2012-10-25 - The Spy, The Hunter and the Kryptonian

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* It's the dead of night and there are lights flashing in the Financial District. There's a fire, caused by something big crashing into the Federal Reserve Bank.

There's a firefight, but the police aren't outgunned as much as they are terribly ineffective against the assailants. A   quartet of black-clad people, distended faces and skin drawn tight are making short work of many a peace officer (at least    incapacitating, at most killing), their eyes red with fury and their edged claws soaked in blood.

Out of the burning forced-entry steps an armored fellow, clad in black with a wire pattern of green to accentuate, a length of cord wrapped around one arm and a very large handgun in the other. He looked to his left, where two cronies followed, carrying huge sacks o'loot.

"This was easier than I thought," he said demurely. "Come on, no resistance at all? And here I was hoping for-"

Three bright orange lances of light struck from the shadows, or at least from an area of cover across the street. "Shit!" declared the lead, ducking them as they struck the wall, melting steel and searing brick. Now who could that be?

Blade* New York City. It had been years since he had been here last. Standing on top of a building across the street from the disturbance, he silently watches as the humans attempted to deal with something beyond their means. The darkness doesn't   hinder his sight as he takes note of how many there are and the tactics they employ. Then, suddenly orange lances of light pierce the darkness and the figure on the building steps to the edge as he murmurs to himself. "He's here." Leaping off the top of the building, he impacts the ground in a crouch, almost without noise.

His movements blur to the naked eye as he streaks towards one of the creatures. There is a metallic sound and then a scream as one of them clutches was used to be a hand, the clawed limb lays on the ground next to him covered in blood. Stepping into the light is a tall man with dark skin, a trench coat, and a sword with blood on the blade. "This town never changes." Blade comments.

Power Girl* At first, the sound is faint, but it steadily grows within a matter of moments. What sounds distinctly of a small jet flying far too low to the ground. It seems to circle the immediate area of the fighting several times, an ominous warning if there ever was one. Many of the combatants stop to look around them, though some of the police officers are grinning broadly. One of them even shouts, "Oh yeah. You guys are in deep, deep shit!"

The nature of said deep shit crashes down right into the middle of it all, throwing dirt and cement up in a shockwave from the impact. When the dust clears a figure stands there.

Red short caping flaping lazily in the night breeze, arms crossed over her ponderous chest. Blue eyes, hard with anger, peer from under a mop of messy blonde hair. Power Girl has arrived and she is looking right at the armored commander, "I'm not   even going to ask which way you want it."

She is there one moment, the next she is literally slamming into the leader at over two hundred miles an hour, both gloved fists extended before her as she torpedos him.

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* Deep shit indeed. The cord around the leader's arm unwinds in a snap as he's slammed BACK INTO the Federal Reserve. His cronies duck away, and start to run, because that's the right thing to do when their leader's down for the count.

The assailants quail, one is freaking out over missing an arm. But their senses return, and they dive towards the Daywalker! Claws bared, eyes blazing, the creatures are dead set against Blade!

Meanwhile, under a likely heap of rubble, the armored leader of the troupe catches his breath, and swings the cord - which actually happens to be a whip, around himself and the blonde heroine.

It's at this point the woman with super senses would notice the green gem at the hilt of the whip, and the faint, dizzying sensation that comes with unfortunate realization.

"So it's the Mammary Mistress, not one of her illustrious family, that decides to rain on my parade." Great, he's   monologuing.

Blade* Blade settles into a fighting stance, sword held up high towards his shoulder, samurai style. He growls and shows his teeth..which seem to be pretty elongated. "Come on.." And then he is poetry in motion. Instead of moving away from the group, he steps right into them as he slashes at one's chest a moment before spinning around and kicking out at another one. He's   noticed the arrival of the blonde woman with the large breasts. He had no idea who she was, but that wasn't his concern at   the moment.

Power Girl* Power Girl eyes widen the moment she feels the very familiar weakness tugging at her, robbing her of her powers. She growls, a low, throaty sound that would give a lion pause. As the Kryptonite begins to drain her vitality she grabs the nearest chunk of rock she can with just her weakened strength, which could still be considered formidable due to her musculature.

