-Limit tables, plus a range of special services via the Penthouse phone including aircraft and limousine services and more. Renovate your residence with several upgradeable floorplans including a private Spa with a round-the-clock personal stylist, a Bar and Party area perfect for hosting raging Member Parties and featuring private retro arcade games, and a Media Room to enjoy games of Don’t Cross the Line and contemporary Vinewood cinema like Meltdown and The Loneliest Robot In Great Britain. As an owner, you can select the Penthouse’s color palette and patterns, and cement a place among the LS nouveau riche with a range of modern art from the Casino Store – from refined portraiture to pop art and daring modern sculpture – that can all be moved and placed around your property. With a Master Penthouse you’ll also become a member of The Diamond family, and the family business needs your attention. Help property owner Tao Cheng and The Diamond staff protect their investment from the clutches of a corrupt family of Texan petrochemical magnates in a series of all new co-operative missions. Each mission pays out special Awards for first-time completion and hosting the entire story thread will reward you with a highly coveted, brand-new vehicle free of charge. You can also pickup additional work and odd jobs to earn extra cash and chips with a quick phone call to the Diamond’s head of operations, Agatha Baker.
Check out this website. Seriously. It's a real website and it will give you a fantastic "in-character" look at what the update will bring. This website is better designed and more attractive than some real businesses' websites, believe me.
You've heard the rumors. You want to believe them, and there's only one way to find out. Abandon your preconceptions. Let go of your inhibitions, your doubts, your sense of proportion, your credit rating. The rumors didn't begin to do it justice. Welcome to The Diamond. Grand Opening July 23.
The Diamond is everyone’s playground. Invest in a Standard Membership today and you’ll be a lifelong partner in our project to meaningfully raise the standard of living for the one percent.
VIP Membership
At The Diamond, there are members, and there are members. And if you want to be the latter, you’re only a penthouse key away from enjoying the kind of status that only systemic elitism can provide. Experience Preeminence
Parking Garage
This is not merely a garage. It’s not merely a maximum security, subterranean storage unit. Think of it as an air-conditioned, custom-built, expertly curated museum, where our clients can admire each other’s collections in peace and comfort. Experience Accidents
Valet
Step out of our front door, right into your front seat: our valets are available 24/7, and are trained to never to look in the trunk, never to open the glove compartment, and never to ask questions. Experience Incontinence
Champagne Service
Our client code of conduct states that if any member is seen ordering a bottle of our finest champagne, spraying half of it over the most exclusive clientele in the state, and downing the rest straight from the bottle, our security teams are obliged to loudly applaud. Experience Turbulence
Aircraft Concierge
Going up? Let our concierge service take care of all your pre-flight checks, so you can step right into the cockpit with the engine ready for takeoff. Experience Maintenance
Cleaning Service
We recruit our housekeepers from the most respected crime scene cleanup teams in the state. There is no bodily fluid or potentially infectious material they can’t remove in the time it takes you to find an alibi. Experience Convenience
Limousine Service
Leaving The Diamond can be a traumatic experience, but we know how to cushion the blow. Our resident guests can order a Diamond Limousine to take them almost anywhere in the state, free of charge. Experience Irrelevance
Members Party
Why go to the party, when the party can come to you? If you’re one of our resident members, you only need to click your fingers and we’ll provide the drinks, the music, and the dozens of close personal friends. Experience Flatulence
VIP Lounge
Available exclusively to our resident members, this is the inner sanctum of indulgence, the apex of affluence, the pinnacle of privilege, the high point of high society. Experience Arrogance
High Limit Tables
Welcome to the grown-up table: resident guests are entitled to play in our high-limit suites.
A penthouse at The Diamond is not just a palace. It’s your palace. If you want a private spa, you can have it. Home cinema? Consider it done. Your own personal bar, private arcade cabinets, and office space? Just say the word: Diamond. Experience Prominence
Master Bedroom
Silk sheets, fresh air bottled on the summit of Mount Chiliad, and round the clock access to the greatest roof terrace in Los Santos. Experience Adolescence
Spare Bedroom
We all have that one friend. With a spare bedroom, they’ll have somewhere to crash that isn’t your bidet, and with access to their personal wardrobe they won’t have to keep borrowing your clothes. Experience Fragrance
Spa Room
Your private spa comes with a round-the-clock personal stylist and a hot tub infused with extract of jojoba and a dissociative anesthetic. Experience Interpretive Dance
Bar & Party Area
Why go to a night club, when a night club can come to you? The most exclusive venue in town is the one where you’re in charge of the guest list. Experience Incompetence
Arcade Games
Time to dig out the high-waisted jeans and the fluorescent headband: Diamond Casinos have the exclusive rights to classic arcade games Invade and Persuade II and Street Crime: Gang Wars Edition. Experience Correspondence
Office
Sometimes you need to take care of your affairs, but there’s no reason you should have to leave the lap of luxury to do it. All of our offices come with a gun locker and a hidden safe as standard.
Here, your dreams are reality, and your reality is a dream. Here, every whim can be satisfied, every fantasy fulfilled – no impulse control, no windows, no clocks, and no clearly labelled exits. Welcome to the Diamond standard. Experience Eminence
Table Games
Don't be fooled. Roulette, blackjack, poker - at The Diamond, these aren't games. Every card dealt, every spin of the wheel, every polished quip, every gasp of the crowd, every delusion of grandeur: this is art. Experience Overconfidence
Slot Machines
Here at The Diamond, we understand the fine art of the slot machine. We recognize the split-second reflexes, the years of research and training, the rock-solid intuition and the towering IQ that make a true master. That’s right. We’ve been waiting for you. Experience Subservience
Inside Track
Horse racing is the sport of kings, and Inside Track is the only way to experience it – the drama, the majesty, the excitement, the perfectly simulated aroma of freshly cut turf and hot manure - all without leaving the comfort of a bespoke, air-conditioned suite. Experience Tumescence
Lucky Wheel
Some people say that fortune favors the brave. Here at The Diamond, we’d rather say that destiny favors those with a full membership. Spin the wheel once a day, and you’re guaranteed a massive dose of self-importance every time.
Exclusive fashion. Unique designer artwork. There are some things in life that money can’t buy. But don’t fret. Our in-house store offers a rotating selection of tastefully curated items that can be purchased with Chips.
The newly renovated casino is located at the racetrack in east Vinewood Hills, by the highway. It is owned by Tao Cheng.
Brucie is making a return as a character in this update
In the casino you can play a number of games, including:
Three Card Poker
Blackjack
Roulette
Slot Machines
Retro Arcade Games (?)
There is a wheel you can spin once per day in order to earn prizes like RP, GTA$, discounts, clothing, and even high-end vehicles.
There is a horse-racing and betting component, although it is unclear if it is only simulated and interacted with via the "Inside Track" room of the casino, or if the horse racing actually takes place in the game world, instanced or not.
The casino has a penthouse/residential component to it. Owners of the Master Penthouse can upgrade their residence with a private spa, a bar and party area, and a media room. Residents will also be able to spend chips on art and collectibles at the Casino Store which can be used to decorate the penthouse.
As a penthouse resident, you will get access to the business aspect of the casino, requiring you to work with Cheng to prevent a rich Texan family from taking over the casino. In addition to this storyline, you can do side jobs for the casino to earn GTA$ and chips.
The casino has a store that accepts chips as payment. You can use the chips to buy collectibles and decorations for your penthouse as well as clothing and accessories.
If you think I should add something to the summary, please let me know in the comments.
Also, if there is any other detailed information I can include elsewhere, I'd love to hear it. Particularly in analyzing the videos and screenshots and identifying new cars, etc.
So I posted about the three stories I'm going in a thread on AskReddit last night and I thought I would come over here and share them in more detail. I spent about 4 years working at a casino. While I was there I ended up managing a team that handled traffic throughout the property, parking, and outdoor security. We had a lot of crazy things happen, but for the sake of this post I'm going to stick to this parking garage that seemed to be cursed. It didn't always have the most intense incidents, but weird stuff happened in there all the time. Sometimes it was homeless people moving a vehicle in and trying to live in it, other times it was finding people having sex in the stairwells or parked vehicles, and other times it was people using the view to watch concerts for free. All the routine stuff. That said, these three incidents stand out to me. Now that I've been away from the company for 3 years and have no plans of going back, I'm comfortable sharing them because it won't be as big a deal if somebody figures out where it was. The first one is a medical emergency, the second one is a situation with the bomb squad that ends sort of humorously, and the last one is sort of tragic. Be warned, the first and last stories are sort of depressing. ******** Story Number 1: I went through a period where every time I trained a new hire we had a medical emergency of some kind. It lasted about 6 weeks and happened to 4 or 5 people that I trained. The one that stands out to me the most is when I was training an employee named Brianna that transferred in from another department. We got to the end of the shift and had wrapped up everything I needed to cover with her. We still had some time left and the weather was nice, so I figured we would swap out the Explorer we were using and run a couple of the golf carts that had been parked for a while. By this point, the bad luck I was having with training days was pretty well known. She made some joke about how we were 15 minutes from the end of her shift and it looked like we were going to break the streak. We left the office and were just sort of ripping around the property taking a last look at things. I was letting her take the lead so that I could evaluate how well the training had stuck. The last portion of the property we were going to check was the parking garage. When we got to the third or fourth floor, I saw somebody laying in the middle of one of the driving lanes. I stopped my cart and called dispatch on the radio to let them know I would be making contact for a possible medical emergency and to get medics on standby. When I walked up, I found an old woman, probably in her mid 70s, collapsed on the ground. When she fell, her head hit the concrete. She had obviously fractured her skull. Blood was running out of her ears and pooling on the ground under her head. She was complete unresponsive. I got on the radio and told them to dispatch medics to my location immediately. I later learned that she was diabetic and her blood sugar had crashed causing her to faint. While this one seems pretty mundane it's one of the situations that came up in the garage that really stands out to me. Story Number 2: I was going about a typical, slow Sunday when I got a call from the Tribal PD that they needed assistance in the parking garage. They informed me that it was an issue they couldn't discuss via radio and would be calling my cell with further information. At the time I was at my office about half a mile away working on some "classroom" training for a new hire, so I radioed one of my guys to head over to the entrance of the garage and wait for me. Once I got there, we headed up to the 4th floor and met up with the tribal cops. They informed me that one of the housekeeping employees had been emptying trash cans in the stairwell/elevator and found what appeared to be a bomb. They let me know that a bomb squad was on their way out, but a local one wasn't available so we were waiting on a team to get there from about 2 hours away. In the meantime, they needed help clearing guests and employees out of the garage and securing the area. We also reiterated to everybody involved not to mention any details of what was going on via radio (or at all to anybody that was not directly impacted). I sent my trainee and the other guy I had on shift to make a thorough sweep of the garage and remove anybody that they found. While they were doing that, I got on the radio with the valet department (they operated out of the first floor of the garage) and told them to shut down, clear their team out of the garage, and to try to reduce the impact on customers that tried to retrieve their vehicles. I then called their supervisor on his office line (he was former Air Force Combat Control/Para Rescue so I knew he could keep the information to him self) and let him know why I was shutting them down and asked him to meet me on the scene to set up an a way to safely get valet vehicles out of the garage and into alternative parking so that they could return to semi normal operations out of our office .Once my trainee and my other team member returned I staged the experienced one inside the stairwell with the device (he had volunteered to be in that position so that I could keep an eye on the trainee and handle any necessary communications). He was tasked with making sure that if somebody made their way in there they were removed from the danger zone as quickly as possible. I placed my trainee 20 yards south of the big, glass doorway housing the elevators, stair well, and the device. She was tasked with keeping a visual on the doors at the other end of the garage and making sure nobody wandered in as well as directing any traffic down and out of the garage. I took position directly west of the doorway where I could keep an eye on both of them and keep a visual up and down the ramps to the floors above and below us. I also sent the valet supervisor back down with my patrol vehicle to block off the driveway leading into the garage. He got in touch with another vet in his department who graciously offered to come assist me as a message runner. Approximately an hour and forty-five minutes passed and things were going great. We had a few minor issues, but everybody had done a good job not mentioning what was going on over the radio so we didn't have to deal with any panicked guests or employees, and, aside from the director of security and the head of public safety for the tribe, the higher ups were completely unaware of the situation. We had an unofficial "Don't Tell The Executives About Major Issues Until After They Were Already Over" policy because they had a tendency to royally fuck things up. Their intentions were always good, but it was one of those "too many chiefs and not enough Indians" situations. When the bomb squad arrived, it was a completely unmarked vehicle. If you didn't know any better, you would have thought it was just a heavy duty utility vehicle. Unfortunately, my guy in the stairwell was the first person to get eyes on them as they pulled onto the property. Without thinking, he keyed his radio and said simply "The bomb squad is finally here". He knew what he did because after a brief pause I could just make out him following it up with "oh fuck". Que my phone blowing up, the radio going crazy, and texts pouring into my phone from my manager, our director, and our VP. The bomb squad had destroyed the "device" (which turned out to be a heater core from a care and a wiring harness stuffed into a box) hours earlier and I was at home in bed, but I was still getting phone calls. At the