Realistic or Modern The Amalgam Universe: A New Crusade {IC}

[snakeg0dd]

The Amalgam Universe: A New Crusade
​

Arkham City was no stranger to poor weather. Hell, it was named one of the wettest cities in America last year, obviously because of the amount of rainfall, and, in the winter, snow and ice are the city's worst enemy. But Arkham was experiencing the beginning of its autumn weather, and its citizens were unphased.

Arkham was, for better lack of terms, a cesspool of crime. However, this was no secret, and everyone knew how dangerous Arkham could be. Corrupt politicians, murderers and thieves, and organized crime ran rampant within the city, and today was no different. It was nearly eight o'clock, and the night was still young. Deep within The Narrows of Arkham was The Wonderland nightclub, popular & frequently visited by anyone with their hand in the pot of corruption. There were some exceptions: the extremely rich or the most naïve also found a home at The Wonderland.

The Wonderland nightclub was roughly four stories high, with the nightclub being two stories (the ground and first floor), a restaurant resting one level above that, a more exclusive lounge—referred to as "The Rabbit's Hole"—located in the basement of the building, and a penthouse at the top floor. The penthouse was used for black market or under the table exchanges by the Zucco crime family and was a safe house for the crime family.

Tonight, Zucco's right-hand man was expecting to host one of their biggest deals of the year. Recently, a local gang had come into possession of a microchip that held vital information to people in power, more power than Zucco himself. The family arranged this exchange as a means of good faith and trust. The family would trade some of their girls—all of whom grew up being trafficked—for the valuable microchip that the Pyke gang had. Especially since tonight was the grand reopening of Wonderland, it was the perfect disguise.

But like I said earlier, the night is still young, and Arkham City never sleeps.

 

[Nellancholy]

[7:45 PM, Friday, The Narrows]

Lan-zhu ran a finger across the back of her head, making sure her disguise was in order. Her collar was firmly folded with a black tie to match the occasion and her pants creased. The setting of the sun brought a brief respite from the rain, which was more than welcome. She didn't want to risk swelling up into a fifty-foot woman, and the alternative of melting away and being stuck as a tiny ball wasn't much more appealing, either.

With Wonderland reopening after considerable damages from a gang war, attendance was packed. The line at the door was made up of punks trying to scam their way into a taste of the high life (or the very,very low), various thugs, and the occasional mid-tier businessperson or government official. The real big shots would be able to enter by other means. Eventually, she reached the head of the line, passing the bouncer a confident glance. The kind that said "you know I'm supposed to be here, and you should feel ashamed if you didn't".

Even so, he gave her the once over and grunted. "You on the list?"

Her finger slipped into her pocket, subtly producing the black business card sized invitation, stamped with the emblem of the Zucco family. "I'm on THE list." She chuckled.

If the meathead was impressed, he didn't show it. "Go on in. Main event's at 8."

---

[2 AM, two days ago, Satori]

Lan-zhu twirled the invitation around her fingers, examining it carefully under the orange light of the bar's lamps. "Holographic foil to be scanned by a laser. One-use. Difficult, but not impossible to forge. But we have the genuine article here." She flashed a thin smile at the younger woman, sitting across the bar from her. "Thanks, Yoko. You did great."

Satori's policy of neutrality meant it would never be the site of any illegal operations, but that policy and its central location were precisely what made it safe for various members of the underworld to discuss their business and plot their schemes away from prying ears. Well, any ears from outside anyway. With the Batman gone, Lan-zhu made extra sure both her and the staff kept a close ear and a finger on the pulse of anything that could threaten the neighborhood or upset the balance in the underworld. And tonight was the night Yoko heard two of Zucco's men discussing Wonderland's reopening and the new...shipment they were bringing in. As much as it hurt Lan-zhu's gelatinous heart, it wasn't like she could storm in and free them. But the news of the microchip and how some street gang had gotten a hold of it was far more pressing.

Something like that could lead to another gang war just because everyone needed a glimpse of the information within. Now that warranted some hands-on investigation.

Another one of Satori's policies was no tabs. Pay in cash before you leave. Or you know, card if it doesn't get rejected more than once. So when Zucco's guys came over to settle the bill after the last call, lifting the invitation from one of their pockets was as easy as stretching out her finger.

"So...I guess I'll head home now?" Already out of her ridiculously short kimono and back in her jeans, Yoko shrugged.

"Well, one more thing." Lan-zhu leaned over, giving her shoulder a little pat. "I need you in here on Friday. I'll be...paying a visit to Wonderland then." Anticipating Yoko's frown, she nodded. "But take the weekend off. Paid, of course."

"Aww, that's sweet." Yoko giggled. "Fine, see ya boss."

---

[7:50 PM, Friday, Wonderland]

Lan-zhu bit her lip as she tried to keep herself together, slinking over Wonderland's dance floor as she made her way to the basement entrance and its guards. Two guys in suits. Sunglasses. Pistols in holsters under their arms. Not that much of a problem to her immediately, but it wouldn't do to provoke them. In fact, the one on her right was smiling at her.

"Marco!" He threw his arms open for a moment before reaching out for a firm handshake. "Nice seein' ya! Hey, have you lost weight?"

Lan-zhu felt her hand squish a tiny bit as he squeezed it, but she returned the gesture anyway. "Been eatin' good, homie." Well, impersonation wasn't necessarily her greatest skill. "Figure you're the one that got bigger, eh?"

"Ah, don't give me that shit." The guard brushed it off. "Well, if you're headed down to the meeting with the Pyke guys..."

His twin reached into his jacket...

If Lan-zhu could still sweat, she would.

...and he pulled out a small scanner, brushing it over "Marco's" invitation.

With a small beep, he waved Lan-zhu on.

"Catch you later, buddy. Assuming those Pykes don't start shooting." Marco's friend clapped her on the back as she headed down.

She had barely rounded the corner as she felt her ponytail disgorge from Marco's crew cut, almost like letting out a burp. Her face returned to normal as she felt herself grow an inch or two taller.

"Great..." It would be a while before she could try shifting into someone else again. All that remained was to look like she was meant to be here...and hopefully someone would let slip what was on that chip.

 

[SpazTheButcher]

Ray had always enjoyed the hunt. He hated to admit it, but there was some animal pleasure in ending lives. He had tried for years to ignore it once he returned to the states, but when he met that man in the hat, everything came back to him. During the night, he killed those who deserved it, so that his hunger was satisfied during the day. Now he stalked a new prey, Mr Right Hand of Zucco. And maybe a few Pykes. Who knew, shit happened, and Ray did like dealing extra cards.

He was all geared up. He chuckled inside at that. Reminded him of a Call of Duty mission. Well, No Italian. He did a once over of his gear. Shotgun and shells, check. Rifle slung on his back? Check. Suppressed Colt in the center of his vest? Check. Ruger's little devil in a drop holster? Ready to roll. And a few little smokes for friends in addition to his favorite piece: his tiger painted M79. He was a one man army. His hat and yellow gaiter were the only colors he wore, his face, hands, and clothes were black as the shadows. He readied himself for breach.

He had stumbled upon the deal completely by accident. He was driving his cab when a loud mouth decided to start blabbering about how rich he was going to be in a few days. Habitual drunks did not know when to stop, and this guy went on and on. Ray had yet to take care of a high end individual, and seeing how this opportunity fell into the backseat of his car, this would be a grand op for him to make a name for himself.