Desperately she swings the mortar at the armored fingers holding the whip, hoping she can do enough damage to make him let go of the damnable thing. Only anger is keeping her upright now, and PG can do anger really well.

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* Unfortunately for the still-strong Kryptonian, an armored assailant who can withstand being slammed at over 200 mph can withstand a heavy rock. He laughed, sinisterly, and reached down to grab her by the collar of her outfit around her neck. "I'm almost tempted to take you with me," he said, leering over her as he drew the Kryptonite-end of the whip towards her face. "Such a treasure you'd be. But no, I'm here for other reasons."

The four (well, two and a half now, what with Blade quickly making short work of them) combatants still press on against the half-breed. Claws swipe. Teeth gnash. The one that's missing its arm from the elbow down leaps at a frightened police officer, bearing down hard and mauling him with hand and tooth. A disgusting sight follows, as the creature's arm starts to   replenish itself as it gnashes and tears at the poor man.

That is until another orange lance of heat severs the upper half of its head, and it slumps to the side in a heap. More thin streaks of orange light appear, being thrown by... a man in a black suit and tie! It's Pete Wisdom! Shards of orange light thunk into the legs and bodies of some of the other creatures, and they howl, the smell of cooking meat rising in the air.

"I may not be saving the day, but I thought you could use a hand, you old sod!" the Briton greeted Blade with enthusiasm.

Blade* Blade looks over at Power Girl again. He was exhibiting none of the power that she came in with now. Again, he didn't really care because right now he had his own problems. However at the sound of a familiar voice, Blade growls. "Wisdom! I thought I   smelled that cheap aftershave you like to wear. I could use a hand here." Withdrawing a silver dagger from the small of his back, he flicks it towards the head of the man with the whip. Normally, he'd leave the blonde girl to her own devices, but he   must be getting soft and promptly berates himself for it. In the meantime, he continues slashing with his sword towards the creatures, using his considerable agility to avoid their attacks as he flips around the area. He leaps onto the the hood of a   police cruiser and then back towards the ground, slicing out at the head of another creature.

Power Girl* Power Girl throws her eyes about the shattered room, this was the Federal Reserve she remembered, they used lead to protect their vaults, lead shutters to cover the windows. Her gaze looks to the destroyed wall, sure enough, it had had a window, the lead shutter sits there on the ground, slightly unfurled. Now she just needed a way to get it... Hmm.

She suddenly gasps, looking at the armored man in horror, tears begin to stream down her cheeks, "Please... Don't hurt me!   Without my powers I'm no match for you. I yield. Please... Just don't hurt me!" Both hands grasp the hand clutching her in   desperation, while one muscular leg hooks around his armored one.

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* That head is cleanly lopped off in a following shower of gore. Three of the assailants are now fallen - one headless, one half-headless, the third with a chest that was split like a melon. The fourth, wisely sizing up his options, turns tail and runs towards the comforting darkness, the flash of gunfire and a few streaking hot knives following him.

"You see, Mega Melons, or I don't even know you're name - you're not Superman you know - but you're the only thing standing   between me and my most assured escape," continues the monologuing villain. "As of which, I-OW!" A silver dagger thunked right next to his head - cutting an impressive long lone along the side of it, and sinking his hair into the wall. "What the   living..." And then it dawned on him. "No. Oh, no, I was only expecting one of *you!*" he quailed at Power Girl. But then he   saw The Look. Those eyes, those doey, blue eyes, and that pouty lip and those tears streaming down her face. And it made his heart go a-flutter. "That's why you need to get out of my way, so I can get out of here," he explained, anger starting to   bubble up. He lifted his free arm to tear the dagger out of the wall, and throw it to the ground - a good section of his hair went with it. He also tried pushing Power Girl aside. "But now that you've been dealt with..."