time I was pretty pissed off, but looking back on it I can't help but laugh. Story Number 3: Don't read this one if you have a weak stomach. One day in the winter of 2014, I was standing outside having a cigarette with one of my team members that was also a good friend of mine when onne of my limo drivers came walking up with blank look on his face. I asked him what was wrong and he told me that somebody had just jumped off of the parking garage. I thought he was joking (he said dumb shit like that all the time), but went to check it out anyway. The guy was dead when I got there. Pieces of his brain and skull were scattered in the rock flowerbed around him and blood was pooling up all around. We had to secure the area so that a full investigation could be done. Basically we needed to confirmation that he jumped and wasn't pushed. That should have been an open and shut case that consisted of just looking back over the surveillance footage, but unfortunately he happened to jump from one of the only blind spots on the entire property. From start to finish, the investigation took about 5 hours due to local PD and the Tribal PD having a pissing match over jurisdiction. It was about 20 degrees and the time and sleeting like crazy. The conditions made what was already a really terrible situation exponentially worse. We had been in meetings earlier in the day, so rather than being dressed for the weather we were all decked out in "suits and boots". It was absolutely miserable. Finally, the investigation wrapped up and they were able to move the body. Unfortunately, the temperature had continued to drop after the sun fell (down to probably 10-15 degrees). Because of how much time had passed, we had to bring in one of our landscapers with a bobcat to scrape the remaining blood, bones, and brain matter out of the rocks where they had frozen. That is the part of this ordeal that sticks with me more than anything else. Seeing him just after he had jumped wasn't pretty, but watching pieces of what was a human being just a few hours earlier scraped off the ground with heavy equipment was a lot harder than I would have imagined. Every so often, I have dreams about it or it will just pop into my head when I'm laying in bed or going about my day. The next day, I was talking to my manager and found out that this man was the brother of one of our high rollers. He had a drug problem and had been MIA for about 6 months. They later learned that he had lost everything and was living on the streets. Between his situation and the long period of cold weather, he finally broke. He came into the casino with his last 5 dollar bill and played it in a slot machine just hoping to catch a break. When he didn't, he walked outside, took the elevator to the top of the garage, and jumped. He didn't even hesitate. His brother was in the casino at the time. In reviewing the footage of him inside to piece together exactly what had happened, it was discovered that they had actually walked each other on the gaming floor. His brother didn't recognize him. This was by far the darkest situation I have ever been a part of that didn't relate to my own life. And thus ends the saga of our cursed parking garage. ******** Overall, working in a resort and casino environment is a lot of fun. Every day is a little bit different. I had a lot of really cool experiences, I experienced some things that completely changed my outlook on the world and human nature, and I gained plenty of skills that have proven invaluable to me ever since. I'm not sure whether or not anybody will find what I've posted here interesting or not, but if you do let me know. I have quite a few more stories from the place, and a lot of them are much lighter in nature. I few that come to mind are the time a valet attendant told me he was high on acid while at work, the time that one of my team members and I had a completely dead night picking up OT so we built snowmen and chased coyotes, and the time we discovered a dead body inside of an RV parked on the property. Those are just a few that come to mind right here in the moment, so let me know if you'd like to hear some casino tales. When I left the casino in 2015, I was pretty burned out on dealing with people in that capacity. The past few years I have been working in an unrelated industry and going to school, but I've grown to miss it a bit. I've got an interview Thursday at another casino as a part of their surveillance and non-uniformed security team. It's time to get back to having fun and get some new experiences. EDIT: Formatting
The year was 2268. Humanity had stretched throughout the reaches of our own solar system and beyond. We were now a united species, one nation exploring the cosmos under a single name: “human race”. The Earth still remains, as well as many other planets in our solar system, the only difference is that back then... they were inhabited. Planet and space travel was simply like a bus route with destinations throughout the stars. 1 A man awoke in his star cruiser with a startled jolt upright, followed by his own hyperventilating. A voice spoke from the shadows, “Did ya have another one pal?” “Shut Up, Stripes” the man responds. The voice chided him, “Listen Kid, that day was fuckin’ ages ago. Let Go”. The man before you’s real name is unknown. However, he is better known as “The Northern Cowboy” throughout Earth and neighbouring planets. Now you see, The Cowboy was a hero to the people of Earth. That voice in the back, the man known as Stripes was a hero as well, or he was until he lost his entire physical body in the biggest battle in human history. The society in this time may been advanced one, but it still has its conflicts. Now, one of these conflicts made these men heroes, The Battle for Humanity was the largest battle in human history. The entire species divided, two massive armies lead by two political groups went head to head. The Planetarian group; a party that believes the population should merge and become one nationality to be recognized as human. Then, there's the Individuals, people wanting the borders to remain on our planet and to preserve cultures. The decision for the dominant party wasn’t one to be made in a courtroom, no one could decide on a party to put in charge. The dominant half needed to rise. Was it time for drastic change? Or was it time to preserve? That is what this fight would’ve decided. The two armies clashed all over the solar system and fought for 12 whole years in continuous battle. Now this fight never ended, it was stopped. Stopped by exactly 390 heroes, two men or women from each country on Earth stood tall and decided to rally and stop this war. This was seen as an impossible feat for any normal human, but these people weren’t normal, they were extraordinary. They possessed abilities and powers only a fraction of the human race had. Some people were born with their abilities, like it was the next step of human evolution, others acquired them through science or an altering incident of some sort; these people were like folklore of their home countries, mere myths. However, the myths soon became reality when these people aligned with one another. Using their abilities, they arrived in the middle of the front lines of every battle between both armies and held them off. Eventually, these armies stopped their clash and listened to what these heroes had to say. These incredible men and women were seen as gods among mortals, and the leaders of both sides decided that if these people found a way to stop the fight and bring the society together, it would be worth listening to and trying. Soon after the war ended, a united party was formed and governed all of humanity. The Planet Earth Society was formed; a society that kept our individualities present on Earth, but we explored the cosmos and functioned our government as one species. Now, back to our two heroes. The Northern Cowboy was a hero out of Canada, and Stripes was his partner out of the states. These men had some extremely powerful abilities; Stripes, a once massively built man, had the power to control electronics and machines with his mind, and The Cowboy, a tall man who stood at about 6’1 with two different coloured eyes, one black and one blue, had the ability to generate and manipulate lightning out of his body. All heroes were as strong as this, if not more. So obviously, it was no wonder they were able to stop the imminent war. However, the victory didn't come without its share of sacrifices. Stripes was gunned down between the two armies. A seasoned war vet like himself couldn’t avoid his own demise at the age of 42. But as a last act of desperation, he transferred his consciousness into the computer in the Star Horse, their ship; Immortalizing himself into his own starcruiser. Now, The Cowboy had his own tragedies as well, involving the death of the other Canadian hero... but we’ll get to that later. “Where are we Stripes?” the Cowboy asked groggily, “About 300 miles away from the Red Dust Casino, in the Mars Orbit.” Every planet with a ground to stand on had been terraformed so that it was habitable for humans, and Mars was like the Las Vegas of the solar system, a planet for the rich and famous. “Are we making a pitstop, kid?” Stripes asked. The Man nodded, “Yeah but this ain’t for pleasure, we’ve got business to attend to at the Red Dust Grand Hotel”. Stripes replied, “Alright Cowboy I’ll bring us down for a landing-” The Cowboy interrupted, “Hold it, stop over top of the Crimson Canyon, I’ve got something to do first. Open the hanger for me would ya?” After a morning cigarette and a shot of whisky for breakfast, The Northern Cowboy boarded his one man fighter; a black, modified advanced secret service ship with a hand-painted white stripe down the middle. On the side of the fighter was a name painted in red, it read “Le Pew”. The Cowboy fired up his engines and shot out of the ship, and right into the depths of the canyon. The canyon The Cowboy had just ventured into was a place named Futurado Gorge. This canyon had a reputation all around the star system of being a dangerous death trap that only fools would venture into. So knowing this, Stripes questioned his partner's motives and speaks over the comm, “Hey Kid what the hell are ya doin’ divin’ into a place like this?” He responds, “Don't worry about it Stripes I know what I'm doing”, “alright whatever kid”. The Cowboy had discovered a while back that the water in this cave had unusual properties to it; the water allowed the person who touched it to see parts of their future, so being the clever guy that he is, he uses it to his advantages sometimes. When the Cowboy reached the bottom of the gorge, he got out of his ship and knelt down and touched the water… The Cowboy’s eyes lit up for a moment and then he saw his entire life flash before his eyes, and then the vision showed itself to him, he sat back, shook his hands dry, and lit a cigarette. After a few minutes of pondering, he stood up and shrugged. He spoke to himself, “So that's how I go, huh? It's a bit sooner than I would’ve thought. Oh well, guess it can’t be helped” He threw his cigarette into the water and got back into his ship. 2 On the top floor of the Red Dust Casino, there’s a meeting between two men. One man is a criminal who runs the Casino and uses it for a drug and money laundering scheme to supply dealers throughout the solar system. His name is Isaac Pantangellini, an average height man but powerfully built nonetheless, he had tanned skin with jet black hair slicked back into a mullet. The other man was a short and unhealthily thin young man called Mouse, with matted brown hair and sharp facial features; he is a bright young man in the drug business; but it seems he’s bit off more than he can chew with his most recent scam. Pantangellini started his rant towards Mouse by puffing his own ego a bit. He speaks aggressively, “Look dipshit, you don’t know who you fucked with. I own this casino and the resort, I’m not the manager or the bouncer, I'm the OWNER. I'm also a man who doesn’t put up with nobody’s shit, I have half of all the Mars cops on my payroll and the other half knows they can’t screw with me, I OWN this town. So tell me this kid, WHAT IN THE NAME OF JESUS, MARY, AND JOSEPH DID YOU THINK WOULD HAPPEN WHEN YOU TRIED TO SCAM ME?!” Mouse responds with a cool ignorance towards the riled up mob boss, “To be honest, what I thought would happen is that I’d grab one of the cases of money you launder through this joint to cover your drug business, and then I’d escape and you’d never see me again. But ya know what? You can go eat Venus Baboon shit, you fogey, I don’t care if ya caught me” Pantangellini was fuming mad from his disrespectful demeanor. He stood up from his desk, pulled a gun out of the holster concealed by his blazer, held it over Mouse’s head and brought the base of the gun onto the bridge of the kid’s nose so hard the cartilage in his face was smashed into oblivion and his cheekbones were shattered. Mouse crumpled to the floor after falling out of his chair. The casino boss pointed to his two henchmen at the door, “Hey you two, take this asswipe out back and put as many bullets as you want into the back of his head.” He then pointed to the blood on his marble floor and said, “Oh and get someone to clean this mess up.” At that very moment, The Cowboy touched down into the casino’s ship lot and parked his vessel there and put on his red trench coat, “Are ya gonna pay for the valet service kid?” asked Stripes, “Fuck no, I’m not made of money pal” The Cowboy responded. “What happened to givin’ back to the community?” asked Stripes. His partner talks back through the comm, “We gave up that hero of the people stuff remember? We do this to get paid now” “Just givin’ ya hell kid, lighten up a bit would ya?” The Cowboy sighed and walked towards the back door of the casino; just as he approached the door, it was slammed open and out rushed two burly men in suits dragging a badly beaten, sickly looking young man who was unhealthily thin. The men passed the Cowboy. The ex-hero took a few more steps before stopping, cursing himself as he turned around to walk towards the men. The men had the beaten man on his knees with a gun to the back of his head. The Cowboy approached the men and obnoxiously asked, “Hey do any of you boys got a light?” One of the men turned on the stranger who had just approached him and pulled a gun on him, “Woah easy partner, I just need a light.” The Cowboy said passively. The man responds, “Piss off punk, or you're next”. The Cowboy continued to walk towards the thug, unfazed by the gun pointed in his direction. The thug fired. In a flash of blue light, the bullet seemed to miss its mark and then the thug was on the ground writhing in pain. The Cowboy stood over the thug, stepped over his crumpled body and approached the second man. The second thug turned around and pulled his gun on the Cowboy. In a seemingly effortless motion the Cowboy had smashed the man's leg with a side kick and landed a knee to the man’s chest. The thug staggered for a minute and stood up again, firing away at the ex-hero. The Cowboy leapt out of the way of the bullets and snapped his fingers at the man and simply said “Bang”. Lightning shot out of the Cowboy’s hand and sent the thug flying a good 100 yards away. The Cowboy turned and walked away, lighting a cigarette. He looked over his shoulder and said to the beaten man, “Get to a hospital yourself, I’m not your fuckin’ babysitter” 3 The Cowboy sat at the casino bar and took a look around the place, a lively venue with a gold color pallette on seemingly every surface. The place was filled with people all dressed up in tuxedos and fancy silk dresses surrounding gambling tables and blackjack pits. The barmaid took a look at the Cowboy and was intrigued, he didn’t look the part of a gambler, he wore a casual, but wrinkled, black suit with a white shirt and black tie, and a faded red trench coat overtop. She walked over to him at the end of the bar and started talking “Howdy stranger, what corner of the stars did you wander in from?” He calmly replies, “Oh a place a lot worse than this one, can you get me an Old Fashioned?” She made him the drink and placed it in front of him, he knocked it back in a couple long gulps and then asked, “Do you know how to get to the top floor? I’ve got to have a chat with the man who runs this joint” She was less interested in the man now, “Oh he’s just another drug dealer here to see the guy upstairs” she thought. She then asked him “Here to close a deal?” “No sweetheart I'm here for him” he replied as he pointed upwards. She then asked,”A hitman?” The Cowboy replied, “Not quite, thanks for the drink” and got up and left without paying. He only left a bullet, sliced in half and scorched, on his napkin. The first floor service elevator doors were always locked in the casino, it was the way to get up to the top floor office where Pantangellini hid out. The Cowboy walked up to the doors and pried them open and opened the top hatch in the elevator. He then used his lightning to charge the cable and the elevator shot upwards, he stopped it when it got to the top, he composed himself for a moment and blasted the doors open. The men in the office were startled by the massive explosion coming from the elevator and the doors shattering, which followed the initial bang. Out stepped the Cowboy, through a cloud of dust coming from the door. “Hey your elevator kinda sucks, the doors wouldn’t open” he said cooly. All the men in the room, including Pantangellini pulled their guns and fired into the dust and at the man that stood before them. The Cowboy walked backwards into the dust in the midst of the gunfire. After a minute or two of continuous fire, Pantangellini was shoved from behind. Everyone turned around shocked, to see the Cowboy behind the men, he had moved so fast no one had seen him get behind them. The Cowboy took Pantangellini’s gun from his hands with a quick jerk, and fired into all the men’s shoulders and knees; except for the mob boss who was now shaking in fear. The Ex-hero kneeled down and was face to face with the criminal. He spoke, “You’re worth a fat $300 000 bounty Pantangellini. It seems like the all cops weren’t under your control, and that bounty’s all mine” Pantangellini was somewhat relieved he wasn’t going to be killed. He had to be brought in alive. “Stripes call the cops to the top floor, I’m not bringing him to ‘em” he said over his comm. “Alright Cowboy” his partner responds. The mob boss on the floor, who had now soiled himself, spoke with some confidence now that he knew he wasn’t going to be shot. He looked up at the man who had just brought him down and spoke, “You’re a filthy fuckin’ bounty hunter, you won’t last a week! You hear! YOU’RE DEAD! WHO ARE YOU?!” As if it was scripted, the Cowboy lights a cigarette and says in his trademark nonchalant tone, “Who me? Well, I’m just an old fashioned cowboy”. 