So here he was, in a back ally looking at two assholes in suits, whose cleanness clearly contrasted the filth surrounding them. Almost poetic. But Ray wasn't here for poetry, and he move through the shadows. Using a Korean war trick, he threw a bullet casing across the darkness to their right. Both guards were alerted and drew their weapons, but they were looking the wrong way. Ray came up behind the first with his bar hands, and snapped the man's neck cleanly. The next one spun around but Ray just ripped the pistol from his hands and used it to smash his face.

He then withdrew his cards and randomly drew two. A three of clubs and a four of diamonds fell on the bodies as Ray began to quietly climb up the fire escape ladder, which he began to use to summit to the roof. From what the public records showed, the top floor was supposedly a penthouse, and therefore a good area for a deal. Seems like a good idea to crash the party, and up will soon be down.

Spoiler: The M79

 

[noxrequiem]

Earlier that evening, Cordelia had entered The Wonderland, not as a vigilante, but as a patron. At least for a time. She was there to scout ahead early for the big event, get a good idea of the layout of the place, identify the location of the security cameras, find out how many thugs were there, that sort of thing. Normally it’s something she would have done a day or two beforehand, but seeing as this was the club’s official reopening, she hadn’t had the opportunity.

Getting in had been easy enough. She dressed like she belonged there, wearing a full face of makeup and walking with grace and confidence, a far cry from her usual self. When it came to the bouncer, all she needed was the slightest telepathic nudge on his mind, and he let her in. The Wonderland itself was already packed, loud from the music and the chatter of club-goers, but loud telepathically as well. It set her teeth on edge, head pulsing with the beginnings of a headache. Still, she wouldn’t let that distract her from what she was here to do. So she went about checking the place out and scanning the minds of the people around her, getting an idea of what to expect and formulating a plan, managing to blend in the entire time and remain unsuspicious.

After quite some time, satisfied she had checked the place over thoroughly, she sat down at the bar, ordering a drink to keep blending in and to briefly reflect on what she knew so far. She would never let herself admit it, but she was nervous. As long as she was careful, getting up to the penthouse shouldn’t be too much of an issue, but there was always the chance for something to go wrong. Still, that wasn’t what was really on her mind. The microchip. To see what was on it. It wasn’t a desire, it was a need. Scanning the minds of the people around her hadn’t revealed much of anything about it, not other than the deal was still on for tonight. She would just have to see it for herself.

Glancing at the time, she sighs. It’s almost time and there’s a few more things she has to take care of. Paying her tab, she gets up and leaves out the front door of the club without a second glance from anyone else.

…​

Only a few blocks away from The Wonderland, Cordelia is no longer Cordelia Owens. She’s the Phantasm now. She had kept her suit hidden and locked away safely inside of a car she had rented specifically for this situation, leaving it in the parking lot of an innocuous motel close to the nightclub. Leaving her true identity behind in the trunk of the car, she stealthily makes her way back to The Wonderland, going completely unnoticed by anyone. She pauses at the corner of the building that intersects with the back alley of the night club, taking a moment to sweep the nearby area with her powers, head still throbbing from earlier. She knows from her scouting earlier that there are two guards posted outside the back door. But just to confirm their location, she reaches out with her powers to detect their presence, and finds… nothing. She frowns from under her mask. That isn’t right.

Cautiously stepping from around the corner, she sees the bodies of the two men lying on the ground. She approaches, telepathy ready to help alert her to any nearby danger, but there’s none. She stares down at the bodies in front of her. Lying haphazardly on top of each of the dead men is a playing card. Crouching down, she picks one up, inspecting it. Calling cards. Literally. She drops it back down onto the body, standing up straight once more. It seems like she might not be the only uninvited party here tonight.

Clenching her jaw but forcing herself to remain focused, she steps over the bodies and slips through the backdoor.

 

[R U S T]

Roarsach’s Journal, FRIDAY, 7:00 P.M.

​

This city….is a living hell. People die here everyday. No one really cares to stop these criminals, everyone is either a drug addict or a low profile criminal or a crime boss. Everyone leeches off of the greed and lust of Gotham city people sell their bodies for quick cash,It’s absolutely disgusting, this city needs a new look. Corrupt politicians are everywhere, and the people are fully aware of that. Which makes them as much guilty as they are.

Criminals are everywhere now that the Batman has suddenly disappeared. Just like the animals on the bottom of the food chain, as soon as the apex predator reveals himself they scurry away and hide. Though when they leave, they come running out, the population of rats are too high for the ecosystem to provide.