Blade* Blade watches as the last one leaves and runs into the darkness. He'd track him down later and kill him. Right now, he had other business. With a flick of his wrist he removes the blood from the blade of his sword and slides it back into it's   sheath on his back. He then walks towards the leader and PG. He removes a semi-automatic pistol from the holster on his leg and casually flicks off the safety. Holding it out in front of him he continues to walk. He says in an impassive voice, almost like he doesn't even care if this guy listens to him or not. "Let the woman go..or not..either way, you're not living   through this." A cold smile displays a set of fangs underneath the sunglasses that cover his eyes.

Power Girl* Power Girl is pushed aside, almost. Little known fact, Power Girl knows karate and some judo. She uses the leg hook she has on the armored criminal to keep herself firmly in front of him and instead drops right at his feet, digging her heel into the back of his knee as she throws her arms around his other leg in the hopes of locking his legs up or throwing him so off balance that he'll pitch forward. Armor or no armor, you can't fight gravity... Well. Unless you're a Kryptonian.

She clutches at his legs, yet she manages to keep her mind even though she has a pounding headache. So when she hears the approach of another, she takes the chance that he's a friendly and yells out, "His whip! Get his whip out of here!"

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* Pete Wisdom followed in behind Blade, his hands outstretched, a foot-and-a-half long hot-knive sprouting from each fingertip, surrounding him in a strange, orange glow that cast scary shadows over his face. "Listen to the man, you sodding wanker.   And-"

And then PG used her fantastic skills, sending the man tumbling forward with a yelp, to land face first on the rubbled floor, cape spilling over him, whip cast aside in the confusion!

Blade* Blade doesn't check on the woman. He ignores her comment about the whip..it didn't make any sense to him anyways. When the guy goes spilling to the ground, Blade simply angles his gun down and begins firing, aiming for the crevaces between the armor. He's firing holopoints with silver nitrate and garlic...mostly because that's standard ammo for him. And he proceeds to empty the entire clip into the armored form of this guy.

Power Girl* Power Girl drags herself out from underneath the kicking feet, taking a errant jabs which causes her to wince. She staggers to her feet and limps towards the whip, hoping to get it away before the armored man can get to it, though she feels much better when she sees Blade emptying rounds into the guy. She isn't Superman, after all.

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* Wisdom shook his own hand, the hot-knives fading as he reached down to take the whip and roll it up, holding it away. He   looked at Power Girl, brows knitted with worry. As the man screamed as bullets pinged against his armor, he thrashed and begged for mercy. Pete just kept staring at Power Girl, while the darkness of the room flashed over and over in a loud, thunderous strobing like an old school Ridley Scott film as Blade dispensed his brand of justice.

It may not leave a good taste in everyone's mouth, but once the magazine is expended, the man has his gauntleted hands over his head, and he's whimpering, and he smells of the natural reaction to abject terror. But his armor prevented him from being killed... for now.

Blade* Blade uses his boot and kicks the man over onto his back while he casually reloaded his weapon. Seeing that the bullets had no effect, he holsters his gun, then draws the titanium acid-edged sword at his back. He holds the tip right under the chin of the man. "Who are you? What are you?"

Power Girl* Power Girl shakes her head at Pete, "The shutters. Unroll them, put the whip in them and roll it back up. Hurry.." Seeing that the armored fellow has given up, she simply falls to one knee, allowing herself a moment to relax. "I hate when this   happens.."

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* The man stammers, managing to whimper out an introduction, and that he was mostly human. He just wanted money to better fund an operation, and now it had gone to shit. And he just wants to get away. Lots of begging, lots of 'please'es. Really rather pathetic.

Wisdom was easy to comply, putting on a glove and peeling away the lead lining of one of the shutters, wrapping the handle end of the whip in it. He cleanly cuts the lengthy part away with a hotknife, before wrapping the handle up the rest of the way, and sealing it with a bit of handy thermokinesis. "I suppose I'll put this somewhere safe," he said coldly.

Blade* Blade growls a little before he presses a finger to the cut on the man's face. He puts the drop of blood into his mouth and huffs. "Human...and something else. But not vampire." Spinning the sword in his hand, he slams it back into it's home on his back effortlessly. He takes a moment to stare at Power Girl for a full five seconds before turning to Pete. "I've been   looking for you." Apparently the man on the ground is no longer his concern now that Blade knows he's human.