4 On the other side of the asteroid belt orbiting Titan, one of Saturn’s moons, there was a large cruiser. The cruiser was owned by the Syndicate Of The Blue Moon, the largest crime organization in the solar system. The Syndicate was the unofficial ruler of the criminal underworld, they had immense power and resources; that of which rivaled the government. These people were no joke and certainly nothing to be taken lightly, their leader was a cruel and powerful man with incredible abilities. His name, The Midnight Gladiator. He could control and generate fire, giving him the ability to conjure immense blazes and destroy anything in his path. The Gladiator stood at a solid six feet tall, he wore a black suit and pants, with a scarred face and a head of white hair, despite him actually being quite young. He was a truly frightening man, who showed no mercy to anyone. The Gladiator sat on a throne in the main chamber of his vessel with a man whimpering on the floor before him. The man begged for his life, “No please, I am so, so utterly sorry. You will have my undying loyalty if you let this go, please stop. Spare me! S-spare me, let me live!” The man stammered on, sniveling on the floor as he begged. The Gladiator grew impatient, “SHUT UP!” he roared. He approached the man and grabbed his face by his chin and spoke directly to the man, “I don’t accept failure, that package needed to get there. You have failed, you are worthless to me now. I have no use for you.” The Gladiator covered the man’s face with his hand, which grew hotter and hotter as his grip tightened. Soon a blaze erupted out of his hand and the man’s head was incinerated into ashes, the screaming died out as his headless body fell to the floor. Two men in suits rushed over and started to drag the body away. There was a knock at the door to the main chamber and a man with glasses who had a rather weak demeanor, donning a bland brown suit, walked in. “What is it Genco?” The Gladiator asked. “It's Pantangellini” he said, nervously adding “He got life inside, a bounty hunter got ‘em’” The man of flame was concerned, “Well shit, there goes our best money launderer, we’ve gotta get a new casino” he continued “Genco, who was the bounty hunter that nailed him?” In a weak tone, Genco spoke to his boss, “We didn’t get a name, all Pantangellini said was that the man just told him he was a cowboy.” The Gladiator’s attention spiked, “What did you just say?!” He demanded. A bit frightened now, Genco spoke again “Um… He’s a cowboy sir, that’s all we know, is that alright? Did I do something wrong?” Genco was shaking now, and his stutter started acting up after seeing the burned up body laying on the floor. In a few words, he was fearful for his own life. “Leave me, and deal with that corpse, you have two minutes.” “Y-yes sir!” Genco ran off dragging the body with the men, all while dry-heaving from the smell of burnt flesh. The Gladiator turned and looked out his window and contemplated what he had just discovered. “The bastard’s still alive! How?! There was no way he could’ve made it out all those years ago.” His mind was racing, The Northern Cowboy was still alive! 5 When the Cowboy arrived back on the ship he transferred Stripes his 10% cut of the job. Now you see, Stripes had no need for money; he wasn’t an actual person anymore. He was essentially an A.I. program at this point; the man was immortal now, his consciousness would live on forever. He was just in it for something to do, so a big cut wasn’t really needed for him. Stripes was a curious man and something had been on his mind for a while now, “Hey partner, what did ya see down in that cave the other day?” The Cowboy looked up from the gun he stole on Mars, which he was cleaning, and said simply, “I saw myself die. I died on my knees, burned and beaten. Right on Mercury Bridge, overlooking the sun.” Stripes was surprised, “No shit huh, were you old or what?” “Nope, in fact I looked the same as I am now” Stripes was worried for his partner, he knew the Cowboy would never run from death; he had no fear of it. His fearlessness wasn’t made of bravery, it was something darker. The man you know as “The Cowboy” is a very peculiar man. He has no fear of anything, he has no cares in the world, he just lives. Day in and day out he is just living for the sake of living. He had a brush with death. He made a grave mistake one day, and ended up looking death in the face and it stole something from him, the ability to care had been stolen from the man. In his eyes, he lived by one belief; “Easy Come, Easy Go”. He is a man who is attached to nothing, he saw no point in getting attached to something if he was just going to die at the end and lose it all, just like it did that fateful day, the day that still haunts him when he sleeps; The day that will never leave him. He welcomes death, he just waits for it to come around the corner and claim him. He’s lost his ability to care, for it was snatched from him by death itself; and every night, he relives the encounter. A man sentenced to psychological torture daily, for as long as he lives, sort of a parting gift from death. Stripes’ concern grew, he knew for a fact that the Cowboy wouldn’t avoid his own demise; he knew that the Cowboy would face it without a second thought. Stripes didn’t want to lose his brother in arms, “Hey kid, you might wanna avoid Mercury Bridge then eh?” The Cowboy holsters the pistol he stole from the Mob Boss on Mars and spoke, “Meh, I don’t really care, we’ll see what happens I guess”. Stripes, a once strong man, also had no purpose now. He was simply a spirit destined to float through the cosmos for eternity; for his consciousness was immortal, he would always be alive. Now, the thing he valued most, were his comrades. The Cowboy was like a kid brother to him, the only thing tethering him to reality was his only friend. 6 On the other side of the solar system approaching the asteroid belt, was a fleet the size 200 or so starships. The Syndicate Of The Blue Moon was heading straight for Mars. The Gladiator was looking for someone to answer for his missing money launderer and he was bringing his entire fleet. Pantangellini was a huge part of the money the Gladiator had, he made it clean to use by running it through his casino. It was virtually untraceable by the government; and now it was gone. Taken by some bounty hunter looking for a paycheck. Now the important thing to remember is that this time period is just as lawless as it is advanced. The solar system may have had government and society, but the underworld of crime was just as large. The two worlds only meet when it comes to one thing, Bounties. The government sometimes wants a certain person and doesn’t want to waste police manpower; with a whole solar system to cover, they need all the help they can get. So the government enlists the help of people looking to make a quick buck. There are two types of bounties, an open contract: where anyone can go and get the target; or a private contract: where a specific person/group gets a contract exclusive to them. The Pantangellini contract was a private one; since Stripes was well known from his days as a hero and from his incredible skill, he gets clearance for high profile/dangerous people the cops want. Therefore, him getting a contract for someone like the casino owning/money launderer wasn’t out of the ordinary; but the fact that he got the Gladiator’s money launderer was some insane coincidence and bad luck for the crime boss. One thing to mention was that the Gladiator was absolutely livid. He despised bounty hunters in general and the fact that one had gotten one of his most useful assets drove him crazy; on top of that, the man who stole it from him was the person he hated most. The hate was spawned for a reason only known between the two men, and the Gladiator had thought he’d gotten his revenge on the Cowboy and finished him off years ago. However, as both you and I know, the Cowboy is very much alive. “GENCO!” The man turned a pale shade of grey, “Y-y-yes sir?” Genco stammered in response to the Gladiator. “Find a ship called the Star Horse! I WANT IT FOUND! Spend as much as you need, just get me that ship!” The Gladiator finished his yelling fit towards his assistant and sat down on his throne with a look of death on his face; for he was out for blood and he was going to get it. 7 “Well shit, ain’t that a sight huh Stripes?” The Cowboy asked. “Ha, it sure has been a while. What’s it been, five years?” His partner responded. The Star Horse was orbiting the once blue and green planet of Earth. The War had destroyed pretty much all wildlife on the planet, all the forests had cities and skyscrapers built out of the ashes of a once prospering planet. So naturally, the planet had been turned into a blue and grey coloured rock orbiting the sun. Even if it wasn’t the prettiest sight ever, it was their home. The Cowboy perked up and spoke, “Woah, hey easy Stripes, you haven’t gotten clearance to land yet” Stripes was distracted and seemed distant, even for a non-physical being. “Ah shit my bad, calling in now.” Stripes sent out his ID and got a spot on a landing strip near the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Stripes was having himself some bittersweet nostalgia, the last time he was here on Earth, he lost so much to him. That’s right, the battle when Stripes was confined to his ship forever, were his last moments on Earth. The same went for The Cowboy, he hadn’t returned to the planet since that fateful day either. The duo had returned to Earth to grab a quick bounty and then get out. To The Cowboy, the faster he could leave, the better. This was mainly because the whole solar system thought he was a dead man who died in the final battle on Earth, who died a hero (they made a plaque for him and everything). It was perfect for him, he hated the whole hero gig; he liked to operate freely and do things he wanted, whenever he wanted. So naturally, the hero committee that was formed put restrictions on how you could act and he hated it; so he never was a huge hero of the people, no one really knew him, he was just a guy who could fight really damn well and he happened to do it for good. So as The Cowboy walked into the setting sun to grab his bounty under the cover of nightfall, he remembered the simpler days… 8 2263, Earth, Five Years Prior To Present Day Gunfire rained down from above, the varying volume of bombs crashing down indicated their distance from them, screams of the souls lost from the war echoed in the distance. There these two men stood, bullets whizzing around them and above their heads as they stood in their trench. The two men went by names familiar to us both, The Northern Cowboy and The Midnight Gladiator. “They say hell makes two men brothers through the despair they share” said the Gladiator to his comrade. “I guess it does but we were brothers before we got into the fight” The Cowboy responded. The two men were polar opposites, The Gladiator was a fierce warrior who lusted for bloodshed and power; meanwhile, his brother The Cowboy was a cool and collected man who didn’t care much for the war they were fighting. But they were brothers nonetheless; now you see, they weren’t brothers by blood, but by situation. 12 Years ago when the war between humanity began, both men were mere children who had lost their families in the crossfires of the war. At just 11 years old, The Cowboy and The Gladiator were neighbours in what used to be Canada until the bombs fell. Their entire neighbourhood was destroyed and many died. Bombs rained down from above and turned their city to rubble. The Cowboy crawled out of the ruins of his house and searched for survivors, for someone to help him. Who he found was his neighbour, a boy the same age as him badly burned. His hair had turned a silverish white and he was barely clinging to life. The Cowboy nursed him back to health and they spent their days training, learning to fight and to use the abilities their bodies had somehow evolved into achieving. Their bodies had evolved past a normal human’s abilities in order to survive. One day, they made a vow to one another, it was the idea of human identity that had started the war and they decided to contradict the entire concept. They decided to never use the names given to them by the world, for it was an identity uncertainty that brought the war upon humanity; and on that day two men were born. The Northern Cowboy and The Midnight Gladiator were brought into existence and they were going to stop the war that took so much from them. Back to the battle, The two men waited for a pause in the gunfire. When the bullet rain stopped they leapt out onto the battlefield and unleashed hell onto the armies; the Cowboy was a blur in the fight, he cast massive blue bolts of lightning towards the enemy and with each blast he made massive craters and sent men flying. The Gladiator conjured a tsunami of flames and sent it towards the army behind them. Within minutes the armies had stood down and retreated, The Cowboy spoke to his brother, “I'm gonna go get a ship, I’ll be back in a bit” “Alright get back fast though, I don’t wanna be stranded here with my pants down” his brother responded. The Cowboy finally found a ship, a black two man fighter with a hand painted white stripe on it from the nose to the tail. He hopped in and flew back towards his comrade. However, what he saw was a terrible sight indeed. Both armies had returned with reinforcements and were unloading all they had onto his brother and he was just barely holding his own. He was dying in a blaze of glory, tornadoes of fire and beams of flame were shooting all throughout the battlefield, he was shouting and giving it his all, killing by the hundreds. The Cowboy knew that his brother would be a dead man and there was nothing he could do; he turned his ship around to leave with a heavy heart when the Gladiator spotted him in the sky about to leave. “DON’T GO! NO PLEASE! DON'T LEAVE ME HERE TO DIE! COWBOY! COME BACK!” The Gladiator roared and begged but the Cowboy knew better; with great sorrow in his heart he left his brother there on the battlefield for there was nothing he could hope to accomplish. The feeling in the Gladiator’s heart of betrayal turned to rage as he roared and screamed “YOU BETRAYED ME! HOW DARE YOU, WE ARE BROTHERS! DIE, YOU UNFAITHFUL BASTARD!” He turned towards the Cowboy’s vessel and unleashed a blaze so incredible it incinerated the battlefield for miles and he shot it right into the sky at his brother’s ship. The ship was engulfed in a pillar of flame; and as it plummeted towards the ground, The Cowboy caught a glimpse of his brother lying on the ground, in the charred dirt exhausted of all power and with many bullet wounds all over. The ship slammed into the earth and was somehow still intact. A few hours later, the Cowboy was sitting in the wreckage of his ship when a star cruiser flew over head and landed nearby. Out of the ships loudspeaker a voice shouted, “Hey you’re the Cowboy right?” “Yeah who’s this?” the Cowboy shouted back. The voice spoke once again “It's Stripes, the hero from the States. Looks like you wanna get off this rock, hop in kid”. 