And I’m they’re judge, jurry and executioner.

~~~



The rain droplets slowly slipped off roarsachs brown and now damp and wet fedora, as he watched from afar hiding himself with a nearby building, looking out from an angle, the backside of the building in his eyesight, he waited for the perfect moment.

He staked the area closely, watching as a man in a military uniform knock out two guards who ultimately failed at their jobs, both beaten senselessly to death. The man throwing an item on the body’s. Cards.

Though out of the shadows another figure suddenly appeared. Where did they come from? The sudden tension roamed the air,
though roarsach remained setteled as he clench his fist.

He was here to bust into the crime syndicates meet up, the club having another floor specifically for the syndicate as the other floors were for the club. He had a current lead to bust up an operation. Having several clues pointing to the syndicate. He will get answers, and get valuable information from Zucco’s right hand man. And get a important chip that can give very crucial information.

As soon as the woman entered through the back, he soon followed her, stalking the others. He won’t let anyone stop him from giving the right hand man the face of judgment.

He quickly passed by the dead body’s as he entered the night club, making sure not to be noticed by the figure who had come in before him.

 

[myrkwise]

"Justice delayed is justice denied."

- William E. Gladstone

---

Lucas was beginning to regret every single one of his life decisions up to this point, as his barely covered, bruised feet clashed every few seconds with the painfully harsh pebbles embedded on the street. He was pacing around the alleyway just beside Wonderland, his presence just barely hidden from the fellows coming in and out of the nightclub. He figured if anyone did see him, he would look awfully stupid, just walking about in circles, looking for an optimal way to lock himself in a decently sized garbage disposal.

Well, perhaps that was putting it a bit too dishonestly. He wasn't doing anything at all, a fact made evident by the violet gleam in his worn out eyes.

"Don't fret. I do believe I've found one that can keep you decently positioned - and it's only about three inches deep with filth. Really, you should be thanking me right about now."

"Oh, no, I truly feel grateful. That's definitely the feeling I'm getting most in this situation."

"Don't try anything. It isn't my fault you're too much of a coward to cleanse this world of filth like that."

Lucas wondered whether this was Eris displaying something of her humanity - he rarely saw her so fired up to fight for something even he could only admit was a just cause. His more cynical side questioned whether what Eris would do with those "poor little girls," if she did somehow manage to free them."

Well, it was beyond his control now. Lucas had accepted long ago that it was futile to fight against the tide of fate - though Eris, if anything, was the one force stronger than fate itself.

---

She exited the amulet with a sense of ease and calm that she barely even recognized as a native emotion. She would have questioned it further, but her head remained fixated on the one goal that mattered, the one object of her hatred that ignited her nihilism into something a tad bit more productive.

The monsters would die, tonight. That was all that mattered, in the end.

Eris couldn't help but find it hilariously trivial, how she simply entered Wonderland's quite obnoxiously voluminous clubspace. Invisibility had its perks, it seemed.

She noticed several individuals of note, though one man clad in a simple fedora and strange mask especially caught her eye. It wasn't so much his costume - there were far more extravagent and eccentric suits out and about - but his demeanor - how it exuded a sense of purpose and drive that Eris found oddly nostalgic.

She decided to follow the fellow around, for the moment at least.

R U S T

---

Lucas thought it almost cute, how Eris thought she was skilled enough to keep an adult (even one as flimsy as himself) away from the one entity keeping him alive. Well, it'd be cute if Eris wasn't threatening to murder a dozen or so people.

In any case, Lucas managed to slam himself out of the shoddily constructed restraints that Eris had built for him. Seeing the "thread" connecting his soul to hers, he saw that she had already entered Wonderland and was exploring it on her own. Silently cursing her name, Lucas decided to find an alternate route. He wasn't so much concerned about his own life (though he could already feel himself draining away), but he was definitely concerned about what extremes Eris might go towards.... And whether Eris could even succeed.

In any case, Lucas made his way to the back alley, hoping to sweettalk his way in through the back door, making sure to fit himself with his "smiling" mask to cloak his face. What he definitely didn't expect to find were two dead bodies, each accompanied with a calling card. Picking one up, Lucas let out an involuntary shiver before making his way in through the door, just catching a glimpse of a lady in some sort of suit - an obvious vigilante. Before even thinking, Lucas blurted out :

"Hey! Are you here for the deal?"

If Eris was here, Lucas wondered whether she'd call him a moron.

noxrequiem

 

[noxrequiem]

Cordelia froze in her tracks at the sound of the voice. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. How had she not picked up on another presence? Did they have some kind of powers? Were her own powers failing? Or was she just getting sloppy? She didn’t have time to think too hard on an answer. Instead, she turned on her heel and crossed the room in a matter of seconds. She grabbed the owner of the voice by their shirt collar and slammed them against the nearest wall.

She finally got a good look at him as she had him roughly pinned to the wall. She almost wanted to laugh. He looked barely more than a kid, probably just freshly out of high school. And on top of that, he appeared frail, like she could snap him like a twig if she truly tried. Any other night, she might have been almost amused. Tonight was not one of those nights. Tonight, there was no playing around.

“Stay out of my way,” she growled, the unspoken threat hanging heavily in the air.

Before he had the chance to react or reply, she shoved him away from her, roughly enough to have him stumble to the floor. She turned back to where she had been heading, annoyed. The last thing she needed was a distraction. She had to get to that meeting at just the right time. What she was here to do was too important.

myrkwise

 

[myrkwise]

"Successful people make decisions quickly and firmly. Unsuccessful people make decisions slowly, and they change them often."

- Napoleon Hill

---

"Hold on just a moment - wait! God damnit!"

In truth, Lucas was internally counting his blessings that the woman hadn't just killed him then and there. Whether that meant she truthfully didn't have any desire to kill him or whether she was just in lack of time was yet to be seen. Her response was interesting to him - the lack of any denial to the purpose of her mission, as well as her general appearance and demeanor all seemed to confirm to Lucas what he had already suspected. Ultimately, however, his top priority was making it back to Eris as soon as possible - and he had absolutely no clue what to do. Eris had made sure to keep the details of her plan away from him. The best - no, only - shot he had was to continue following this lonesome figure.

Lucas nearly bit his tongue as he stabilized himself, wincing as a simple slam had felt almost as if several of his bones had fractured. Was she really that strong? Or was he just that weak?

He did manage to let out a small grin, however difficult it may have been.

Got you, buddy.

Contact had been made, and if things went right a decent amount of pure euphoria was about to kick into the woman's nervous system. To whatever effect it would have.... Lucas was unsure, but he hoped at the very least that it would give her some pause, perhaps make her a bit more open to cooperation (or at least letting him tag along). At the very least, perhaps it could give her reason to see him as a useful asset.

Lucas, somewhat short of breath, panted his next words with care, as he struggled to catch up to the woman. Combined with the stress accumulated from having Eris so far away from his body, the force of the shoves, and now with having infused his euphoria into someone - he was starting to doubt whether he could even walk much further.

"Come... Come on.... Please! I.... Whatever it is you're doing, I can help you! Just... let me tag along?"

noxrequiem

 

[snakeg0dd]

Matthew Drake

robin

Wonderland - The Narrows

Focused

Robin Suit

mentions

R U S T myrkwise noxrequiem SpazTheButcher

Lt. Walker & Detective Watanabe ; ACPD, 7:40pm
Rain was no stranger to the city of Arkham, especially in the season of Autumn, and tonight was no different. Atop the Arkham City Police Department building, a beacon of light shines through the downpour and beats against the storm's clouds. The spotlight had a metallic overlayer on top of the glass plating, cut in the shape of a bat. It was merely a call when the Police Department needed to contact The Batman, but someone else had been answering those beckonings in his absence: his protege, Robin. Waiting for the Boy Wonder to come—standing under a metal panel with a tarp on top to help cover it for protection against the weather—Lieutenant Dane Walker stood with a translucent poncho on, peering into the thunderous night sky. From behind him, Detective Watanabe walked through the rooftop entrance holding two mugs of black coffee. She and Lt. Walker had just responded to a murder scene on Abbey Road in Northern Midtown, the newest killing in a string of strange murders. They both were expecting Robin to have appeared by now, seeing as how he's been so responsive to their calls before now, but he had not. Handing one cup of joe to the Lieutenant, Detective Watanabe asked, "You think he took a page out of the Bat's book and just vanished on us?"

