Chapter 2032: Lighting the Unusual Dream in the Heart (25)_1

After the mysterious aliens departed, the group gathered around the bar counter, commencing their drinking session. This bar's distinct feature was that the cups used for drinks came in various styles, giving off the impression of being purchased from an interstellar thrift shop.

Some of the cups were made from hollowed-out tree trunks. Some were assembled from metal, and some even resembled the tiny monsters' skulls.

The drinks within the cups came in an array of colors. Many were bright purples and azure blues, a bit too much for humans to accept. Some even glowed. Stark stared hesitantly at a bright crimson purple drink for a while before taking a sip.

Then the rich floral scent started making him retch.

"What the hell? I feel like I just drank a mouthful of Pepper's perfume," Stark grimaced in disgust. Big Beard, the real bartender who had returned laughed, "This drink is called 'Summer's Day Beauty'. It's made with natural pigment from lilies and scented with gardenias. If you find the flavor too intense, I can replace it with sparkling water."

The sparkling water that was served was green and looked like it was freshly brewed by a witch.

Stark tentatively took another little sip. This time he was slightly relieved because it tasted like mint. Although the color was strange, at least the flavor was familiar.

Stark gulped down several mouthfuls until he emptied the cup, only to discover that there was a bunch of sticky green spherical things at the bottom. They resembled Venom's composition.

Stark clutched his throat and began retching again. The bartender explained, "Those are edible algae balls, they have been specially processed and won't have a strange taste. They feel a bit like jelly when chewed. You can try some."

Stark pushed the cup aside.

Shiller was sipping on a glass of orange glowing fizzy wine. Gray Mist was cheering inside his head because Shiller hadn't drunk in a long time.

But as soon as he took a sip, Gray Mist began whining, "I don't like bubbles. I feel bloated."

Shiller had to settle for the strongest liquor on the menu. Steve looked at him curiously, "Are you sure you want to drink a spirit at noon?"

"I think we should grab a bite later on. Find a proper restaurant. I've been distracted by the arrival of those interstellar pirates. Maybe food will make me feel better."

"Ororo and I were planning to go shopping, so we'll skip the meal. How about we all meet at the entrance of the last ride at 3 PM?"

T'Challa asked looking at his watch.

All agreed, so Shiller, Steve, and Stark went to the spaceship's restaurant together.

The venue leaned towards a steampunk aesthetic. Most furniture was made of aged brass, with some decorations using extremely shiny copper, creating a punk contrast.

The specialty dishes here were also alien-style food, such as onions cut spirally and deep-fried, cucumbers cut into springs using a special blade, and minced beef piled into weirdly shaped meat pulp.

Shiller shook his head and sighed, "Humans' imagination for aliens is too poor. Although the aesthetics of sentient beings have their characteristics, they wouldn't make their food into strange ugly shapes."

"Each civilization believes their art is unique and perfect," Steve said, cutting an onion and munching, "We think that our aesthetics might be vastly different from or exactly the same as that of aliens, but as long as our visual systems are similar, the beauty we all pursue would also be more or less the same."

"It's all about balance, symmetry, and regularity," Shiller said while stirring his mashed potatoes, "These are the necessary stages in the evolution of an Order Creature's aesthetics, and the results are quite similar."

"I still don't quite get what those aliens came for," Stark turned to Shiller, "And you didn't even show your temper at them. That's not like you."

Shiller revealed a mysterious smile and reached for his pocket but said nothing.

The group finished off the pile of weird-looking food on the table and stepped outside only to discover an even stranger drink shop.

This was an outdoor beverage stand. All the drinks were contained in spherical bottles. As soon as Steve walked up to the shop, he spotted the classic packaging of Coca Cola.

The turbaned performer or the supposed native was a woman with a slightly weathered face. She adjusted her turban, crossing her arms and told Steve, "This is the most famous energy drink on Batu Star. Its pronunciation in Batutian is BB-8."

"We originally used wooden bottles, but then a human from Earth left an empty red beverage can here. I heard this brand is very popular on Earth, so we deliberately made bottles in a similar color to sell to Earthlings. Do you want one?"

These round bottles were all tossed in a box filled with ice, giving people a refreshing feeling just by looking at them in such hot weather.

Thus Steve took out his bracelet to buy a few drinks. But out of the corner of his eye, he spotted aliens in smuggler robes on the other side of the stall who seemed to be planning to do the same.