9 Present Day The Cowboy reboarded his vessel and Stripes took off, leaving their old home behind once again. “Hey that guy sure was a runner huh kid?” Stripes struck up a conversation, “Yeah, I’ve never seen a bounty run so damn fast in my life. He really did NOT want to go to jail, he must of pissed off someone inside” The Cowboy said back. “Ha! Yeah, better keep a strong hold on the soap pal” The two shared a good laugh as comrades one last time. The Cowboy knew the end was near for him and Stripes had probably figured so too. The visions had never been wrong, Futurado Gorge was a mystical place and somehow always seemed to predict correctly. The two men shared great comradery but even still, there was a melancholy feeling hanging in the air. An urgent message flashed across the ship’s display, a message from the Solar Police Force. It read, “ATTENTION! THIS VESSEL IS THE NEAREST REGISTERED HERO SHIP IN THE VICINITY OF THE INCIDENT, THE SYNDICATE OF THE BLUE MOON ARE LOOKING FOR A CERTAIN BOUNTY HUNTER AND ARE KILLING POLICE AND CITIZENS UNTIL THE GOVERNMENT GIVES THEM INFORMATION ON THE CONTRACT THAT THEY FOLLOWED, PLEASE RESPOND TO THE SITUATION AND ACT AS REINFORCEMENTS.” “Stripes where is the location on that message?” The Cowboy asked, “Mercury Bridge” his partner replied. “Open the hanger, Stripes” 10 “You can’t be serious! You know what will happen Cowboy, Don't even think about it!” Stripes shouted at his partner. “Look man, someone’s gotta do something and I’ve got something to atone for. I’ve gotta be a hero one last time.” Stripes was upset but he knew there was no stopping his partner. Whatever happened on Earth that day was eating away at the Cowboy, he simply couldn’t take it anymore he had to make up for it or die trying and that was exactly what he was going to do. The Cowboy ran off to the hangar and hopped into his ship. The hangar doors opened and he sped off into the direction of Mercury. The Cowboy was pondering to himself as he flew, “So this is probably the end huh? It’s okay, I’ve got to do this. I’ll do it for you brother, I’m sorry it had to end that way.” As he grew nearer to the planet, Stripes’ heart sank more and more; his partner would most certainly meet his demise. As skilled as the Cowboy was, he couldn’t take on the entire Syndicate. Not even in his prime, but he could certainly do some damage and help out. The Cowboy saw the gray planet grow closer and closer; he spotted the bridge floating in its orbit, connecting different parts of the planet to each other. He then spotted the masses of criminals and gangsters shooting civilians and police. He then decided to dive bomb his ship into the crowd of gangsters and do some real damage. He dove out and used the slower gravity to land slowly onto the bridge, his ship gained speed and crashed into the crowd with a massive explosion. The Cowboy leapt into action holding nothing back, he was firing his pistol into men and electrocuting others; he shot about 20 thugs and dropped the gun, then continued to fight with his bare hands and ability, taking fire from all sides he was still able to fight back. He was dodging and weaving in and out of the path of fire, landing punches and kicks covered in lightning on anyone in his way; his power surged through him, every move he made was as fast as lightning and as powerful as a thunderstorm. He slowed down for a minute to breathe when a bullet caught him in the back, “Arghh!” he groaned in pain, and stumbled but he kept on fighting regardless. Stripes watched on in awe and horror, his partner was an amazing sight. The Cowboy let the power flow through him and he had an aura of lightning covering every inch of him, he battled his way through a crowd of criminals and finally broke out of the pack of gangsters. What was waiting for him was something he’d never expect as long as he’d live. The Cowboy collapsed to his knees and looked up, standing before him was his brother. The Midnight Gladiator was waiting for him; he looked different from the last time the Cowboy saw him, his face was burned and scarred, he had the look of an animal in his eyes. “Pathetic, just pathetic, brother. You’re simply a beast who’s lost his fangs” The Gladiator motioned for his men to stand down and continued to speak. “I got off that fucking rock and built an empire, you went and caught small fry bounties, you don’t even compare. If you’re gonna leave me for dead, at least do something with your life.” The Cowboy was shattered. Not only was his brother trying to kill him, he became the very thing they swore against; he had become a tyrant, a warlord, a monster. He spoke to his long lost brother, “I didn’t want to leave you there, I just couldn’t do anything. You would’ve done the same” “NO! I WOULDN'T'VE! I WOULD HAVE DIED TRYING!” The Gladiator roared at his brother. The Cowboy had a realization in that moment, it was the realization that his brother always had a dark side; he was brutal, lethal and lusted for blood. Not unlike the way he fought in the war but the only difference now was that it had consumed him completely. The Gladiator’s hand erupted with flame and he swung down on The Cowboy to finish the job. The Cowboy looked up at his brother, the whole moment was seemingly slowed down in time, he reacted. The hero leapt back and got to his feet and countered, just as his brother hit the ground, shattering the asphalt. The Cowboy landed a flying kick directly into his face. The Gladiator was sent sprawling out to the ground and then got back to his feet angrier than ever. He unleashed a wave of flame towards his brother and The Cowboy sent a bolt of lightning right back at him, the attacks clashed mid-air and made an incredible shock wave all throughout the bridge. “Done with the warm up?” The Cowboy taunted, “Yeah let’s get serious” the Gladiator growled back at him. Both men were engulfed in their respective power, The Gladiator was now wearing an intimidating coating of flame and The Cowboy had a magnificent aura of lightning. The two men leapt at each other, clashing fists and kicks; with every blow, held the power of an earthquake, flames and electricity were shooting off of every bit of contact with the two. They stumbled back after a few minutes of continuous fighting, they both took a breather and prepared to go at it once again. The two were equals, yet polar opposites. All the men surrounding them were in awe and dared not get involved; their leader was showing power of which they’d never seen and this complete stranger to them was not only keeping up, but holding his own. The two charged once again and met in the middle of Mercury Bridge, The Gladiator reared back onto one foot and brought his other leg down in a heel kick from above onto The Cowboy. The Cowboy raised his arms to block the attack and the force of it drove him right into the ground, right through the pavement. The biodome surrounding Mercury and it's bridge to make it habitable was shaking; every single man on the bridge, even the most seasoned gangster was fearful for their lives. The Cowboy leapt out of the shattered asphalt and landed a fierce upper cut on his brother which sent him flying into the air and then he too, hit the ground damn hard. The Gladiator unleashed everything he had in him, every ounce of power, every drop of energy he had was now barreling towards The Cowboy. Our Hero didn’t dodge, he stood still facing his brother barreling towards him. He allowed his brother’s flame covered fist to pierce right through his stomach. He didn’t even flinch, his lightning aura disappeared and his brother’s flames fizzled out. “I'm sorry brother.” The Cowboy whispered to his opponent. The Cowboy put his hand right over the Gladiator’s heart and said “Come with me.” He used the last power he had left in his wounded body and sent a shock right into the Gladiator’s heart, stopping it entirely. The Gladiator’s eyes widened and then closed. He whispered to the Cowboy with a smile as he died, “Oh good, you’ve got your fangs back…” then slumped over backwards as the last of his life drained out of him. The Cowboy fell to his knees and called back to the Star Horse, “Stripes, I’m a dead man. There’s nothing you could’ve done for me, don’t fret my friend. I left you something..” he continued, “Use the cameras and look in the weapon storage in the hangar.” Stripes tuned the cameras to the hangar and he saw a tank full of liquid with a body in it. “What is it?” Stripes asked confused. “It’s a replica of your old body, powers and all. I had it made the night after I saw the vision of my death, I spent all my bounty money and savings on it for ya.” The Cowboy kept talking, “All you need to do is activate the control panel remotely, and turn on the A.I. transfer to the body.” The Cowboy’s last message was a simple one, “I’m gonna go to sleep now, Stripes. Easy Come, Easy Go, Mijo” Stripes was now in his new body and stepped out of the tank. A tear rolled down his face as he radioed back to his partner, “See you, Cowboy”. The Cowboy leaned back and looked out of the side of the bridge, the sun was in plain view as he died. He stared at the ball of beautiful, burning gasses. As the light faded away from him, he spoke his last breath, “Hell makes brothers of us all…” Afterword Hi There Dear Reader! My name’s Tim Agar and I hoped you enjoyed coming with me on this incredible journey of mine. My inspirations for this story came partly from Cowboy Bebop and from movies like Platoon and The Good, Bad and The Ugly, I have always loved westerns and sci-fi and it was a blast to combine them and pay homage to the great pieces of fiction that have inspired me. My experience writing this was one of the best of my life and I appreciate any attention this tale gets. Thank you for sticking around to the end and I bid you farewell. Easy Come, Easy Go...
Trip Report- Dirt Cheap Vegas Trip with Hooters Review and Naps!
TLDR; 20 something couple who has been to Vegas before stayed at Hooters Hotel and Casino 4 nights, 5 days with airfare and resort fee for $887 and it was worth every penny. Hooters Hotel and Casino: With the flight, hotel and resort fee we paid $444 a person which we thought was too good to pass up. The hotel wasn't as bad as I expected it to be but it was pretty old. It is located a short walk to the strip which accessible by going into Tropicana located next door and using a bridge. When we booked this trip we only expected to be at this hotel to sleep at night and we ended up staying there for a lot more since it beat our expectations. Some parts of the hotel are "nice" and newish and some aren't. The new parts will NEVER be comparable to many of the casino's listed in the faq(even the budget ones) but that doesn't make it bad. If you are a regular person that doesn't need fancy shit or all you plan on doing is sleeping here(bachelobachelorette party or 21st birthday) it's great. The casino was small and never crowded, it was great for gambling a bit at the end of the night since it's almost impossible to get lost or lose whoever you are with. There was a cafe area with a coffee place, Krispy Kreme donuts and a Pizza Hut. There was also a pool bar, Hooters, and Steak n' Shake. They boasted about free parking, $15 buckets of bud light, and $1 margaritas inside the casino bar. The room service seemed incredibly cheap but we did not use it. Our room was average and as far as we know it was not one that was recently remodeled. The bathroom wasn't very nice and the safe was busted. It looked as if the Bathroom had been done about 10 years ago and the glaze was coming off of the bathtub corners. The room was clean and it had two awkward chairs that belonged in the 70's around a small table. We both thought that a reclinechair was missing from the room due to empty space. The bed was very comfortable and we slept amazing. The AC was ice cold and we had a tiny balcony overlooking the pool. It was $25 a night for a mini-fridge which we decided against and I kept filling up bags of ice and moving it from the sink when needed. If you are not flying in, bring a cooler and save yourself the money or go buy a cheap cooler at Walgreens on the strip for $8. The pool was very clean and quiet, it felt like we were the only people there most of the time and I got a ton of reading done. You couldn't bring your own alcohol or food and the security was tight. The menu seemed decently priced for a pool in vegas. If you stay at Hooters I highly recommend purchasing the Hooya One Pass, it comes with two different show tickets, a coupon for a free margarita, buy 10 wings get 10 wings, and a 1 hour open bar with wings NIGHTLY between 5-6 pm. At the same bar the drinks cost $5 during happy hour and we watched numerous hotel guests spend more than $20 on drinks in just that hour. I must've eaten about 100 wings and had over 30 drinks the entire trip because of this pass. The bartenders were really great to us during the open bar and we always had a drink in our hand. It saved us a ton of money on dinnelunch but I would've liked to have done one more nice dinner. It also would have been nice if we didn't have to go back to the hotel for 5pm every day but, my GF and I really enjoyed the happy hour, a nap, and a shower before going out for the night(not always in that order). It seemed like a lot of teenage kids were staying in the hotel for a basketball tournament or something and I never saw any parents. I observed a bunch of people staying in some rooms and the kids would sit outside of the room to charge their phones in the hallway. We had one issue with the kids, we were trying to go down and two girls got off our floor, when we got in the elevator all of the buttons were pressed to go up. It wasn't a big deal to us but it could be to people looking to make a show or relax and not have to deal with that crap. The elevator was also kind of shady and it seemed like it skipped our floor or something a few times when trying to go down. I don't know it it happens a lot but both of these things probably don't happen at places on the strip. Monday: We left my house at 3:30 am and flew Spirit Airlines from Newark to LAS which landed at 8:40 am. I'll never fly spirit again if I can help it. It was a $14 taxi to the Hotel where they wanted to charge a $25 early check in fee, we debated and decided to drop off our luggage and explore the area so that we could stay up a little longer before crashing since we got roughly 3 hours of sleep. While walking the strip we decided to get a quick bite to eat at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company since there is one in NYC and we've always wanted to go. We each got a flavored margarita which we normally don't get and they were pretty good, she got a shrimp po' boy, and I got calamari and a gigantic bucket of french fries. We mostly went to some shops for gifts and got supplies like shampoo, sunscreen and water for the week at Walgreens and the Liquor store. We checked in at 2:30, unpacked and took a nap. Between 5-6 we had an open bar(well and domestic drafts) at the pool bar with complementary wings and vegetables because we purchased the Hooyah One Pass for $20. At 7pm we took a Lyft to Freemont for a tour at Bangor Brewing. We had a flight and 2 or 3 beers. The guy giving us the tour waited patiently for us since our driver didn't follow directions and we were late. We were the only people on the tour but the place was pretty packed for a while. We explored Freemont Street for the remaining of the night which was very fun and interesting. If I had a kid under the age of 9 I wouldn't bring them but it honestly wasn't that bad besides some girls in thongs, pasties, and dominatrix looking girls(if your kid has an Instagram they have seen worse). Security walked a beat like they were riot cops and one came up to us and told us we couldn't drink in cans on Freemont