The lieutenant gracefully accepted the caffeine and looked at the lower officer. Walker was hesitant to respond, but he knew Robin wouldn't abandon them. Or perhaps that was his fear rationalizing his thoughts. Nonetheless, he answered, "No. No, he wouldn't do that," and sipped from his mug. "It's late. Shouldn't you be looking after your father, Detective?"

Watanabe looked down at her cup, a look of remorse on her face, "I had to check him back into the hospital yesterday."

"I'm sorry." A brief, awkward silence lingered between the two law enforcers, only the rain beating against the roof to fill the absence of sound. "So, you think he'll show soon?"

Lt. Walker slightly chuckled to himself as he heard the detective speak. "No, No, I don't. But I like to keep this, to remind everyone he's still out there, well, not him exactly." The detective was confused by the Lieutenant's words. "But why wouldn't he come?"

Again, the Lieutenant felt smug in his answer, "Hopefully, because he's busy."

Robin ; The Wonderland Nightclub, 8:00pm
Matt had lived and abided by the playboy, billionaire philanthropist Bruce Wayne for five years. He trained under Bruce's instruction for two years, perfecting him to be the perfect soldier to fight crime. And when the time came to don the cape, Bruce realized that Matt wasn't just a soldier to fight crime, but a sidekick that he could rely on now, and two years transpired with that idea working perfectly. Batman and Robin were the biggest headlining crimefighters in Arkham, if not the entire east coast. But now, it was only Robin. Only Matt. Left to his own device. And as much as he would like to hope that he was enough to protect this city, he simply wasn't.

There was no warning, no heads up, no note, nor message when Bruce left. It was almost as if he never existed. That couldn't stop Matt from persevering and continuing to fight for what he and Bruce stood for, especially when that light hit the sky. It served as a reminder that Arkham would need someone like Matt to safeguard it from the dangers that follow in the night.

A few days ago, Matt had busted an underground drug operation that was run by the Pyke Gang. Amidst all the fighting, he learned that an anonymous person had paid for a large quantity of narcotics with a singular, unique microchip. Matt learned from breaking a few bones in a wrist that the microchip, apparently, had some valuable top-secret information. And because Matt busted one of the Pyke gang's operations, they had to use this microchip as leverage to help boost their other business, and there's only one man they could sell this to: Marlon Zucco.

That brought him to tonight, where Matt—Robin—was surveying The Wonderland from atop a residential building across the street, which towered over the nightclub. He was paying attention to the security detail and the number of bystanders coming and going. A perfect evening would go as planned, with few casualties and a quick in-n-out job. However, things were always liable to change. As Matt kept an eye on the main entrance and periodically gazed at the camera feed on his gauntlet, showing the other doorways via drones, he fiddled with a piece of equipment; it was spherical, roughly eight inches in circumference, and metallic gray in color.

Averting his attention away from the gadget, Matt paid attention to the one screen on his gauntlet as he watched a man dressed in black with a yellow hat take out the two security guards stationed at the side entrance. He snapped one of the guards' necks and beat the other's face in with a pistol. Matt would say that what he saw was brutal, but he's seen and done worse. Following suit were three more people. One was obviously a woman dressed to conceal her identity, another was a barefooted man, and the last one was Rorschach. Matt had never formally met Rorschach; he and Bruce had produced a dossier on the individual and kept tabs on his activities for a while now, but there was no proper introduction between the two.

The probability of this night no longer going smoothly was rising, and Matt couldn't leave tonight empty-handed. He had to get that microchip because whatever was on it must be sensitive information if Marlon Zucco was willing to accept it as payment. He put the small object back into his utility belt and, in a muffled voice, said, "Amateurs."

Matt reached behind him, to the back of his belt, and retrieved his line launcher. It was a grapnel device that could traverse gaps that may be at odd angles. Regardless, Matt triggered the firing mechanism and a line shot from the one end of the device, securing a line to the pillar behind him. The other end shot out another line, fastening itself into the very roof of The Wonderland. With a shove off the ledge, Matt glided across the street-wide gap, hanging onto the handle of the line launcher. Before he touched down onto the roof of the nightclub, he disengaged the device's safety mechanism, and it recoiled the lines back into the tool as he rolled onto the roof.

"Perfect landing," he said as he holstered the gadget back into its spot on his utility belt. The probability of someone seeing him was low, and he still had the element of surprise to his advantage, thankfully. In that belief, Matt continued with his original plan: get in, stop the deal, retrieve the microchip, get out. Easy enough. Matt made his way to the roof's ventilation shaft and ripped the grate off. He was quick to throw himself down without a second thought, roaming through the duct towards an exit grate that would lead right into the penthouse. Stealth was still his friend, after all.

coded by natasha.

 

[Nellancholy]

The Rabbit Hole was a considerably more prestigious section, which in this case mainly meant better lighting and the music pounded a little less. Patrons of a somewhat higher class partook of drink, drugs, and (for those who still had the constitution for it) food that mainly served as a means to flash their wealth in front of their guests and miscellaneous hangers-on. Narrowing her eyes, Lan-zhu allowed herself to scan the room, wondering if she could pick tonight's "shipment" out from the waitresses and hostesses working the floor. The women who wouldn't know their exact fate until they changed hands tonight, continuing to work, to hold on even as chances for a better future grew ever slimmer. The thing about moving "stock" that could walk on its own was that you wouldn't need to pack them up like other produce. It also meant that even as they do their jobs to make you more money, you still need to keep a close eye on them.

She probably wouldn't be able to get much information about tonight's hand-off directly from them, but she could at least coax a cue in the right direction from them. Right on time, a curvaceous blonde in a rubber dress as short as it was expensive sidled up to her with a plastic smile across her face and a tray of champagne flutes sitting atop her splayed fingers. "Something to start you off tonight, love?"

"That'd be great." Lan-zhu flashed her the same customer service smile back as she accepted one of the glasses, taking a sip. Long ago, a full glass would be enough to get her tipsy. Now the fluid simply dispersed into her. Fusing, assimilating into her being. "Say, I'm new in this part of town and was looking to...expand my business. How'd you think I should go about meeting Mr. Zucco? Certainly wouldn't want to operate here without giving him the appropriate tribute a man of his stature deserves."

The blonde's smiling face barely shifted as she raised an eyebrow. "You'll have to talk to one of his little flunkies for that, dear. Wouldn't want you to step on any toes before you can carry on with...whatever business you have." She'd made it quite clear that Lan-zhu continuing this line of questioning would be a quick way to ensure either of them ended up in a dumpster.

"Of course. Wouldn't want to anger him, now." That avenue was blocked off, but it was worth a shot. Even so, it's not like Zucco or any of his men were able to teleport. Probably.

Which meant...

One of the men in suits passed by a doorway recessed slightly into one of the walls. Quiet and quick, but not enough to escape Lan-zhu's notice. His path took him to an elevator for which there were no buttons, only a keycard slot. Whenever the Pykes arrived, they'd probably be invited in this way as well. Nice and secure, meant they'd have no way out from the penthouse if they actually tried to double-cross Zucco or even just played hardball a little too hard. The guard Lan-zhu noticed was probably going up just to receive some orders, or to prepare to move the shipment.

Either way...Lan-zhu could spend more time mingling around, trying to lift a card from one of the other guards, same way she got the invitation. Or...she could take a more proactive path. No matter how secure Zucco and his operations were, they still needed to breathe.

Another quick scan of the nearby walls revealed a vent duct, not much bigger than a cat. Contrary to what the movies tended to show, air ducts in buildings tended not to be big enough for sneaky vigilantes to crouch walk into. But that was fine. Lan-zhu slid her fingers behind the edge of the screwed-down vent cover and pulled. The thin, hot metal bent and warped, and curved in her grasp, yielding enough to allow her core to pass through. And as long as that was possible...