Power Girl* The moment the handle of the whip is rolled into the lead, and more so when it is sealed, a change happens over PG. It's   almost as though her presence, the aura of strength and vitality begins to seep back into her. The pounding in her ears dull, then fades as her heart rate goes back to its normal pace, her breathing calms and she even takes a deep lungful of breath that causes some of the debris to roll her way from the sheer force.

She stands slowly, shoulders back and pushes the now dirty blonde hair from her eyes. Eyes that fix on the kneeling, armored figure, "Now.. What were you saying? Something about.. Oh. Who cares?" In the blink of an eye she has the armored fellow on   his back and slams the fingertips of one hand into the armor, she gets a good hold and begins to forcefully rip the shell off, "I hope there is rich nougat in the center of this and not a guy that has pissed himself."

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* Pete Wisdom lifted a hand to deflect any incoming debris from his face as PG took and expelled her breath, and he held onto the lead-covered handle tightly. At Blade's assertion, Wisdom couldn't help but grin. "It's good to know you're still alive,   mate. But then, what *can* kill you?"

The villain, meanwhile, starts to clutch and thrash, trying desperately to crawl away as PG tears away his protective armor like so much aluminum foil.

Blade* Blade watches the scene between Power Girl and the guy in the armor impassively. "I've had some close calls." He comments to   Pete. Then, he asks, "What..is she?" His gaze still on the blonde woman who is taking out her anger on the man on the ground. "Things have changed so much. I left Europe to find out the reason..I heard that you were in New York, so I came to seek you   out."

Power Girl* Power Girl has completely ripped the armor off by now and turned those peices into glorified paperweights. She clutches the man within close, her face inches from his, "I've got questions. You've got answers. I'm going to give you my questions, in   return, you give me your answers. If you don't, I'll do things to you. Because like you pointed out earlier...." She takes one of his hands, holds it in front of his eyes and simply breaks his pinky finger by exerting the smallest amount of   pressure, "... I'm NOT Superman." ((OOC Note: I feel PG would break a man's pinky finger, as it is the least useful of the fingers. It can be healed, so there is no lasting harm. It would give credence to her threat, which is largely a bluff.))

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* That unpleasant crack and the immediate swelling that follows after would make most people wince. Not these three. The man starts screaming, however, howling in pain.

Pete simply nods to Blade. "I'm sure you've got a lot of questions. Tell you what. Tomorrow morning," he hands over a   business card, "you come to my office, and I'll brief you on what I'll allow you to know."

Power Girl* Power Girl glances at Pete, "Leave that lead box on the ground. I'll deal with it."

Blade* Blade takes the card and nods. "Very well." He pauses again to watch PG rip this guy apart and interrogate him. He offers her a small nod before he turns to walk out of the area. She could do whatever she wanted to him. He did find it interesting how her power seemed to be tied with that little gem on the end of the whip, but he just didn't care enough about that to ask about it. As he moves into the shadows, he leaps back up to the top of the building and goes about his business.

Pete Wisdom/Armored Criminal* Pete Wisdom turned to look Power Girl right in her bright blue eyes. He didn't waver, he didn't flinch. "No. I'm exerting my   authority here, Power Girl. You've only been in this world for so long, I know where this needs to go. I apologize for being    terse, but I don't want you getting hurt with it again while you're flying above the ocean or worse. And as said, I know    where this belongs." Not with Batman. "And Blade, I- oh. I hate it when he does that," he said in regard to the man vanishing in the shadows.

Power Girl* Power Girl mutters to herself. All the answers she got from the formerly armored criminal was that he stole it from a black market arms dealer, whom he had then killed. PG hands the man over to the police. She doesn't leave the scene like the other two. Instead she helps with the clean up, putting out the fires and helping the police with the injured. Each death a weight on her broad shoulders, it is a couple of hours before she finally leaves the site.

She worries in the back of her mind about Kryptonite being out there on the black market. The fact Pete left with the radioactive rock further concerns her... Plus it just flat out pisses her off. They had just had a date last night! That SHOULD have counted for something in her way of thinking.... This was definitely not over...