and that we could drink out of plastic cups instead. He was really cool and I swore he was a cop until we saw real cops. Heads up to anyone. I really liked the vibe of Freemont but the light show was honestly terrible, I may have been spoiled by light shows at concerts and sporting events from a previous job, my girlfriend thinks that the show just needed different music... Tuesday: We woke up around 8:30 am and went to breakfast at the Steak n' Shake in Hooters. The food was average but service was slow(we never went back). We went to the pool for an hour or two before we went to a timeshare sales pitch for fun and free stuff(buffet and freeplay). I did the math and the $9,999 timeshare came out to be $33,000 over seven years. Once I gave the numbers and said no the guy became a HUGE dick. Sadly, one person bought one. Once the timeshare pitch was finished we went to the liquor store again. We got lunch at Taco's and Tequila where we split nachos and each had a few margaritas. I think they were some of the best margaritas I've ever had. Later we napped and went to the open bar before going to use my freeplay. After we finished loosing $100 in freeplay and getting tons of free drinks, I decided I had to go and see what a dispensary was like. I don't know the rules about posting about this so I will answer questions in a PM. I will also elaborate with a mod's approval since I think it could be really helpful. After getting back to the hotel we went to Hooters for some more wings and went to bed. Wednesday: We hung out at the pool for a few hours and we went exploring again. We walked around 15 miles this day and I wish we'd had gotten a light rail pass or Ubered to the end of the strip and walked back. We both like exploring things though so none of us mentioned it until it was too late. We didn't have anything planned for this day until we got back to the hotel and looked at all of the comedy clubs. We decided on the late show to see Jimmy Shubert at the Laugh Factory in Tropicana because it was close by and I actually knew of the opening act, Jason Lawhead, because of Bill Burr's Monday Morning Podcast. It was a pretty good show for the price we paid, and we got to see the worst heckler ever get thrown out. The night got hazy for me and I think we went to Hooters for some wings, fries, and onion rings before going to our room and passing out(probably with my shoes on). Thursday: We actually had plans! We woke up with purpose and got breakfast at Coco's Bakery, a short walk from where we were staying. It was cheap and some of the better breakfast food I've had in a while including some of the diners here in NJ, I wish we could've gone again. After breakfast, we went to the pool before heading to the Mirage for a late lunch buffet thanks to Tahiti Village. Next, we used MyVegas rewards at New York New York for buy one get one crepes at 48th and Crepe which were amazing and we cashed in a ticket for buy one get one 40 oz beers at Tom's Urban. It was happy hour so the beers were under the voucher limit and we basically got them for free + tip which was great considering their somewhat decent selection of draft beer. We went back to the open bar for 5pm, napped and got ready for dinner at Black Tap in the Venetian which was everything I thought it would be and more. I wish I had room for a Crazy Shake but I could barely finish my burger and I only ate 3 onion rings, luckily there is one in NYC. At 10pm we saw John Caparulo at Harrah's. The show was average and I think he could've really used an opening act to get the crowd going instead of awkwardly walking on stage. It was pretty empty, we got GA cheap seats and got moved up to the 5th row. We gambled pretty late and made fun of all the people waiting in line at the club at MGM Grand at 2:30 in the morning, these people looked miserable and hadn't even been in the club yet. I don't miss those days. Friday: We laid in bed for most of the morning since there was not an option for a late checkout and we weren't leaving for the Airport until 8 PM. We double and triple checked for everything and I swear I packed a few things that I can no longer find(it's not a vacation until I've lost something). We checked out around 11am and stored our luggage with the valet. We went to the M&M Store and did the free 3d movie which was pretty entertaining since I don't think I have ever seen a 3d movie before. We decided on going to the Bodies exhibit at Luxor which was pretty cool but probably not worth $30 with an MLife card. We also took the tram to Mandalay Bay which was pretty nice but very empty and kind of eerie. It also smelled like a funeral home or church or something. We cashed in another couple of MyVegas rewards and went to Tom's Urban again for 40oz beers(on happy hour). We also ordered the two way fries which consisted of shoe string and sweet potato fries. They were out of this world! Finally we went to Coyote Ugly for buy one get one drinks(MyVegas). My GF has always wanted to go here but none of her friends ever would go with her. We both fell in love with the bartender and we talked for about an hour about life in Vegas before heading back to the open bar and did some last minute gift shopping. In all we did a lot of gambling, walking around, and exploring. We also talked with a ton of locals and tried to get a feel for the place. I'm not a fan of most shows and she had seen most of them in her previous travels. I really wanted to change the hotel after booking it and she kept insisting that it'd be fine. Besides using MyVegas a trick we learned was to use your Mlife card for anything you purchase inside an MGM casino, it doesn't matter if you are buying show tickets or a frozen drink, you'll get points from your purchase. I expect to get a ton of comps to use at the Borgata and I think we are coming back for the Golden Knights/Devils game in January. My total expenses for the trip came out to be $1190.75 based on all of my credit card statements and cash that I had left over in my wallet. This includes my half of the hotel, resort, plane and all of the booze, rides, and gambling I did.
We just spent a week in Vegas split between two hits and three hotels. This is my 6th time in Vegas, my fiancé’s 3rd time, and my friend’s 2nd time. We love the city. It is the only place like it on Earth. I love it, but this massive adult theme-park needs to be treated with respect and best approached with experience. So, I hope this report will help others. We were here last year, and although we had an amazing time, we did make some mistakes. This year’s trip was refined to near perfection. Flights (UK to Vegas). We’re from the UK. We flew direct with Virgin Atlantic. As far as I know VA are the only airline that flies direct from UK to Vegas. We used 80,000 airmiles to upgrade to Premium seats. When you’re sat on your arse for 11 and a half hours, the extra comfort, space, and legroom are well worth it. It also means the actual cost for the flight was super low compared to booking Premium seats without miles (£400 compared to around £1500). As it's a 747, I would recommend getting seats on the upper deck. As it is the top bulge of the plane, it only holds around 70 passengers. It feels exclusive, with faster service from the staff, shorter lines for the bathroom, and far less chance a child or baby will be sat near you. Jetlag. Something I didn’t take into account last time was the effect of jet lag. We paid for it. With the West Coast being 8 hours behind the UK, we tried a different tactic this time around. As soon as asses touched seats on the plane, we adjusted clocks to Vegas time. We respected the need to sleep by front-loading the flight with lots of booze and soon got our heads down. With those few hours of sleep, we were much better adjusted when we landed. ESTA. Immigration into the US can be a pain, but here’s a tip; if you’ve travelled to the US before with the same ESTA, you can use the automated passport scanners and skip the massive line. Food. We’re foodies. We’ve traveled the world and eaten at many Michelin Star restaurants. It’s our thing. It’s our passion. We had high hopes for Vegas food last year, but we came to the quick realisation Vegas can’t do quality. It's not surprising. The sheer volume of people that pound the strip means restaurants don’t really need to try to turn a profit. As I said above, Vegas is a theme-park. It supplies the fake and gaudy like no other, but on the flip side it can’t really do genuine or authentic. Last year we had to pay truly spectacular amounts of money before we got a properly impressive meal at é by José Andrés in the Cosmo. I can’t afford to do that again. So, this year we did things differently. We embraced the brash, the massive, and the crappy and ate like the locals. Finances. Vacations are my opportunity to live large. I look forward to them all year, and save for them with the intention to experience things way beyond my normal life. I want luxury. I want finery. I want to be treated like a rockstar, because these things just don’t exist in my day to day life. I spent a lot on this holiday, but that’s because I saved for it and budgeted hard for it. If you’re doing Vegas, then you have to do it right! Hotel 1: The Vdara. After the flight and immigration we got a cab to our first hotel; the Vdara. What a brilliant hotel. It doesn’t have a casino attached, so is less Vegas and less insane than many strip hotels, but I’ve been there and done that - so this was a beautiful, calm hotel for the start of our trip. We went for a Lake View Suite. Sounds fancy, and it was, but so much cheaper than an equivalent at one of the other big hotels. The room was massive, and modern. It also had a microwave and food preparation area with fridge separate to the mini bar. The Vdara also has a nifty room service robot that can deliver snacks and drinks to you autonomously. It is a novelty now, but it worked well and I can see it being rolled out to other hotels soon. As for location, the Vdara is right behind the Aria and the Bellagio. There’s a sneaky walkway to the Bellagio, or a short walk across the valet to the Aria. From either of these hotels you are straight onto the strip. Adventures. Day 1. First port of call was a walk down the strip to In-n-Out burger next to the High Roller. We don’t have In-n-Out in the UK so its a real treat. We walked the strip until well after dark, visiting Caesars, the Bellagio for coffee, and finally back to the Vice Versa bar at the Vdara. It is a quiet lobby bar with a calm outside section. We had a few drinks there and then off to bed. Day 2. Breakfast at Eggslut at the Cosmo. Expensive, but very tasty. Get the cookie. I has just the right amount of gooey inside and salt crust to make the perfect pud. Back to the Vdara for a workout at their OK gym and then relaxing at the pool. They do a bag check, but we just had water and coke so let us in. I think they were looking for booze. After our fill of the sun (still 30o C + in October) we made our way back to the Cosmo for a late lunch at Block 16. This is their new “street food” area with an excellent selection. We went for the sushi rolls at Tekka. Really good, and bigger than expected. They also have Asahi on draft. Again, a little expensive for the type of food but nice. Hopped in a taxi for a walk around the canals at the Venetian, then over the the Wynn for drinks at Parasol Down. We like drinking outside, and it was really relaxing sipping cocktails by the waterfall. I had a crab cheesy dip thing with breads that was surprisingly tasty. We headed back to the Vdara to get ready for our evening at the Luxor. It started with drinks at an Irish bar I forget the name of. It actually had genuine Irish staff and live music, so the fakery was better than most. A few pints later we went to see the Blue Man Group. Hilarious and a lot of fun. Well recommended. After BMG we wandered to the Mandalay looking for food, but their restaurants were all taken over by a massive convention. We hopped into a cab and made our way back to the Cosmo to Beauty and Essex for food. The restaurant was very cool. You enter through a secret door in a cheesy gift shop. You’re then lead to a dimly lit, intimate table by a pretty server lady. Food was only OK, but definitely not up to scratch for the price. However, the atmosphere was amazing. Day 3. Breakfast was a 15 inch pizza slice from Pin Up Pizza at Planet Hollywood. Horrible, greasy pizza, but the novelty was fun. We checked out and picked up our car from our Turo host, a Tesla Model X for the next leg of our trip; a week in San Diego. Amazing city. Go. Vegas Day 4. Hotel 2: The SLS. It was fight night. Hotels were stupidly expensive because of McGregor vs Khabib, so we stayed for one cheap night at the SLS. When we booked it it was still the W, but the SLS since took it over. The room was a Fabulous King, but I’m not sure that name is relevant anymore. Anyway, the hotel is still in a state of flux. The W side was dead. The bar was closed and the few remaining staff seemed to just be milling around. It was odd. The room was spacious, and had an interesting theme, but seemed a little empty given its square footage. It did have a mirror above the bed, though. Very Vegas. After the long drive from SD, we freshened up and got dinner at Bazaar Meats by José Andrés. This was my favorite meal in Vegas. José Andrés can actually be counted on for a great theme and good food. It wasn’t quite good enough for the price, but it was closer than any other restaurant we visited on this trip. The atmosphere and decor were incredible. A massive industrial fire pit grilling many meats greets you as you enter. The entire room is bordered by the various kitchens and preparation areas, and produce is proudly on show. There were some freakishly huge vegetables and a vast array of meat slabs all around. Of all the Vegas restaurants I’ve visited, the theming here was on point. After dinner, we stayed at the SLS for drinks around the casino watching the fight in the sports bar. Vegas Day 5. Hotel 3: The Cosmopolitan. We checked out of the SLS quickly, glad to be away from its strangeness. As if to confirm our ikky intuition, we passed a crime scene investigation outside, little orange cones all over indicating spent bullet casings. Welcome to America, motherfucker! We headed to our next and final hotel - the Cosmo. What an incredible place. By far and away my fave hotel on the Stip. In addition to the hotels this trip, I’ve stayed at the Stratosphere, Luxor, Aria, and Bellagio. This was better than them all. Even though it was around midday when we hit the check in desk, the concierge sorted us out with a room upgrade to an immediately available room. With three of us sleeping in one room, he wanted to ensure we were comfortable, so booked us into an unlisted suite with two bathrooms, a japanese soaking tub, and a massive balcony on the 55th floor overlooking the Bellagio fountains and the strip. That view was breathtaking, and the room was stunning. Only one minor issue - we found a diaper behind the sofa that housekeeping had missed from the last guest. We complained to the front desk and they sorted it with a $75 credit and resort fees refunded. Score! Lunch was at Secret Pizza. A good slice. Be aware they have more slices available than is on display. We went to Walmart to pick up booze and snacks. And a kettle. I’m English. I need my tea. Vegas hotels don’t have tea and coffee making facilities in the room, so a $15 kettle and some tea was a must. For the cost of three drinks at Starbucks, this is a good move for us Brits. The Cosmo room also had a little bar with additional fridge to the mini bar, so we packed that bitch with booze, mixers and fruit. After Walmart we picked our friend up at the airport and got her showered and dressed ready for dinner. A few drinks at the Chandelier bar in the Cosmo, then over to Jaleo by José Andrés. I’m sure you’re seeing a theme with our booked restaurant choices, but José is consistently good. Jaleo was no exception. The paella was a touch disappointing this time, but the other dishes were amazing. We drank a bit too much sangria, so kept the party going with drinks in Beauty and Essex. It may be a restaurant, but the little bar area also has seating for drinkers to watch the patrons come and go (and the pretty front of house ladies). It proved a great spot to people watch and enjoy their amazing cocktails. After too many drinks, we retired to the room and enjoyed the view with more drinks and snacks on the balcony. That experience was priceless. The twinkling view of the Vegas madness far below our own intimate little party felt very special. We got