Lan-zhu took one final look over her shoulder to make sure she wasn't being observed in the recessed passage. She took a deep breath, and...

Her clothes appeared to flatten and ball up as she gathered herself, dissolving into a mass of grey slime that flowed into the air duct, coalescing into a thick, dense lump of mucus that stuck to the metal walls of the ventilation system and crawled its way up to the penthouse.

 

[noxrequiem]

As Cordelia turned away from the pale stranger, she felt an oddly light sensation in her chest she couldn’t quite place. Relief? No, not quite, but it’s the closest emotion she could identify it to. Why exactly she had suddenly started feeling this way, she wasn’t sure—if anything, things were just looking worse. But whatever it was, for now she just chalked it up to the growing absurdity of the situation. Seriously, when she thought things could go wrong, this was not what she was thinking. Not at all.

And then this… guy called out to her again and she paused, for whatever reason. Spinning around fast enough to give most people whiplash, she faced him once again. For half a moment, she considered just using her telepathy on him, make him forget he had ever even seen her. But no, that would take too much time and too much mental energy, both of which she needed as much as possible of right now. Besides, she couldn’t quite believe what she had thought she heard him say.

She crossed her arms, looking his frail frame over. Under her mask, she raised a disbelieving eyebrow. She could almost just laugh. She wasn’t even sure why she was about to entertain him with an answer.

“Help me? Help me how? By bleeding on me?” Her words are practically dripping with derision. “Last thing I need is to be someone’s babysitter.”

She was silent for a moment, looking him over again. What even was his deal? Why was he here? And why would he want to help her? He didn’t even know her or her motives. It just absolutely baffled her. But also it almost entertained her. Okay, fine. She wasn’t going to stop him. She’d feel bad about beating up some sick-looking high school graduate anyway, and she didn’t have time to spare to do anything else. So long as he understood to keep out of her way and that he knew she wasn’t taking any sort of responsibility for him.

“Like I said before, stay out of my way.”

Without another word, she turned back around, heading down the eerily dark and empty hallway that led to a private stairwell used exclusively by Zucco and his men. Though she wasn’t going to stop Lucas from following, keeping up with her wasn’t going to be easy. She moved quickly, and she seemed to meld with the shadows around her, like she was flickering in and out of existence, her exact movements difficult to follow.


myrkwise

 

[SpazTheButcher]

Ray adjusted his blue cavalry hat as he clambered up the fire escape ladder. His gear was weighing him down, but it could've been worse. He was, after all, carrying everything he needed to survive. After a few brutal minutes of climbing, he finally was on the roof. But something felt... off.

He readied his rifle and scanned the roof, eventually locating the problem. Ripped ventilation cover. That would complicate things. It would appear that he had guests. But his plan didn't account for those, and if one was in the vent system, he couldn't follow his initial plan. It wasn't that didn't feel comfortable killing a few people, he just didn't want to kill civvies, especially those who didn't have a debt.

So, he had to change his plan, and he thought long and hard. In the end, he decided that his original plan was best. If he did it right though, he could in theory pull off this op without a hiccup. So, he counted out the steps from the ladder to the room where he thought the deal would be, a large office space in the penthouse. He was now directly above where the deal should be taking place.

He then pulled his M79 from the one of the two shotgun holsters on his back, and opened it. He loaded a strange looking around that he had designed just for this occasion, and let the "thumper" click as it accepted his gift. He aimed it a few feet in front of him and fired. The round embedded itself in the roof, and he then opened the M79, ejected the casing, and loaded another. Soon he had fired four of his custom rounds, now forming a square around him. He holstered the M79 and checked his watch.

As he counted down till it was time, he pulled out the denotator and an MP3 player. He began scrolling through it as he waited, looking for the right song.

 

[myrkwise]

Happiness is an attitude of mind, born of the simple determination to be happy under all outside circumstances.

- J. Donald Walters

---

noxrequiem

Lucas blinked, half disappointed and half elated that the strange woman had apparently just decided to disregard his presence and proceed forward. It wasn’t at all the best of all possible worlds - especially with his body in the condition it was in now - but it was probably the best he could realistically hope for.

“No need to wait for me!” He called out - how was she already so far away - “But just- just so you know! I’m perfectly - perfectly capable! On my own! I can-“

He had to stop shouting, just to keep his full concentration on running fast enough and keeping the woman near his line of sight, though seeing her at all was an ordeal in of itself.

It felt…. Absolutely awful. Like his bones were melting into a viscous, lead paste and his tendons were roasting over an open fire. He’d only felt worse back during the waning months of his pre-Eris days, the memories of which were starting to bubble up to the surface, thanks to the draining of joy he had engaged in.

Just as he was about to collapse, however, he suddenly felt a jolt run through him, an inane sensation of pure pleasure running through his spine. Memories of going on the hunt with his siblings for the first time, that day he spent just trying to make Eris laugh - they all flashed before his eyes.

Newly invigorated, Lucas was now capable of at least keeping pace with the woman, though an odd sense of dread was keeping him from full peace.

Just what was Eris doing?

“You utterly foolish boy.”

Ah. There she was. It was a record though - managing to hide his actions and thoughts from her for nearly a full half hour! He really should congratulate himself.

“I’m not the one who sucks at tying knots. Anyways, mind telling me where you’re at? Would save me a lot of time.”

“Just stay where you are. I’m nearly to the fourth floor, and I’ll be done shortly. There’s no need to be concerned about our thread breaking.”

“Oh? You really do care, huh?”

“It would simply not be advantageous for my mortal vessel to perish and be left once more with the curse of immortality. That is all.”

“Right. Definitely. Hey, would you mind telling me something?”

“What?”

“Who’ve you targeted with your misery now?”

“No one important. Simply a strangely masked man I am following to the point of importance.” R U S T

“Why him?”

“A hunch given through an air of destiny, of purpose, of conviction. Such people are often simply bubbling with unkempt despair and memories of grief just waiting to bubble out onto the surface.”

“Such a person doesn’t seem like he’d have much happiness to spare. So why him?”

“Would it be crass to say I was simply curious to see what would become of him? What would bubble forth? What, if anything, would be exposed?”

“….. You really are sick.”

“I know.”

 

[R U S T]

​

Roarsach ultimately decided that he would, beat, his way into the meeting, though he was definitely suited for this special occasion, he was going to get that chip and that nobody would get that chip but him, and soon after he gets that chip he’ll dig deeper into the theory he has leading into a bigger name in the drug crime and give valuable intel that he could use and give to a certain reporter in the Arkham news.

As the loud and annoying music continued blasting he felt a touch from behind and soon after, emotion came after, it was mostly anger, he wanted to punch someone into a bloody pulp, a damn rat, everyone around him had a little filfth that had to be cleaned. Though some of it was sadness, not much but memory of his mother getting intimate with men…..it was disgusting.

He let out a grunt as the club then started to play a even louder and annoying song. He walked faster and faster. Before he eventually reached the entrance of Zucco’s meeting area.

A man immediately put his hand up.

“Your not allowed to be here, leave now.“

Roarsach looked up at the taller man before he put his fist into the man’s chin, a loud grunt came from the man, falling to roarsachs height as he grabbed him by the head and pushed his fingers deep into the man’s eye sockets, the reared soft slaps hitting his hand as he pushed deeper and deeper until the punches stoped.

He quickly dropped the corpse before he kicked the door open, quickly reaching into his cost grabbing a can, then a lighter, becoming a homemade flamethrower. As he pushed onto the cans button, immediately the air becoming indulged in fire as he aimed it towards any man surrounding him them quickly becoming a flamed. It quickly went out tho as roarsach dropped the can and quickly put the lighter back into his pocket.

​

 

[snakeg0dd]

Matthew Drake

robin

Wonderland - The Narrows

Confused

Robin Suit

mentions

Nellancholy

Matt was shimmying his way to the exit grate, leading directly into the penthouse. His intent was to end the deal before it could even begin by taking out Zucco's men first and then setting up an ambush on the Pyke members. But first, he had to get out the vents.

