Thunder King

John took note of the phone number on the back of the truck and committed it to memory. He wouldn't be calling it, but, rather, he'd be looking it up online to see if he could figure out what company it was. Whatever this chemical was, he didn't want the suppliers to be warned of his approach. "Folks, back away from the wreckage. There's a dangerous chemical, and you need to get away." He said, remembering his cop voice from when he served.

John growled to himself. He gave the man money for coffee, and he was getting drunk. Well, that was pointless. He resolved to do something else. He would wander back over to the truck and try to see if he could figure out who the man worked for, and maybe figure out the source of the gorillas from there. He headed toward the door and left the man to his drinking. He did after all almost crash his truck while transformed into an angry gorilla. If anything drove someone to drink, it would be that.

A short while later, John opened the door to find Eileen relaxed on the bed. He placed a bag full of food on the desk, and another bag with some drinks beside it. "Got a couple different drink options, no booze. Need to stay alert." He said. He pulled a styrofoam container out of the box and handed it to her, before grabbing the other one and sitting at the desk. He grabbed a bottle of Coke from the bag and started eating.

John nodded. "This coat looks like it's seen better days, but it still keeps me warm. I know of a decent Indian place a few blocks away. At my speed I can get it and come back without any issues." He pulled out his burner phone and dialed a number. "Hi, yes, I'd like an order of your chicken vindaloo, and an order of tikka masala. Also, an order of your naan. Thank you, thank you. Twenty minutes? I'll be there. Order under John." He hung up and walked toward the door. "I'll be back shortly." He said. He opened the door, and took off towards the restaurant.

If these mutant rats weren't going to mess with John, and they weren't going to start a fire, he wasn't going to mess with them. He needed to find the trucker and ask him more questions, if he could find the guy. Giant gorilla rats. He really hoped they couldn't reproduce, or that the mutation would wear off soon. However, while he could just go stomp on them, he knew that he needed to sort out the source of this...apification. Or whatever was happening. So he ignored the rodents to track down the driver.

John let his shoulders slump slightly. "Honestly, couldn't tell you. I just focus on the mission, I guess. I do help people from time to time. But this place does wear on you from time to time." He stared off into space. He hadn't opened up to anyone in years. He had no friends, just the occasional ally. "Most people are afraid of me, if they've heard of me. Which is useful if it's a mugger. The other day a guy just dropped his knife and ran when I landed next to him and the old man he was trying to rob. He didn't get very far. It's not easy when the cops can't even hold them for very long. Not like the cops in this town are much better." He was getting dangerously close to opening up, so he took a deep breath, steadied himself, and just stood there. "You can take the bed. I'll take the chair. I've slept in worse. After we get in, I'll go get takeout. I haven't eaten much today, have you?"

John chuckled slightly. "I don't date." He said. "Too many issues." They stepped into the motel's lobby. A middle aged man sat behind the desk, looking about as excited as the clerk at a motel would be in the context. John fetched his wallet. "One night, please." He said. "Whatever you've got." Then, he slid another bill across the desk. "Your cleanest room, please." The clerk took the cash for the room and started making a key card. Then he took the other cash, smiled, and said. He looked at Eileen, seemingly carefully. However, it was clear he was just observing her outfit. She didn't seem to be a lady of the night, so his interest waned immediately. "No problem sir. Room 320. Third floor. One of our best rooms." John nodded to Eileen. "Okay, so, let's just go see what we've got."

John was not his real name. However, so few people called him by name regardless, so it warmed his heart a bit. Luckily, he was well protected from the cold. His coat, as ragged as it was, never let the cold in. He was grateful for it's protection. It didn't take too long to cross town. He found the hotel and they landed beside it, a few yards away. He walked towards it. "We're on a date." He said. "We're both nervous, we've never done this before. We don't need to say it, but that should cover any nerves we're feeling."

John walked briskly into the alley, then he threw her onto his back and took off running. He jumped into the air with her on his back. He climbed up the building nearby, scaling it quickly. As soon as he reached the roof, he took off running, jumping between buildings, trying his best to put difference between them and the figures following her. "I know of a safehouse we can hide out in on the other side of town. A motel, no-tell type. They'll take cash and they won't ask questions."

John backed away from the truck, slowly. He hoped that whatever this new thing was, they'd come towards him and not cause any further damage, as he was not wanting to know what would happen if a spark went off. Now that the driver away from the area, he felt a little better about what might happen, but he was still quite nervous about the situation. He was durable, and not afraid to die, but he wasn't that durable, and he knew he wouldn't be the only one hurt if something happened.