pretty messy loving that very special moment, and eventually found the bed. After all, our friend had been up for nearly 35 hours. Hardcore! Day 6. To work off the punishment to our livers the night before, we hit the Cosmo gym. It is OK, and actually has a good number of heavy dumbbells. Many hotel gyms I’ve been to stop at around 60lbs but the Cosmo went way up to 100lbs weights. There were only two benches though, so I can see it being a problem when busy. We got brunch at Lardo in the Cosmo Block 16 street food thingy. Great food, but three sandwiches, a coke, and one fries cost nearly $75! Fucking ridiculous. Street food prices these are not. After nursing my abused credit card, we headed to The Range 702. We’d booked the Triple Threat package where you get to pick three guns of your choice with 25 rounds each. I shot a Colt, a P90 and an M4. The girls both opted for two handguns and an AK47. The automatic rifles were quite an experience. Loud and violent. I have shot at The Strip Gun Club before and they were very attentive and let us take our time. Our shooting at 702 felt a little rushed in comparison. They have you shoot all your guns back to back, so for the girls especially they were a little beaten up after their sessions. It would be better to alternate shooters with each gun to give the wrists a rest, but hey, it was a noisy, blasty, shooty good time anyway. After the blasting we went back to the Cosmo to get ready for our evening. This is where we again paid for wanting to wing it and not book too many things. All dressed up, we headed to the Bellagio because we wanted some drinks at Hyde to watch the fountains as the sun went down. It was booked out by a conference party. So we went to try at Spago. Same story. Booked out by conference weenies. We tried back at the Cosmo at the Chinese Mexican called China Poblano, but again the same fucking story! Booked out by conference weenies. We said fuck it, went to the room, threw on our shorts and sneakers, and hit the strip for a dirty night. We walked the craziness with slushy margaritas and ended up at In-n-Out again. We had a burger and then went on a drunk hunt for pudding. Ok. Let me make one thing clear. If you cover a cupcake or doughnut or cookie in enough frosting to choke a donkey, then it will just taste like frosting. And it seems like that’s all you can get at the quick and easy places on the Strip. Our failed pud-hunt brought us to Caesars. I remembered the Gordon Ramsey restaurant did a sticky toffee pudding. Somehow we got seating for three, even though we looked like we’d just been kicked out of a pool party. I say somehow, but when we entered we could see why. Gordon Ramsay’s Pub and Grill is the perfect metaphor for Vegas. I’ve eaten at two of Gordon's Michelin starred restaurants in London and one that didn’t have a star. They are all exquisite. Decor, food, service and the general experience all live up to his reputation for perfection. London is possibly the best place on earth for fine food. Gordon has to be on top of his game to make it there. And he does. Vegas he does not. Vegas is about churning out vaguely thematically relevant crap to the clueless for huge profit. Gordon’s Pub and Grill is hilarious. The theme is old English pub in the middle of a Roman themed casino. With TVs. Lots of TVs. It’s as if someone described a pub down the phone to the designer it’s that bad. We had the corned beef poutine (not an English pub dish) and and the sticky toffee pudding (better). The poutine was terrible. Just fries with pastrami meat (not corned beef) and bad cheese. There was hardly any gravy. The pud was good though, but maybe that was because of a few sunk pints. It hit the spot and the size of it caused comment from the table beside us (who were eating burgers - sigh). Anyway, after done there, back to the room for more balcony drinks and that view. Day 7. A quiet one today. Using the room credit we got a daybed at the Cosmo pool. The cabana bed thing is a $200 minimum spend. The $200 lasted us all day. We managed to eat well, with breakfast, other nibbles, and a few drinks reaching $200. The pool is gorgeous and the attendants were very attentive (hence the name, I suppose). By the time we’d spent our credit, it was nearly dinner o’clock. Dressed up pretty, we headed to New York New York and got Shake Shack burgers. Tasty. Not quite In-n-Out good, but still better than anything in the UK. We played some giant jenga with some random people at one of the outside bars, then went to the Zumanity show. Zumanity was great fun. Very naughty, funny, and the acrobatics were impressive. Well recommended. The boobies on show and the sexy theme got us ready for our next stop - the Palomino Strip Club. My fiance and I had been to the Palomino the year before and we loved it. It is the only club in Vegas that does full nude and booze so it is a no-brainer to be number 1. Our friend had never been to strip club before, so that night was a special treat. We got a bottle service table at the runway with champagne and a stack of ones. It was spectacular pervy fun drinking, watching the girls, and chatting with them as they visited our table. We all got a few sofa dances and had a brilliant night. The girls were super attentive, really looked after my friend as it was her first time, and made us feel very special. We got a drunk burger at In-n-Out (our last - I promise) and somehow made it back to the room alive Day 8. Our last full day. After the craziness of the night before, we slept in. Brunch was at Mon Ami Gabi. Much like Gordon’s Pub, this place was a hilarious parody of a Parisian café. It was nice to sit outside and watch the Strip go by as I munched my lunch, but the food was pretty bad for the price. After brunch we walked up the Strip past the Mirage and then over to the Venetian. The girls did some hard-core shopping while I made stupid comments, made their lives difficult, and generally didn’t help. I don’t like shopping, OK. Because I’m a child, they soon gave up. Back to the room for our last bookings of the trip. Yay. After getting pretty, we hit the Skybar at the Waldorf Astoria (previously the Mandarin Oriental). Gorgeous views and really tasty cocktails. We hit up Lemongrass for dinner without a booking because the Aria was next to the Waldorf. We ordered way too much food, so got most of it boxed up. We dumped it at the room, and then grabbed a cab to the Wynn for our last big destination. We were on the guest list to see Afrojack at Intrigue. Great club. The line wasn’t too bad. About 30 minutes as they checked on everyone. My friend had a bit of an issue with her ID as it is an English driver's license, but she found a picture of her passport on her phone to confirm it was her. The girls both got two free drink vouchers and I got one (am I not pretty enough?). The club was just my thing. It was not massive, but still big. The large outside area around the fire fountains and the waterfall was perfect to escape the heat and craziness of the dance-floor. We stayed for far too long given we had a 9 hour flight to catch the next day, but it was worth it. An amazing last night in an amazing city. Of course when we got back in we ate the rest of the Chinese food on the balcony. Day 9. One last (expensive-ass) Eggslut, and we were on our way home. Thank you Vegas.
THERE ARE NO SPOILERS IN THIS THREAD Before I get started on this trip report, I want to say that this will be a very long report that I will most likely have to break up in chapters. I have so much to say and so much more to attempt to describe. This is currently known as the most impactful night I have ever lived through. This entire trip was for my roommate Guyver, it was his birthday week and he is one of the biggest Star Wars fans that I personally know. I booked us a room in Vegas, and bought us two Star Wars IMAX 3D premiere tickets for his birthday. Excited cannot even begin to describe the hype leading up to this trip. Chapter 1. "Preparation" I wake up before my alarm clock goes off. I was unable to get much sleep the night before, despite the blunts and multiple dabs to assist me in my journey to an 8 hour slumber. I open my eyes, roll over as usual to pet my dog, check my phone, and see a text from (we will call her Ashley) Ashley wishing me and my roommate "Guyver" a safe and fun trip. She is such a sweetheart. This girl Ashley is relatively new in my life. I am not usually the one to not only make new friends, but to actually care about them or want to spend time with them. Only about 2 or 3 weeks ago, we tripped together for the first time and I cannot even begin to tell you how amazing it was. I have never felt connected to someone like that before, this was also my first time tripping with a girl with only myself so I was a little scared about how it would go. But man was that trip amazing. She did not accompany me and Guyver on this trip, but knowing who Ashley is will matter I promise lol I get out of bed, shower, feed Bishop (my dog) and smoke a little herb. The time now is about 6:45am and our plan is to hit the road at 7:00am. We go over our checklist before we head out. Weed, LSD, half a Xanax just in case shit goes south, wraps, a rolling tray and some other stoner "must have's" including plenty of Kendama's and Doritos. Our bags are packed and we are good, I give Bishop some extra love, turn off all the lights, lock the door, take a deep breath and smiled. As I turned to Guyver, he was smiling just as big. At this moment I knew that we were down for whatever the night wanted to throw at us. We take the short walk to my car and load everything in except the bad with the "goodies" in it. That bag stayed up front with us. We knew that if at any point in time if we get pulled over, all of the drugs would have to be ingested. Not interested in taking that chance. I turn the car on along with the seat heaters, turn on some music and off we go. Chapter 2: "The Road" Traveling with Guyver is extremely easy. He is by no means high maintenance, we like the same music and are interested in the same things for the most part. I never have to second guess traveling with this dude. He is one of my best friends for a reason. 2 hours of driving and a blunt later, we decide to make a stop at a cafe/diner in the middle of fucking nowhere. The only people that were in this cafe, were people who very obviously live in this town as well. Typical "middle of nowhere" staff there also. Our waiter was approximately 50-60 years old with pink and blue eye shadow on, complimenting her foundation that was definitely a few shades away from her actual skin color. Small coffee stains covered her apron and I immediately noticed that she had about 1/3 of her teeth missing as well. This all felt like I was in an episode of Twilight. If you are familiar with anxiety, you know how easily these factors can build up into something unwanted. So I was slowly but surely starting to feel anxious. To make matters worse, there was a gentleman that had to at least be 90 years old was sitting down alone talking to a waitress across the room about a guy being frozen in Texas. This obviously added to the list of shit that gives me anxiety. Guyver gets up to go wash his hands and to use the restroom. While he is away, the worst thing that could have happened.... happened. The old man got up from his booth and stood right next to me asking if I had heard about the guy who froze in Texas. At this point I was on the brink of total freakout. So as politely as I could, I walked away without saying a word to collect myself. When I turned around, the old man had started to talk to another couple. I went back to our seats at the "bar" to wait for our food. Guyver and I had both ordered the club sandwich with a side of fries (breakfast of champions). Let me tell you, that was by far the best club I have ever had. After we had finished eating, we decided that if we ever pass this place again, we will stop and eat. We paid our 50 year old, sad attempt at sexually appealing waitress and tip well. Back in the car we go, we pull out our "oil pens" and have awesome conversations until we get to the hoover dam. As we are approaching the Hoover Dam, I ask Guyver if he has ever been? "Na man, only in transformers" Guyver replies. I get excited, as every tourist should. We pull off to start heading to the Hoover Dam, we get about 3/4 of the way there when we both notice a sign that reads "Any and All vehicles are subject to search." The look on Guyver's face was indescribable lmaooo he looked so frightened and I am sure I looked the same. We had quite a few years of prison in my backpack and I am NOT trying to go down at the fucking Hoover Dam. So we did the obvious, flip a U-turn and continue on to Las Vegas. Chapter 3: "Arrival" "Dude look you can fucking see the strip!" I exclaim as we round the last blind corner passing through the mountains. "Fuck dude there it is" replies Guyver. We approach our hotel and I cannot stop thinking about all of the awesome stuff that we are about to do that night. We park at the New York New York parking garage, grab only our backpacks (just incase we weren't able to check in yet) and head into the hallway leading from the parking lot to the casino. We make our way to the front desk and fail to notice the HUGE line for check-in or check-out. I mean completely oblivious to the giant crowd. So I walk up to one of the idle concierges and ask for assistance, she looks over at the extensive line out of the corner of her eye, then back at me. She giggles and decides to boot up a computer to help us. Lets call her "Lilly". During the time of checking in, Guyver is off to the side playing kendama and I have my kendama around my neck. Lilly immediately notices and say to me "Check-in is not til 3pm but if I can do that first try, I will let you guys check in now (1:12pm). I hand her my kendama and to my surprise she almost gets the ball onto the spike first try. "My son is very good at this and we play together sometimes" Liiy states. "CLACK" I turn my eyes up to look from the form I was filling out and sure enough, Lilly got the spike! So being the wonderful and honorable lady that Lilly was, she let us check in early. We waved goodbye at the adorable asian woman and never see her again. On our way up to the hotel room, we start noticing how amazing the fake architecture is inside of the building. The attention to detail Las Vegas puts into their casino's and resorts are just insane. I knew that at least visually... this will be a very pleasing trip. Little did I know... it would be far more "pleasing" than I ever had thought. Chapter 4: "The Room" (part one) As we are approaching our room door in the long, curvy hallway, I can't stop thinking about how crazy this night is going to be. We made it to the hotel in one piece and now the reality of it all is starting to set in, I couldn't be more excited. I put the key card into the door and wait for the indicator that it's now unlocked. "Bleep Blee Bleep" rings the door after about 4 attempts to get it open. We walk into the room and the first thing I notice is the view overlooking a couple of other hotels and also the roller coaster. Me and Guyver had already agreed that since we are staying at the New York New York, and they have buy one get one free passes for people who are staying at the hotel, we are DEFINITELY riding this thing at some point. Anyways, we get all of our stuff in our backpacks off loaded, appreciate the view, turn the AC on full blast, and head back out to get the remaining items from the car. We get back to the car, take a few hit off our oil pens and walk back to the room. The time is now approx 2:45pm and we have decided that since the movie starts at 11pm, we should ingest the tabs at 7pm. That way, we can trip for a solid 3 and a half hours before the movie started. Our plan was so prime, nothing could go wrong ;) So in preparation for the night, we bust out the small bottle of Bacardi Limon and take a couple shots right off the bat. We unpack our bags and pull out the herb and blunt wraps. I also brought about a half gram of concentrate to put in the blunt. I broke down the tree, put it into the Garcia Vega wrap, placed the work of wax inside the blunt, and sealed it in. Guyver and I pulled up two chairs and placed them right in front of the window overlooking the city while I sparked the blunt. We were sitting there smoking, talking plans and about how awesome the night is about to be. I was genuinely confident that we would just have a super fun, easily navigable trip. It was my first time taking 2 tabs (230mg) and it was Guyver's first time taking 3 with no tolerance. But