They weren't the most spacious, and Matt is a fairly big guy, so maneuvering around wasn't too comfortable. Still, Bruce had trained Matt to endure the uncomfortableness of a situation like this and make it his advantage. Again, the element of surprise was all in Matt's favor. As he quietly snaked his way through, Matt couldn't help but feel the overbearing weight of his sixth sense begin to hasten its hold on his mind. It first started in the back of his cranium as a tingling-like sensation, but as he continued onwards, it became more nauseating. This wasn't usual, but it also wasn't something new. In fact, this was merely his alert system at play which meant he wasn't alone in the shaft.

Matt paused his advance, listening for anything or anyone that may be following him. At first, Matt could only hear the vibration from the fan and the subtle breeze of the air blowing past him. However, with a few more seconds of listening closely, there was a sloshing sound that grew in noise. It was abnormal, especially given the circumstance of where Matt was, and his senses were becoming more alarmed.

Whatever it was, Matt knew to trust his sense and prepared a counter-measure if the thing was hostile or acting as some sort of security measure for Zucco. This wouldn't be Matt's first entanglement with a meta individual, so he knew how to prepare a contingency plan.

Matt reached into his utility belt, retrieved a small gadget, circular in shape with a dome top, and prepared the device. He turned the dome lid three clicks to the right as he finally made it to the penthouse' exit. Peeking through the flaps of the exit grate, Matt saw only the specter of darkness blanket the room. Not even the neon signs nor the headlights of the passing cars outside could break through the black-out drapery. Luckily, his lenses give him night vision; and below, Matt could hear the drowned-out music from the club and its occupants shouting along in ecstasy through the flooring.

Since the room was quiet and empty, Matt took the opportunity to finally get out of the vents, but not before placing the prepared device on the wall of the shaft system. It could be activated via motion and would flood the surrounding area with smoke, which would also pump the ventilation system with smoke, potentially giving Matt an outing if the time comes.

Exiting the vents from the corner of the room, Matt was delicate in taking off the grate. He stood up from his crouched position, stretching his neck out and walking freely in the open space. That was never going to get old. The room was quite expansive and decadent in taste. Ornaments and chinaware layout in decoration; the wooden furniture was engraved; the chairs were studded and padded with lavish cushioning; and the bar, in the far opposite corner of the room, was polished and stocked with the finest spirits.

Matt roamed his way over to a table where a small selection of liquor and glassware was set up, which was undoubtedly costly. Though he wasn't looking for a drink, he was looking for additional evidence and documentation to learn anything he could against Zucco or even the Pyke gang. But to his efforts, there was nothing he could obtain.

From the bordering room, the sound of footsteps became evident. Matt quickly peeked behind him to see that the room had a stone stairwell—almost hidden—leading to a downstairs section, which Matt wasn't expecting. He promptly took cover behind the wall leading to the adjacent room.

Mere seconds passed, and then a woman's voice snarkily rang through the room, overpowering the muffled noises of the club below.

"I know you and your friends are here to stop the deal, bird boy. But you won't find what you're looking for."

coded by natasha.

 

[noxrequiem]

As Cordelia pressed forward, she continued to keep an eye on the pallid young man trailing behind her. Much to her annoyance at her own self, she was actually finding herself slowing down her pace so he could somewhat keep up with her. Despite everything in her screaming not to, she was looking out for him now. For better or for worse, she would try her best to make sure nothing happened to him. She still didn’t understand why he so badly wanted to come with, but now really wasn’t the time to ask.

She was a bit taken aback, however, when she looked back and found him keeping pace much more easily when mere moments before he had looked ready to just fall over and collapse onto the ground. It was enough to almost make her pause, but there was no time to question it. Not right now. Sure, it was weird, but she hadn’t sensed anything from him that would indicate he was trying to pose any sort of threat to her. And that just had to be good enough for her right now, when there were more pressing concerns to address.

Like any guards that might be up ahead. Currently, Cordelia was traversing up the private stairway leading to the fourth-floor penthouse where the deal was supposed to take place soon. And while she had expected the security detail to be more focused in other areas in preparation for the meeting, it was strange that she hadn’t come across anyone so far. So she stopped in the middle of the stairwell, holding an arm out behind her that wordlessly motioned Lucas to “stay back.” Reaching out with her telepathy, she tried to identify the presence of anyone stood further up the stairs, only to find nothing. Her mind quickly drifted back to earlier in the night to the dead guards outside the back entrance, and the playing cards lying haphazardly on their chests. Had something like that happened again? Had that same person been through here too? Only one way to find out.

Creeping up the last flight of stairs, Cordelia used her powers to help further conceal herself and make her presence easier to miss by telepathically signaling anyone nearby “don’t look at me.” As she made her way closer to the fourth floor, she didn’t come across any guards. No bodies, either. It gave her the feeling that something was seriously off, deep in her gut. Approaching the fourth-floor landing, moving carefully and quietly, she noticed that the penthouse was dark and silent. Well, silent until she heard a woman’s snide voice cut through the dark, clearly addressing someone that was not Cordelia.

“I know you and your friends are here to stop the deal, bird boy. But you won't find what you're looking for."

Cordelia frowned to herself, her mind trying to fit the pieces together. Bird boy? Okay, well, at least one other person was here for the deal who wasn’t supposed to be. Well, actually it had to be more considering the implication of the word “friends.” But who was this bird boy? Wait. Oh. Oh shit. Robin. Of course he was here. But he was the least of her problems if what this woman was saying was true. If Cordelia took what she said as what she thought she was saying, that the microchip wasn’t here, then what the hell was even going on? She didn’t exactly get the sense that this mystery woman was lying, so…

Well, then everything just went from bad to worse.


Interaction: myrkwise
Mentioned: snakeg0dd

 

[SpazTheButcher]

Ray was still scrolling on his MP3 player. He then glanced at his watch, almost casually, then gagged as he realized he was past due. Shit! Raced through his mind and he was now split between "Notorious" by Duran Duran, "It was a good day" by Ice Cube, and "Tainted Love." he struggled to make a choice, and he swore as he set the device to random and shoved it into his vest. He readied the detonator with his left hand and pulled out his MP9 with his right hand. He clicked the detonator twice and counted down in his head and he put it back and extended the stock on the MP9, bringing it up to his shoulder and holding it now with two hands.

5...
4...
3...
2...
1...
​

A loud boom shook the roof as the breaching rounds detonated below his feet, creating a rough square of cracks. Ray, disappointed, stomped on the ground below him, and the roof then fell down, and he braced himself. The square of roofing that he stood on perfectly fell down into the center of the penthouse, alerting his position to everyone. He racked a round and yelled out, "Ooooooh Valestra! Where are you?" He MP3 player kicked in, and began to play "Walking After Midnight" by Patsy Cline.

 

[myrkwise]

I trust everyone. I just don't trust the devil inside them.

- Frey Kennedy Martin

---

...... Okay, what the hell was going on?

Lucas had been following Cordelia for long enough that his exhaustion had began to creep up on him again - a natural consequence of him not exactly being the most athletically inclined person. Thankfully, they'd all but reached their destination by the time it really started to hurt.

He had noticed Cordelia’s attempt to get him to stay back. It had been appreciated - really! - but he just couldn’t let anyone else take this from him. He needed to be the one to put a stop to this - to put a stop to Eris.

But who was this woman? And who was "bird boy?" And who was this new fellow coming in with an explosion and odd sounding music?

And if he were to believe what she was saying... the chip wasn't here after all?

"It makes no difference in the end. I'll be with you shortly."

"Hold on- hold on, don't-"

It was too late. Any moment now, Eris would enter the penthouse, and cause mayhem inside if she had her way. Enemy, ally, it would matter little to a devil like her.

Lucas grit his teeth, and made a decision. He stepped out into view, approaching the Penthouse, and exposing himself in full view of both Ray and Matt, a big (albeit forced) smile on his face.

"Ah-ha. Hi. How's it going, pals?"

---