Crimson Tiger stared at the reassembling bag, then shook her head. "Very impressive. You guys are doing fine." She held her hand up and made a fist, slowly. "That's how you do a fist. I don't think you guys will be at risk of needing to fight without your powers, but it can't hurt." She smiled at Consuelo. "I've seen people destroy equipment worse than that. Don't worry. You're doing just fine. I know you haven't done much fighting with raw strength. You're all just new." She seemed to stare off into the distance. "I came here when I was your age. Had some good friends, made a lot of good memories. And punched a lot of people."

John cursed under his breath. "Sir, I am, well, not a professional, but I'm probably a lot tougher and stronger than you, so I recommend backing away from the truck. Who were you hauling for?" He asked. He put himself between the driver and the truck, and would make a mental note of whoever hired him to track down the cause. He was worried about another animalistic attacker. He slipped a small handful of cash, about fifty bucks, into the man's hand. "Go get yourself a meal, a cup of coffee, and maybe a new outfit on me while I figure out what's going on."

John put his arm around her and lead her toward a nearby alleyway. He whispered into her ear, looking for all the world like a man whispering into his lover's ear. He was gentle with her. He knew she was a strong woman, but he also knew she was being followed. She was an ally. She needed help. That was all he needed to know. "As soon as we get out of sight, I'm going to pick you up and run and jump as fast and as high as I can to get us far away from these guys."

"I don't know what happened. You somehow transformed into a gorilla, or something. I don't know. I got you out of the truck, though, so you're safe, now. Let's get you a cup of coffee or something." John chuckled. "And maybe some new clothes." He was planning on asking the man some questions, but for now, getting him safe and warm was more important.

John got the text on his own burner phone, and realized who it was from. If she was being tailed, that was bad news. He took off running at top speed towards downtown. he had ridden busses from that stop on a number of occasions, and knew exactly where he was going. A few minutes later, he got near the bus stop and slowed down before he appeared before her, looking more like he had jogged up from just a bit away than like he had run miles in a few minutes. "Hey." He said. "Sorry I was late. Wanna grab coffee?"

Bedlam City, January 11th, 2024. 8 PM. Getting a Thursday off was not unusual for a bartender. They liked their best people to work at Club Maxx on the busy nights. Ellie did not know that one of her coworkers put her picture up on social media. It wasn't on purpose, of course. However, Ellie had very good reasons to avoid having her picture put out in public. Ellie noticed she was being followed around 7 o'clock, about an hour prior. A pair of men in plain gray suits seemed to be showing up wherever she went. They ended up at the diner she ate her late dinner at, and the also seemed to show up at the convenience store she bought her bottle of whiskey at. Now, they were across the street, standing at a bus station, not moving or talking.

John was not feeling this nonsense. So, he braced himself slightly and charged forward through the cab of the truck, towards the gorilla man. He grabbed him and more or less scooped him off of the seat. He reached forward and opened the door as he shoved himself, and the gorilla, clean out the cab and out into the open air. He landed with a rough thud on pavement, and stared up into the sky. He groaned in pain. It didn't hurt too badly, but it certainly wasn't pleasant.

Can he use the grapple to force the gorilla out of the truck?

John's gonna go for a grapple. He doesn't want the gorilla to try to get control of the vehicle again. He needs this thing out of the truck 21 Please ignore that it says toughness, didn't mean to do that. It's a grapple.

26 Very lucky.

Can I assume he can stop the truck, or....

Huh, John is an ex cop without drive ranks. Maybe I should fix that sometime; 9 Gonna go ahead and burn a hero point. It's a 15 regardless, but just in case degree of success matters; 8 Haha, no, the 15.

John managed, with a great deal of effort, to force the wheel out of the gorilla's hands. Then, he pushed the gorilla's foot away from the gas pedal, and slowly, but firmly, pressed down on the brake pedal. He thought he could survive the crash if needed, but he didn't want anyone else, including the gorilla trucker, to get hurt if he could stop it.

24 Not half bad, really.

John had worn the coat for a few years, now. He had seen the worst depravities that Bedlam had to offer. He had never seen anything like this. It looked like a person had been turned into a gorilla or something, and was now stuck trying to steer a truck. John reached towards the steering wheel, and tried to jerk it out of the gorilla's control, trying desperately to turn the truck aside.