we figured it would be crazy, but mellow enough to just cruise and have an awesome time. As we were smoking this blunt, Guyver had the idea to make a little music video for one of the songs off his unreleased EP. I agree and we set up the camera's and have a blast filming it. After the blunt, we gather our kendamas and camera's to head out to the strip while it's still day out. We make our way out of the hotel on to the strip, not much was mentionable about this portion of the trip except the planning. After filming some super prime kendama "tricks" we devised a plan. "The Plan" The plan was simple... Take the tabs, come up, go on the rollercoaster, take the tram to madalay bay to see the aquarium, then the the Wyatt to watch the LED ceiling light show. Head back to the hotel, order out Uber, and get to the movie theatre. LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO So we decide to get back to the hotel room to try and get maybe about an hour or so to nap. I am laying down pretty tired still from the drive and Guyver and I fall asleep for about 40 min. My alarm goes off... it's 6:45 Chapter 5 "Ingestion" I take the small pieces of tin foil out of the bad and open them up. In the tin foil, was two Adventure Time tabs with Finn and Jake on them, and the other was 3 tabs with an odd, DMT visual patterned tabs. I place my two doses on the table along with Guyver's. "Okay man... whatever happens we will be good dude. We just have to make sure we get to the theatre, that's really the only goal now." "I know man, lets fucking do this." replied Guyver with an overload of nervousness and excitement in his voice. I gave Guyver a huge, brotherly hug and we placed the small paper tabs with 115ug each of some of the purest LSD I can obtain into our mouthes. Shit eating grins smack us in our faces almost immediately. There is no going back now and we both knew that, but we thought we were 100% prepared. Before we exit the hotel room, we make sure we have everything that we are going to need in our hands for the next 12 hours. This list included: Headphones, phones, sunglasses, a headphone splitter, oil pens, wallets, 3 cameras, and some other necessities. I was dressed in black dickies, brand new Airmax shoes, a fresh "Hundreds" hoodie with a puffy jacket/vest over the hoodie. I also had a black RVCA trucker hat on. Guyver had on a pair of sunglasses, a windbreaker style trench coat with red and black plaid lining. An old star wars shirt, his huge 2 inch plugs for his ears, and sweatpants. Chapter 6: "Come-Up" I walk out of the hotel room of the New York New York in Las Vegas, I immediately start noticing subtle changes in my vision. I feel the awkward "warm" feeling in my jaw as we make out way to the elevator. We stop in the elevator lobby and as we are waiting I notice how awesome the floor patterns were. "No fucking way". I say as I cannot believe I am already starting to trip not even 20 min after the tabs had dissolved. By the time we got out of the elevator, it was like someone turned the knob up to 8 on the trip meter. It was really strange how much harder I started to trip when the short ride down from the 24th floor to the lobby had ended. I walk outside of the elevator and I am instantly hit with a plethora of lights, vibrating and glowing like something out of a trippy movie. At this point I am still 100% cognitive and aware of my surroundings. Guyer and myself made our way out to the main entrance of the casino out to the strip. We waddled our way over to a red metal table that was looked over by the insanely bright glowing lights of the New York New York and the Hershey's factory. The lights at this point were already significantly brighter than usual and starting to have a "palpable" glow to them. I had my headphones on listening to Cashmere Cat's "Paws" at that moment. I was just looking all around taking in how incredible everything looked. I look at Guyver and he has his Balaclava on to keep his face warm and his eyes were closed. I knew now that he was feeling it too. As we were sitting outside in the 55 degree weather at about 8:15 we decide that we are definitely tripping hard enough to ride the rollercoaster. I have never taken a ride of any sort on psychedelics and I was actually very excited for this to happen. We are bobbing and weaving our way through the traffic of miserable melting faces and the light so bright I almost had to squint. All the while me and Guyver are listening to our headphones separately with the biggest smiles you have ever seen on our faces. We finally make it to the arcade... which is also the entrance to the roller coaster. This was my first time having to interact with a human. "Umm... hi... how do we get on the rollercoaster please?" I say with my voice trembling, it is so difficult to formulate actual words at this point. "Right around the corner of the neon coaster sign, you can pay there." "t-thank you" I snicker trying my hardest not to burst out laughing. I turn to Guyver with the new directions and relay them to him. I can tell the directions did not register properly, but it was okay. "Dude that was so fucking hard to do" I whisper to Guyver. This also didn't register with him correctly, I was met back with a blank stare and a laugh. Which then of course caused me to laugh back. Life is fucking great. We are wading through this insane dome full of bright arcade games, kids smiling and running around, etc. We arrive at the paying point for the roller coaster and I can see that there are only about 8 other people that are getting on it as well. This was a comforting sight. Chapter 7 "Let Go" We take our seats at the back of the roller coaster to avoid any kind of unwanted attention. I then suddenly realize a bit too late that I still have my hat on and literally everything I had in my pockets of my pants and jackets. A slight panic set in as I had my phone, wallet, headphones, etc in my pockets and I knew this coaster had a loop. "Dude hold the fuck up I have everything in my pockets still!" Guyver whispers aggressively. I turn to the skinny miserable man working the coaster and ask if it's okay to put our stuff on the side? "Na man just hold on to it you will be good". CLICK The coaster starts to move forward instantly after that skinny fuck gave me the opposite answer I was searching for. I feel this insane rush of adrenaline coarsing through my body, very euphoric but I was so fucking scared I was going to lose my things. I could not focus on what I should do about my items, this thought turned into panic again and at this point we began the climb to the top of the coaster. I look over at Guyver and he is NOT having a good time at this point, which did not help my case either. Then all of a sudden, that insane rush of adrenaline faded away. As we were climbing up the coaster, I was comforted by a sense of "not being in control". My personal outlook on roller coasters, even before psychedelics has always been: "One of two things can happen on a roller coaster... you wither die, or you don't. When you do live through that experience, it's usually just a fun story to tell afterwards." I have never felt that feeling be so literal in my life. This entire rollercoaster is just a huge metaphor for life. Sometimes you aren't in control and sometimes, that is OKAY. Sometimes you just have to stop worrying and let go. Enjoy the wind in your face and the fact that you're on top of this roller coaster overlooking this beautiful city rather than worrying about my hat the whole time. This was the first beautiful moment that I experienced. This was all in the matter of time it took the roller coaster to get to the top of the first drop. When I got to the top of the coaster, my body was FORCING screams out of it. I was so fucking excited to finally be on this rollercoaster while on these amazing substances. The drop was insane, the next 45 seconds were quite possible the most intensely exciting moments of my life. Pure adventure, the kind of adventure that is so innocent. Guiltless entertainment if you would. I honestly cannot find the words to accurately describe how good it felt to just let go and enjoy that damn roller coaster. After the coaster came to a stop, I was still audibly projecting "Oh my fucking god man, that was so nuts... I was NOT ready for that shit hahahahahah" probably about 3 times in a row. It was so hard to process what just happened. I get out of my seat and decide it may be a good idea just to check and see if anything fell out on the seat. Wouldn't you know it... my phone was there lol I pick my phone up, Guyver and myself headed out of the arcade to make our way outside to see the aquarium at Mandalay Bay. Chapter 8: Feel Trip Guyver and I walk out of the casino through a different exit than the first time that led us to the red tables. We took the side exit and started to make our way towards excalibur. During our walk there, I started to have a hard time knowing where I was. It would eventually come back to me, but I felt like I was losing track of where I was geographically. We made it to the tram, we took the tram to Excalibur, which was close to Mandalay Bay. VERY exciting thought for me at the time. I was still feeling a little off because I didn't really remember where we were. But we took the tram to Excalibur and exited. I am so unsure if we are in the right place but Guyver just assured me that we were good and we continued our journey to the aquarium. We make our way past the hotel valet section and now I am tripping extremely hard. I have surpassed the "level" of tripping I am used to b by about 2 fold at this point. "Sundara" by ODESZA comes on in my headphones, the melodic house beat is slowly making it's way into my ears and I do not hate it because I know how awesome the rest of the song is. At one point in the song about 45 seconds in, the house beat stops and is followed by a very ambient, slow, beautiful melody and carries out that way for the rest of the song. When this part of the song came on, I was 100% overwhelmed by visual beauty and appreciation. I was looking straight at the Pyramid hotel, only it was as night so there were hundreds of lights worming around the pyramid all the way to the top. At the top, there is an opening that shoots out a spotlight that is so bright, you can literally see it from space. This was the single most beautiful thing I have ever witnessed. I wish I would let you all borrow my eyes so you could witness this indescribable beauty. Not only how beautiful it was, but the FEELINGS that came along with it. I was feeling so fucking grateful to be alive. I started thinking about how far I have come mentally in the past year, about the people I have lost and met along the way. Which brought me to thinking about that girl I told you about, Ashley. For the longest time I have been emotionally unavailable to females as far as attraction, trust, and relationship goes. I have become a very self centered person and love the company of my own mind. What I am describing is in no way negative, it's just the way I like it to be. I don't waste my time with people I don't connect with, or who annoy me, etc. Which ends up being almost everyone. This girl though, it is strange. In the midst of this positive emotional breakdown, I found myself thinking about her. Thinking about how I shouldn't be so scared to let her in. About how amazing my time spent with her thus far has been, nothing but good vibes, beautiful smiles and laughter. She is one of VERY few people in my life that do not judge me. "Your way of thinking is beautiful" she said to me once. That crossed my mind like a track on repeat. No one has ever been so kind and accepting of me, no matter how nerdy or weird I am. Not to mention she is absolutely gorgeous, way prettier than I deserve 100%. I was just absolutely overwhelmed with all of these thoughts about Ashley, and how appreciative of life I had become and how I am no longer a depressed young man on the brink of ceasing to exist. I told myself not to be so scared, to let life happen. So this realization was an immense one, and it continued on for about 20 minutes straight. I could not stop thinking about life and its wonders. I couldn't stop thinking about Ashley and how she doesn't even have to acknowledge me as a person, and yet she is the sweetest woman in the world to me. The list goes on and on about all of the thought process's I was having about everything. Unfortunately, this also completely negated my ability to think outside of my own mind. I was completely lost, crying on the ramp leading down to the Pyramid. We were both lost, not knowing where the fuck the aquarium is anymore. "Yo are you alright?" Guyver asks. "Yea man, this is just so fucking beautiful dude, I can't think right now." "What do you mean you can't think?" Replied Guyver. "I just don't know where I am or anything right now dude, I am lost." "Follow me" Guyver says. I can tell that his demeanor changed almost instantaneously, much more confident. Well at least one of us was. "Let's just get back to the room man and regroup." I nod my head in approval, and off we go. Chapter 9 "Long Trek" Guyver is leading me through a river of lights, peoples faces are continuously twisting and morphing. Slot machine characters became 3D and looked like I could high five them, shit was getting super intense. Guyver and I had to stop numerous times to try and get our bearing on where the fuck we were. I was sure that we were never going to get back to the hotel room. We get back on the Tram to take us back to Excalibur, so that we can walk straight across the bridge to New York New York, at least that's what he was telling me. We get on the tram, I am sweating my fucking dick off and we are sharing the cart with 3 other people. Extremely awkward by the way. We get off and start walking towards the strip, this time there isn't even the slightest of knowing where we were. I was so turned around and tripping so fucking hard I literally couldn't even for a thought other than "OH MY GOD". Guyver thankfully realized that we got off on the wrong stop and guided us back to the tram with surprising ease. After the third and final tram ride, we get off and make our way through the casino trying to find our elevators to our hotel. When I was walking through this sea of people I was looking at everyone and time seemed to slow down. I felt like I could analyze their exact feelings at the moment, and in these moments everyone just looked disgusting. I saw greed and frustration written over every sloppy drunk bitches face. Every drunk meat head that lost his last $40 on a game of blackjack, now pissed off and walking around like a human bowling ball because he can't but a Red Bull for the broke drive home. I saw, sadness... immense sadness. Only this time I did not feel bad for these people, I said fuck these people. I never ever want to look like any of these miserable humans. Let this be the motivation to maintain happiness is what I was thinking. "DUDE FUCK YES!!" screamed Guyver as we finally found our elevators to take us up to our floor. I can barely stand it feels like and I cannot wait to get into our room to recoup. Chapter 10: "The Room" (Part 2) I weasel through the twisted hallway, bumping into the sides of the walls to keep my balance. I finally reach the door, and I get out the keycard. When I look up at the door to insert the key card, I was smacked with constantly changing patterns on this door. I couldn't look away, yet I was still trying to get the card into the door. The pattern on the door was morphing and melting right in front of me. I finally got the card to go in, and boom, we are back in the room. The minute we open the door we smell the weed and start laughing hysterically, good weed. Before I could even take my jacket off, I looked in the mirror. The only way I could possibly describe what my face was doing, and what it looked like, is to compare it to the dreamscope app. My face had moving patterns forming on it in the shape of like old ass weird symbolic mini hieroglyphics. It was so bizarre, especially since I have never tripped this damn hard. So I take my jacket off and go into the restroom, pull my pants all the way down and sit. I do NOT trust myself to try and piss standing up at this point lol I get my phone out and I record myself saying literally nothing hahaha and so I turned my phone off and was stuck on that toilet for about 5 min. I couldn't stop looking at all of the marble designs on the walls of the bathroom, and the lighting was so crazy I just couldn't understand how it was all looking like this. Eventually I get out of that bathroom and go lay down. Every