Eris watched, in part horror and in part amazement as Roarsach swiftly detached most of the men and guards around them. This was the power of this lone man?

Seeing an opportunity to refuel on her reserves, Eris spotted the few men who had avoided the flames, who were now mostly trembling in shock - though a few stood resolute, ready to fight to the end.

Idiots.

She dispatched the remaining goons with relative ease, merely making contact with each of them a few times in a row, making sure to squeeze as much happiness out of their miserable, worthless lives as she could. She took pleasure in seeing each of them steadily begin crumbling to the ground, some in shock - others in uncontrollable sobs and undecipherable blabbering. She could feel the joy she extracted from them, flowing into her and then off across the thread connecting her to Lucas.

After putting the men down with a good, hard thud to the neck, Eris thought long and hard (meaning, of course, a matter of a few seconds) about her next course of action. The masked man had revealed himself to be quite capable, as well as someone obviously engaged in infiltration - likely for the purposes of the microchip. More importantly, however, he had revealed himself to be quite willing to kill to achieve his aims.

Eris smiled, and finally revealed her true, visible form to Roarsach, appearing before him as a dainty young woman with long, flowing black hair and ghostly, inhuman violet eyes.

She spoke with a low, almost hissing tone.

"No time to explain. Would you be willing to bargain?"

---

@ SpazTheButcher

@ noxrequiem

@ snakeg0dd

R U S T

 

[Nellancholy]

"Gentlemen first." Lan-zhu considered saying as Robin passed, but thought better of it. This was no time for casual conversation. And as cautious as the Batman and his little assistants seemed to be, startling him might go badly for how volatile this situation was shaping up to be.

And of course, he left some kind of device in the air duct after noticing her.

"Fuck..."

She gurgled under her breath. He didn't seem to be the type to leave actual, explodey bombs around, but whatever it was, she probably shouldn't risk it. Maybe it was some kind of freeze bomb, or an electric detonator.

But of course this wouldn't be the only vent on the entire floor. Time to take the long way around. The mass of gray slime hauled itself up to the level where Robin had exited, rippling and surging around to the side. Another duct connected to the rest of the ventilation system on the penthouse floor, and she'd soon be able to exit too, as soon as she found another vent. The duct took her to the other end of the penthouse, and dim light filtered in ahead...alongside the rhythmically oscillating shadow of a ventilation fan.

Of course.

She wasn't too worried about getting shredded, but that might slow her down a little. Instead...

Lan-zhu coiled up, concentrating her mass. And then she flung an appendage into the center of the fan, sacrificing about two fist's worth of mass to gum up the motor. The fan seized and creaked before pulling to a stop, the noise audibly echoing through the vents.

That would probably get the attention of whoever was around, but if she moved quickly...

With the fan stopped, the rest of her mass flowed past it smoothly, finally coming up to an exit.

“I know you and your friends are here to stop the deal, bird boy. But you won't find what you're looking for."

Now that was reassuring. Whoever that was, she'd already found Robin. And assumed they were working together?

Before Lan-zhu could consider her next move, explosions rang out over the tense situation. And then the roof caved in.

Just great.

Taking advantage of the commotion, Lan-zhu concentrated again and...burst the vent, its cover flying forth. Finally able to stretch out again, her clothes unfurled and straightened out as her body formed in a cautious stance, ready to throw hands or make a quick exit if necessary.

snakeg0dd

 

[snakeg0dd]

Matthew Drake

robin

The Narrows

Frustrated

Robin Suit

mentions

Nellancholy SpazTheButcher Strategos noxrequiem myrkwise R U S T

"I know you and your friends are here to stop the deal, bird boy. But you won't find what you're looking for."

Friends? Who, here, is my friend?

The woman came into a much clearer view, aided by the ocular lenses' night vision, emerging from the shadows of the crypt below. She was irregularly tall and slender, with slim shoulders and petite hands. Her hair was straightened with bangs that dangled just above her eyes, and the back of her hair draped past her shoulders; her hair was darker than the pitch-black room they stood in. She was dressed in a white french shirt, a black vest, and a long skirt that made the bottom of her figure indiscernible. Presumably, her vision was terrible because she was wearing thin-rimmed glasses.

Matt could make out a smug smile and a sharp glare pointed in his direction despite the poorly lit room. "I'm afraid both the girls and microchip just aren't here, boy," the same tone of irreverence layered in her voice, "You know, he knew you'd be here tonight. All of you."

Zucco, that shitbag.

But before Matt could even get a single syllable out, a square outline of the roof caved in. An explosion. Maybe one of hers?

"Ooooooh Valestra! Where are you?" a man roared, his weapons in hand as he dropped with the roof. Wait a minute . . . he looked familiar. Through the darkness and smoke, Matt could make out that this was the same man from earlier. The one who dropped the two security guards from their positions outside, at the side entrance.

Now, the pale moonlight dripped into the darkened room, piercing through all of the dust and air particulate.

And from the other end of the penthouse, a slime-like being sprang out of the ventilation. That must've been what Matt was hearing earlier. The shapeless mass of goo soon took form, shifting into a woman. She was tall and slim, much like the cynical lady before him. A meta.

Friends. Right.

The distractions prompted Matt to declare the room's attention, "You two, stand down!" his words were directed toward the two newcomers. "Where're the girls?", his attention was turned back towards the skirted lady, and his focus was on saving the girls now, their fates unknown.

She chuckled to herself, knowing that Robin was not nearly as intimidating as his mentor. "Wouldn't you like to know?", the lady strolled her way over to the enormous arched windows, covered by the blacked-out drapes. She parted both drapes to reveal the flashing red and blue lights of the Arkham City Police Department. They kept their sirens off to keep themselves concealed, so someone must've tipped someone in a big chair off before any of this.

"Hm. Look at that," the woman whispered, "Well, boys and girl, it looks like that's my cue to leave." She grimaced, reaching down to her skirt and tearing it off, revealing two-bladed prosthetic legs and charging out of the large window set, landing on a bystander's car.

Matt took to the windows, looking out at the scene. S.W.A.T. vans lined the street, and patrol cars barricaded the pavement below. Down the street, sprinting West, was the bladed woman. This city never ceases to surprise me. Matt was quickly pulled from his thought when a shot penetrated the brick wall next to him. A policeman from the street had spotted the Caped hero and let a shot off—luckily, he had poor aim. Matt let a grunt out in frustration, from the uncooperative law enforcement and the fleeing suspect. He took a few steps retreating from the window and looked back at the main door leading into the penthouse; his skull was tingling again, which meant only one thing: ambush.

Matt reached across his torso, tapping three buttons on his right gauntlet, and, just as the S.W.A.T. team breached the doors, the device that Matt had planted earlier in the vents was manually set off. A few of the breaching armored police stepped into the room, their automatic weapons drawn with flashlights equipped on the side of their barrels. They shouted for everyone to get on the ground, but the room was beginning to flood with smoke. Matt stood unphased as S.W.A.T. continued to pour in. He would move against the officers, but he also needed to retain a reputable relationship with the Police Department. So, he followed the woman's lead leaping out onto the street below. He landed on the same blue sedan and was greeted with the demand to freeze by the remaining officers in the street.

As shots rang out, back in the penthouse, the flashes of the weapon's muzzles perforating through the smoke, the authorities gazed back up at the window. For a few seconds, they debated on going up to help reinforce their brothers in blue, but they returned their sights to the blue sedan. By then, however, Matt was gone, vanishing into the night.

coded by natasha.

 

[myrkwise]

Surprise is the greatest gift which life can grant us.

- Boris Pasternak

---

At this point, Lucas was beyond frazzled in every sense of the word. He’d just witnessed who he now assumed to be one of Zucco’s fellows apparently admit that the girls.... weren’t here? And then just.... Left?

Lucas felt a odd, perverse sense of joy enter his system. Initially, he attributed it to finding out that there weren’t any victims of human trafficking in the facility (take that, Eris), but as the sensation grew he started to realize it was originating from his thread.

Perhaps in another time, Lucas would’ve managed to calmly assess the current situation, but now was not one of those times. He had honestly been feeling God awful - both mentally and physically - for about an hour now, and the surge of pleasure felt more like a bad joke than anything.