He was about to approach them when Shiller stopped him. They listened in on the side and indeed heard the stall owner say to the group of aliens, "Smuggling's getting harder these days, isn't it? The Legion's offense is too brutal; we can't get any good loot. If you have connections, go see the blue-haired woman by the weapons depot; she'll give you a good price."

Steve was confused. He didn't understand the stall owner's relationship with the aliens.

Yet Shiller began to laugh. He said, "You may have heard that Disney's performers are very dedicated. The most famous feature of the Star Wars Theme park is that the costumes of the performers here are all random and there are no classic character images."

"They actually play local people of Batu Star. They are shop owners who rely on smuggling goods and providing accommodation and food to smugglers. Or they are intelligence dealers who make a living by selling information. Some are spies of The First Legion, and some are undercover samurai from The Jedi Order."

"The performers select their costumes and roles randomly at the start of the day, hiding among the crowds, providing various clues. They all act like it is a serious job in order to enhance the immersive experience."

"Disney's staff members have undergone special training. When they portray certain characters, they almost completely immerse themselves in the roles. Although the professional planning team regards it as exaggerated publicity, at least ordinary people can't tell."

"But those pirates must have seen their fair share, right?" Stark asked with a frown. He had seen in his lens-mounted microscopic scanner that the stall owner was not any alien smuggler, but merely a normal human.

However, he didn't think these pirates would have species identifier. From the previous confrontation, they seemed like a ragtag gang.

These are just the small fries among the pirates. They belong to the bottom rung of the pirate gang, indispensable or disposable. If not, why would Yondu have sent them here?

Shiller explained, "Even though Thor allowed Yondu's men into the Nine Major Kingdoms, Yondu is not stupid. What if this is a trap? Wouldn't he be screwed?"

"This sly pirate leader won't just walk in. He would definitely send a bunch of cannon fodders to test the waters first. Among these pirates, there surely won't be any important figures. They must be the type Yondu would not care less about, or perhaps they are spies from other pirate gangs."

Shiller showed a playful grin, and Stark and Steve immediately understood his intentions.

Surely enough, Shiller took out his phone and said to Nick, "I plan to set a trap for these lambs. Can you contact Disney's management department? Let them coordinate the performance. We will give them 30% of the proceeds."

Steve thought Nick would at least ask for specifics, but Nick shot back saying three percent was too high; for alien lambs, one percent would be sufficient.

Then Shiller left with his phone to the side, and was gone for more than ten minutes. Steve and Stark were starting to suspect that he had kidnapped the aliens.

When he came back, Shiller cleared his throat and said, "Just wait and see."

Just then, Steve saw the communicator on the belt of the stall owner who was talking to the interstellar pirates ring.

Of course, both of them could tell that it was just a mobile phone, only clad in a shell of metal, disguised as some kind of alien communication device but set to an insipid beep as the ringtone rather than an Earth song.

The stall owner widened his eyes. He glanced at his waist and smiled at the interstellar pirates, "Choose whatever you want. I have to go away for a while."

This phone was actually an emergency communication phone allocated to employees by Disney—it was used to arrange for staff to evacuate tourists in case of emergencies.

However, because of Disney's high demand for the immersion level of their performers, they absolutely forbade any behavior that could destroy the image of the role they played, so they couldn't answer calls in public.

After all, if Winnie the Pooh took out a mobile phone in front of children, their childhood would be over as soon as he opened his mouth to speak.

The stall owner was gone a long time, making the pirates rather impatient. However, before they came down, Yondu had specifically given them human currency, reminding them not to forget to pay and avoid trouble by attracting undue attention. Besides, they were kind of thirst so they patiently waited for the stall owner to return.

"Sorry, the boss called. One of our ships had some trouble in the Star Area. I might have to go over later and sort it out."

The stall owner turned to the female stall owner on this side and said, "Vanessa, you're going to be of big help. There's trouble in the Star Area again. This is the second time today. It's probably not long before we'd have to rush over there again."

Vanessa had just got a phone call too but had returned sooner than this stall owner. She sighed, curled her lip and said, "It's all because of that damn Interstellar Security Committee. If it weren't for them building that... "

The stall owner quickly signaled Vanessa with his eyes, and Vanessa shut up after glancing at the hood-shrouded interstellar pirates.

The pirates were anxious now.