single thing I look at is again, morphing and shifting. I was having my first TRUE psychedelic experience with LSD. It was INTENSE. There is not a whole lot of detail to discuss about the room other than we were just getting lost over and over again in that room trying to get the fuck out so we can order our Lyft to see Star Wars. I eventually have to take the reins and lead us out of that room. I gave what I thought to be a pretty fucking inspirational speech so to say. That brought us back into the reality of us being late to the movie. But before I did, I snapchat Ashley... I still have no idea what I sent to her or what have you, but she sent back nothing short of the sweetest thing ever. She is awesome. Anyways, we get all of our shit together, double check our belongings, and we are finally good to go. Chapter 11: "Uber" We have an incredibly hard time finding an exit door to our hotel room now. I know that they have designated pickup areas for Uber and Lyft, I coulnd't find one to save my life. So we found our way out into the valte parking lot again and tried to request the Lyft. Only now, I had to put my credit card info in... this was so fucking difficult. I was shaking from the cold, couldn't see the numbers on the card cause they wouldn't stop moving. Life was in fucking shambles right now lol. So I eventually give up on trying to order a Lyft, I wanted to use Lyft since I have $50 free credits. But all in all... fuck Lyft so hard. I got extremely irritated and just opened the Uber app and ordered one. I then saw a cop staring straight at me and Guyver. I did one of the most ridiculously stupid thing ever. I walked straight up to the cop and asked him, with my pupils as big as a fucking saucer "Hey where do the Uber drivers pick up?" He replied with some crazy fucked up directions that I didn't respond to because I was so thrown off by the way this cop talked. Idk if he was deaf and use hearing aids, or if he had a stroke or what the deal was. He looked at me and knew I was lost in his words. "I'm just trying to get out of this hotel, I am nowhere near sober enough to follow those directions." "Tell you what, just tell em to come up here and pick you up, you guys have a safe night." The cop replies surprisingly. I call the Uber driver right away and let him know we are in the Valet. We get into the Uber and shut the door. I knew right away this is going to be awkward because I pretty much told the driver right away. "hey man, thank you so much for coming to get us. I literally have no idea what is going on but we need to get to AMC. Do you have the directions?" "Yes sir we are good" he replies. During the ride he is asking the typical small talk questions. Where are you guys from? How was our night? Any luck with the ladies etc etc. needless to say it was a pleasant ride that got us to our ultimate destination... STAR WARS! We exit the Uber, I express my gratitude again and off we go. Chapter 12: "Concessions" Guyver and I walk up to the ticket counter, sweaty as all hell. Barely able to comprehend what it is i'm supposed to be doing. I take about 2 minutes to pull up our online ticket confirmation and I show it to the ticket dude. The scanner isn't working and it is now 11:05 on an 11:00 showing. I start to get super nervous thinking something went wrong with the tickets, but eventually, all is well and we enter the movie theatre. We get our spot in line for a couple of Coca-Cola's. At this time, there was this man with his buddy in front of us in line. This is one of those dudes that is not handsome, has spiky hair (OBVIOUSLY DYED), most likely about 32-35 years old, probably talks about how good he used to be at motocross when he was 18 kind of guy. The kind of guy I hate, and he was being so fucking disgustingly obnoxious and attention seeking. I usually don't feel anger or rage when I trip but this time it was absolutely unavoidable. I started to think about how bad I wanted to fuck this dude up and shove his straw down his throat for acting like a douche bag. But I regressed, they got their orders and left. All was good. It was my turn to order, I casually order two cokes, not stumbling too too hard anymore over my words but I cannot bring myself to look at the young lady taking my order. I am way too self conscious about how gone I look at the moment. Guyver and I take our sodas and go over to the soda machine. This is one of the new machines that let you pick pretty much whatever soda your heart ever desired. This will go down as the hardest decision I have ever made on LSD. I eventually went with Vanilla Coke just in case you were wondering. After we had our drinks filled, tickets in hand, everything we needed to go into the theatre. Now I was lost again, I had no idea what we were supposed to be doing. I had forgot that we came here to see a movie. Guyver guided us into the movie and found our seats. Chapter 13: "The Movie" This AMC was one of those prime ass ones that had leather seats that recline and all that cool shit. I was so impressed by how comfy they were. I was sitting at the end of the aisle and Guyver was to my left sitting next to a couple. At this point I have never felt like this before. The movie was playing but I had no idea what was going on. The movie never made sense to me, Guyver was laughing but I was getting worried that we were gonna get kicked out of the movie cause he was laughing so loud. I started to feel like I wasn't even supposed to be there in that movie. I didn't know what was happening around me, if the Coca Cola tasted good or not, I was freaking out. I whispered to Guyver that I don't know what's happening and he offers to go outside with me. We walk outside and I start to get emotional. There is no other way to describe how I was feeling other than "I just didn't know anything". For the first time in my life I felt completely vulnerable, tp the point that if someone wanted to come take everything I had there wasn't a single thing I could do about it. I was so lost in my own head. "Dude I just want to make sure you're having a good time, cause I am so lost brother." " I am man for sure, are YOU okay though?" replied Guyver. "Idk man, I literally don't know what is happening right now, are we supposed to be in that theatre? I bought these tickets right? Is this a funny movie or not? Etc." These are some of the questions I kept thinking to myself and I was losing it. Then I just screamed "FUCK IT!" "Lets just go inside the theatre and I am just going to sit down until the lights come on dude, I am losing it okay? This whole thing is for you man, this is your birthday present and i just want to make sure you're having a good time man." I said with eyes full of tears. "Okay brother let's do this" Guyver replies as he guides me inside and we both take out seats in the handicap chairs since no one is sitting in them. This made me significantly more comfortable knowing that there wasn't anyone behind us. I am still feeling so lost and confused but I am gritting my teeth through it all. Eventually, a undeniably funny part of the movie came on and I was able to hear everyone in the theatre laughing. I felt like I could laugh too since everyone was doing it obviously so I laughed along. That is the point where I was able to calm down and enjoy the rest of the movie. By the way, the new Star Wars is so fucking epic it's insane lol. The cinematography was so amazing and not to mention the Imax 3D that we were watching it in. Truly an experience of a lifetime that I will never forget. After several moments of crying, being scared shitless of the new Star Wars villain, the movie came to an end. Chapter 14: "Lets Get Back" After the movie, me and Guyver were standing outside. I was trying to get this stupid fucking Lyft app to work but I was still tripping a little too hard to try bothering with it. So I just ordered another Uber. While we are waiting for the Uber, me and Guyver are discussing all of the crazy events that have led up to this moment. How I was still definitely tripping and I just wanted to get back to the hotel now. Guyver agree'd and we waited on the Uber. We finally get into the Uber and have a comfy, warm ride home back to NY NY. The ride was very humbling as the driver was speaking about how he has 3 kids and that Uber is such a blessing allowing him to work his own hours to get that extra couple hundred dollars a check to provide for his family. I began to tear up and had to look away. People's lives are so different from one another and I can always tell when someone is sincere. This man was exactly what I needed to witness to feel that overwhelming sense of appreciation again. It was wonderful. I said my goodbyes to the Uber driver and I started the walk back to the hotel. If didn't take us nearly as long as it did previously to get back to the room, but it was still no easy feat. Chapter 13: "Blunts and the Comedown" We get back to our room, hotel door still moving slightly and making me giggle. I walk into that hotel room and have never felt so relieved in my life. I immediately take my clothes off and lay down in the bed. CEV's are still pretty present but I don't mind at all. "Dude do we have any blunt wraps?" Guyver asks. "No dude we don't but we should." "Ughhhhhh fuckkkkkk okay i'll go get one" "We will go fucking get one" I say hesitantly. We both get dressed AGAIN, plug in our headphones and start back out to find a blunt. We walked WAYYYYY too far in search of a blunt and the only thing we could find was these nasty ass chocolate Zig Zags. ( I fucking hate swishers and zig zags, white owls, etc.) But I said fuck it, we bought the wraps and headed back to the room. We get back to the room, I break down the weed and start to try and roll up. Now I am not trying to toot my own horn... but I can roll the shit out of a blunt. But at the end of this trip in Las Vegas... I was defeated. I wasted both of the blunt wraps trying to roll up and we just ended up smoking out of my pipe till our throats hurt. We smoked til we got tired and I had layed down again. I was just laying there, thinking about my life, about home, my dog, Ashley and all the wonderful things in my life that attribute to this happy state of mind I have finally reached. Me and Guyver watch some of the videos we took throughout the trip and cannot stop laughing at how hard we were tripping on video. We eventually got tired at about 4:30 but didn't end up falling asleep til about 6 or so. We woke up, went down to the buy one get one free breaksfast, which turned out to have a whole bunch of special rules and shit that was far too confusing for me to deal with still. We ditch the buffet, check out and hit the road. We survived the night and lost not ONE item. Mission Complete. This was not revised in any way, I don't plan on going back and proof reading. This is my recollection of my night in Vegas with my best friend. I hope you enjoyed the read! Safe Travels! -Yeee
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Dear Redditors of Las Vegas, I want to thank you all for the advice and wisdom on this subreddit, which led to the perfect trip for myself (23M) and my lady friend (22F). I thought the least I could do to express my gratitude was to provide a trip report for those looking to visit in the future. The trip was from 3/11 – 3/17, during our spring break. We’re from a school in New York and we set out here because we found some cheap plane tickets and wanted to have a nice relaxing time and stuff ourselves with good food, not necessarily for the casinos and the nightlife. I had been here 3 years ago as an under-21 year old, so it was nice to have the “real Vegas” experience. Lodging: Stayed at Vdara Sat-Thurs with Mlife rates. Did the $20 trick and we were upgraded to a fountain-view suite. Gorgeous. I really recommend this hotel if you’re looking for a relatively quiet time. It doesn’t have a casino which perhaps attracts a calmer crowd, but the walk to the Bellagio or Aria is less than 10 minutes each so you can still satisfy your gambling needs. I don’t talk much about the casinos below, but we definitely did a fair share of gambling during our stay. Transportation: We did have a rental car which made transportation easy. Valet was complementary, but please make sure to tip! They’ll take care of you. Saturday 3/12
KOMEX – only because I came here 3 years ago and had fond memories of it. So good.
“O” show – Was a pretty cool show, but I was honestly underwhelmed by it. Had pretty good seats right in front of the VIP seating, which was unoccupied… so my GF and I hopped the fence and sat there instead, which was neat.
We also spent a while walking around the strip, getting acclimated, and looking at the cool hotels, to include Caesar’s Palace, Bellagio, and the Venetian. Sunday
Bachi Burger – also to reunite with a previous memory. I still think this is one of the top 3 burgers I’ve ever had. The oxtail chili cheese fries are recommended by others to be a “must”, but I personally prefer the truffle fries.
Red Rock Canyon – Beautiful drive and hiking.
Monta Ramen – I’m a huge ramen fan and I understood this was the –best- ramen place in Vegas. It was very good, I’d say there are better places in NYC though.
Sweets Raku – in the same complex as Monta Ramen. They have some neat desserts that they make right in front of you, lovely experience.
Steve Aoki @ Hakkasan – We did it just for the experience (when in Rome, right?) and I used to be a big Steve Aoki fan back in the day. We showed up around 2230 and he didn’t come on until midnight, but we kind of got tired of the place and the crowd and left before he showed up.
Monday
Brunch @ Bacchanal Buffet, Caesar’s Palace – This was awesome! We had the groupon deal and it was impressively cheap. Midway through our meal they switched to their lunch menu so we got the best of both worlds there.
Gordon Ramsey’s Burgr – onion rings were incredible. The burger was pretty good as well.
Secret Pizza place @ Cosmo – was decent pizza but nothing impressive. It also wasn’t hard to find because there were a lot of people eating pizza right outside of the hallway…
We were in a food coma for a long time after the buffet so we napped and lounged around all day. Did some walking around the strip, watched the Bellagio fountain show for real. It was good. Tuesday
Hoover Dam & Grand Canyon (West)
This was a great time, but I was unprepared for Grand Canyon West. I had initially wanted to go to the National Park side (GC South) but since it’s a much longer drive, settled for GC West. I didn’t expect the hefty entrance fee and I complained about being a part of the largest scam of all time, but the memories made it worth. There is about a $30 extra charge to go on the skywalk. I recommend you don’t do this – we just stood right next to the skywalk and got just about the same experience. We had in n’ out on the way back. Always a good time. Wednesday
Wicked Spoon @ Cosmo – Good buffet and the dishes were interesting, with different types of fusion here and there. Bone Marrow was weird.
The Eiffel tower @ Paris Las Vegas – I’m not sure how much this is but it was free for us so we went for it. The Bellagio fountains went off while we were up in the tower and it was a whole new view in itself! The wait was definitely worth it, can’t comment on the price though.
Thursday
Mint Indian Bistro – very good lunch buffet, big fan of indian food.
Atomic Testing Museum – We went here because we were looking for things to do at this point, but I guess it was appropriate because I’m a nuke minor. Pretty informative, the staff know their nuclear testing history. There’s an exhibit at the end about Area 51/Aliens for which I was excited, but it looked more like a high schooler’s science fair project.
Earl of Sandwich - Last meal in Vegas here. I could seriously eat these every day.
Overall, it was a magical time and I cannot wait to be back. Thank you again to everyone for helping me come up with a great trip. Things I wish I had done but didn’t: Studio B Buffet @ M Resort (for the price and unlimited drinks), GC South, Zion, hit the jackpot. TL;DR: Had an awesome time in Vegas thanks to this subreddit. Stayed at Vdara, went to the “O” show, and ate a lot of good food. EDIT: I still have the excel file I used to list all the restaurants and activities for the trip. It's pretty messy with some comments, but if anyone is interested I'll either send it to you or post the google doc link in the comments. EDIT #2: Fixed a stupid mistake. Thanks jgiesea
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I pretended to be the CASINO VALET guy and THIS happened ...
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