Lucas startled to tremble slightly, his fingertips shivering and his chest heaving back and forth. A disturbed giggle ripped itself out his esophagus, following by a series of cacophanous laughs. He stretched his arms suddenly out at his sides, as if embracing the world around him. Tears ran down his face as he struggled to process anything and everything.

He didn’t even notice the harrowing noises coming from outside the establishment, the arrival of the police inside.

---

"I'm afraid both the girls and microchip just aren't here, boy.”

.... She’s got to be kidding me.

All of this, all of this, for nothing?

Eris vowed that if she ever caught her sights on whoever that mysterious lady was, she wouldn’t even think about it. She suck out every inch of smugness and perverse joy in her system, leaving her a shallow, empty husk of a human.

“You know, he knew you'd be here tonight. All of you."

She froze at those words. All of us? How is that possible?

As her thoughts began to return to Lucas and his situation, she finally decided to enter the penthouse proper, though not without once again dropping her form and becoming unperceivable once more.

She arrived just in time to see the police starting to crawl inside the facility through a broken window, as well as in time to see Lucas with his knees to the ground, absolutely hysterical with tears running down his face.

Eris felt a twinge of something bitter and cold slide down her throat. Did I do this?

Letting out an ethereal sigh, she easily reclaimed her position within the amulet, and then swiftly possessed Lucas once again.

She stood up, swaying back and forth as she almost had to flinch her eyes shut from the pain. While the menta maladies that impacted Lucas had no effect on her, the physical stress that his body ensued of course remained.

Lucas’ dull, amber eyes transitioned into a glowing, disturbing hue of violet, as Eris stood up and faced the folk around her, wondering what she should do next.

 

[noxrequiem]

Well that had just been a huge fucking waste of time. Just what the hell was Zucco playing at here?

Cordelia grit her teeth in frustration. She very much wanted to punch something right now, but she quickly reined in her temper. After all, losing control of your emotions could be dangerous for a telepath. That’s when mistakes tended to occur.

She watched with a clenched fist as the woman leapt through the window. She was fast; Cordelia probably couldn’t have stopped her if she had even tried. She wasn’t sure that woman had even known she was there. That was probably a good thing. Perhaps even something that could be used to her advantage later. But for now, there were more pressing matters to deal with. Like the cops.

The woman’s exit was followed promptly by Robin’s own through the same window, but not before he had set off some kind of smoke device. Well, at least that would provide some decent cover, especially with the S.W.A.T. team bursting through the door. With an annoyed huff, she moved from her position on the stairs up to the penthouse floor. She wasn’t about to engage with the police; it wasn’t worth it in the slightest. No, she was going to just slip out and leave. But, much to her annoyance, she had begrudgingly decided she was going to grab Lucas and get him out of there too. There was a part of her that would feel guilty if she left him behind, otherwise.

But something was very clearly wrong with him. He was giggling hysterically, tears streaming down his face as he held his arms out. In all truth, it was a bit disturbing. He clearly needed some sort of help, but all Cordelia could or would provide was helping him get out of here without being shot. She was reaching out, about to grab his arm when he suddenly started swaying. And then his eyes turned from amber into some sort of glowing, violet hue. And she hesitated in grabbing hold of his arm.


Interaction: myrkwise

 

[SpazTheButcher]

Ray was confused when he watched the little boy blue converse with the lady, then they both dipped. Then, all hell broke loose. He took a sweep of the room. A kid and a lady in some kind of bodysuit were making a break and some blob came out of a vent, turning into a women. He decided that the kid and other person would be fine, and opted to get his ass out. Based on the conversation he just overheard, they were all on the same side. For the most part.

He dropped to a kneel and fired a burst at the S.W.A.T. Officers. To them it would seem like shitty aim, but he was really forcing them into cover. The first guy he dropped with a burst to the leg and a round to his rifle, shattering it. The guys behind the point man ducked behind chairs or back into the hallway. He had M18 Smoke Grenades on his vest, but seeing as he was inside and didn't need something that powerful, he instead opted for an Enola Gaye EG18 smoke grenade. He pulled the pin and rolled it towards the door, black smoke filling the room.

He kept his profile low as their flashlights attempted in vain to cut through the smoke, reaching to where the blob was. He had decided that explosives got him into this, they could get him out. He holstered the MP9, and pulled out his M79. He kissed then loaded in his last breaching round, setting it to impact as opposed to remote detonation.

He took aim at the wall which he knew was adjacent to the alley and fired it. The round blew a hole in the wall large enough for him to get through. As rounds zipped around the apartment, Ray jogged and looked out the hole.

Shit, he thought to himself as he remembered he was a few stories up. Luckily, he could jump to the building next door, which he did. His heavy ass almost didn't make it, but he stuck the landing and disappeared into the night.

 

[Nellancholy]

The woman had had work done, Lan-zhu knew that much. Not "disgraced mob boss trying to hide from the feds" work. More like "aging Hollywood A-lister" work.

And she clearly wanted very much to be in control of the situation that was rapidly spiralling. Well, she wasn't going to allow it.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

Lan-zhu grit her teeth, taking a few sharp strides towards her despite Robin's objections. "Yes. I would. And you're not getting away until I do."

Before she could try to put the screws on the strange woman, the police had made their presence known, and the woman had both revealed her augmentations and was about to make her exit. So yes, she'd definitely had some work done.

"No you fucking don't!" Lan-zhu broke into a sprint, rearing back and hurling both her arms forward. They stretched into grasping tentacles, reaching towards the stranger.

"Now now, I think I do." With a twist, she sliced apart Lan-zhu's tentacles as she made her exit.

"Damn!" Lan-zhu's confident attitude melted away as the room erupted with smoke.

In that short exchange, two things were clear. One, that woman clearly didn't belong here, or she wouldn't be fleeing. Two, someone knew. Knew enough to set up this whole affair, leak all the info...as what? Bait? Were these people that important? Was she?

And now some weird kid was glowing and turning purple. She wasn't going to stick around and see what he could do.

Sure, she could make her way back down through the vents...but the cops would be swarming in like angry ants in less than a minute.

Well, time to risk it. Lan-zhu tucked into a crouch and leapt out the window Robin and the stranger had left through, the shattered glass gouging deep cuts in her legs that rapidly closed up.

"Another one! Open fire!"

As she soared over the assembled formation of heavily-armed officers, they didn't hesitate.

Bullets tore into her as she concentrated her mass. She could have just as easily turned fluid, let the red-hot lumps of lead pass through her. But maybe...she didn't want to risk any collateral damage.

Lan-zhu hit the ground running, her pace steady as she outran the hounds.

"Stand down! We still have to mop up here!" So the commander yelled as Lan-zhu fled. "I'm calling it in, have backup sweep this sector for the rats that got loose!"

Well,that was a relief.

Lan-zhu didn't stop running until she was a few blocks away, whereupon she ducked into an alley and took a few moments to clench and push all the bullets out of her.

Well, that was this outfit ruined.

 

[myrkwise]

You will never find peace of mind until you listen to your heart.

- George Michael

---

Eris turned to face Cordelia, still wondering about her next course of action. On one hand, things had absolutely turned into a complete dumpster fire in a matter of minutes, and Eris was still unsure of what exactly had gone down in the penthouse - and why were there police here, shooting rounds of bullets into the air, all of a sudden?

On the bright side, it seemed as though this woman was willing to help Lucas make his way out of the situation, so she figured she could make use of the free help.

"Are you done being useless?"

.... No response. Hm. Eris found it hard to believe that whatever she had done had caused such a reaction - unless she had severely underestimated Lucas' childish impedance. No, this had to be some sort of ploy, she was certain of it. But why? Why now?

Still no response.

A few tense moments had already gone by, and Eris was sure she was looking like a fool, just staring blankly at Cordelia with eyes only a mother could love. Finally, she chose her course of action, speaking to the woman in a voice functionally identical to Lucas, but with an odd hint of Eris' own speech patterns and tone latent in it.

"I assume you can get us out of here? I'll owe you one!"

Eris attempted to smile as Lucas would, though she was skeptical of how effective it was.

---

noxrequiem