Crack is Whack Part II (IC)

[Supercape]

Slick walked down the street counting down the house numbers. It was a run down street in a run down area. Trash littered the pavement, peppered with empty alcohol bottles and the sorrier sight of needles - testament to the narcotic use that plagued this area.

A couple of bums lay asleep mumbling to themselves outside one house. His acute sense of smell was no great asset at that point.

"Number 37 ahead. Looks like that's the place. Careful, looks like two guards outside" he commented, as he spotted two heavy set thugs sat on the stairs leading up to an old town house that looked particularly well boarded up and protected.

[Fox]

Dragonfly furrowed her brow, tapping a finger against her leg as she studied the building and its guards. Her visor flickered a bit, measuring the building and surrounding area for her - a dozen lines with tiny equations and numbers drawn into her brain through her eyes and used to build a mental model of the town house. Annoyingly, of course, the depth of the building was only an estimate and three of the four sides were blank; so little data to work with, too many assumptions....

"Thoughts? Strategies?" The young woman tilted her head, sizing the thugs up. "Front guards unlikely to be a large problem...too little known about the inside of the building."

[trollthumper]

Nick kept his eyes on the building, trying to perceive the other side... and when he finally did, he was greeted with the sight of many ghosts clawing at the doors but unable to get in. "Looks like O'Hagan's got a very unsatisfied clientele," he said. "Lot of ghosts on the other side, but they're not getting in the building. Normally a threshold's a pretty strong barrier to supernatural intrusion, but this one's bulwark strength. Don't suppose he's clued in? He may actually have the damn place warded..."

[Supercape]

"Warded, eh? I can't say I know anything about you voodoo hoodoo sorts, but that kind of sounds bad... is it?"

Slick surveyed the scene outside the boarded up and reinforce house. The two gangsters outside, one black, one a red headed white male, both looked tough. More than your regular thug on the street anyway - even if they weren't professional soldier calibre they looked alert and sharp. And packing heat.

"If we can knock those two out quickly, I can impersonate one of them, maybe get us in that way..."

[Fox]

Dragonfly tilted her head. "As good a plan as any. Not much on the street to give us an advantage...would just have to hit hard and fast. Maybe quietly...don't know how good the sound insulation is in this part of the city."

She bit her lip, wishing there was something, anything on the street that could tilt the odds in their favor...but she just didn't have the information or opportunity. The street was too empty, the rooftops were unknown, the thugs weren't moving enough to offer any insights into their training or discipline. guess we'll have to go in blind - hate going in blind

[Supercape]

Slick looked at the gauntleted Superheroine. She was pretty handy with those.

"Can you take those goons out from here? both of them? We need to get them...err... asleep... before they raise the alarm."

He looked around. The street was dark and not well lit. There were plenty of avenues, side roads, and roof tops where they could easily get pretty close to the door guards, but not necessarily right up to them.

"Otherwise, its sneaking time. I could distract them... some low life street walker would do the trick..."

[trollthumper]

"Warded, eh? I can't say I know anything about you voodoo hoodoo sorts, but that kind of sounds bad... is it?"

Slick surveyed the scene outside the boarded up and reinforce house. The two gangsters outside, one black, one a red headed white male, both looked tough. More than your regular thug on the street anyway - even if they weren't professional soldier calibre they looked alert and sharp. And packing heat.

"If we can knock those two out quickly, I can impersonate one of them, maybe get us in that way..."

"Depends on the strength of the ward," Nick said. "It could mean it'd take more work to draw up less power... or it could mean my power cuts out entirely."

Nick trained his eyes on the two guards. "Mind you, since the ghosts are pounding on the doors and not patiently waiting on the sidewalk, I'm guessing it doesn't extend to outside," he said. "I could try pinning those guys to the ground for you to take out. Or I could send one of 'em away for a while..."

[Fox]

Dragonfly frowned, visor measuring the distance between her and the door. "Could...try," she offered. "Good idea to have a backup plan in case they're tougher than they look." hit both at once? - rapidly repeating shots isn't good for the gauntlets - could try something different...

She tilted her head and her force field twisted into being around her profile. "Will wait until you're where you want to be?"

[Supercape]

"I'm sure I can conjure up a... distraction..." mused Slick.

With the characteristic streaks of oil, bulging and contraction of flesh, Slick transformed into a lady of the night. She was tall still, latino looking, with dolled up hair and a little to much make up. Whilst the effect oozed tramp, she was still overtly beautiful and sexy even, in a cheap way.

"How do I look?" she asked the two heroes, with a wink.

"If I can just distract them for a bit, I'm sure a handsome guy like you, and a sassy sexy chick like you can handle those two goons" she smiled, referencing Cannonade and Dragonfly respectively.

[Fox]

sassy sexy - what? Dragonfly barely stopped herself from glancing behind her to figure out who Slick was talking about. She scowled, but grudgingly admitted, "Attractive. Sleezy, a little. But attractive. Good luck."

One gauntlet lit up blue and started a low and subtle hum and she charged up and waited for Slick's...'distraction'. something very unsettling about that man - woman? - person sometimes - still - good hero - heroine? "Will be ready when you have them distracted."

[Supercape]

Slick circled round the block to come at the hoodlums from the opposite angle. She got a few wolf whistles, and a pair of hapless drunks try to accost her en route. They soon found themselves with their heads spinning, after Slick had knocked them together.

This was a new tactic for Slick, despite her age. Oh, she had certainly had decades worth of seduction and socialising under her belt, but never in the streets of a run down ghetto, and with two street life thugs. She was normally more upmarket. In fact, she was always more upmarket. Could one get lower market than this?

Nevertheless, she started walking towards the thugs with her best saucy walk, and blew them both a kiss.

"Hi boys? who knew handsome sexy men like yourselves were around here?" she said, with a wink.

[Fox]

Dragonfly sat and stewed in her own impatience while Slick made her way around the block; after a minute or two one finger was furiously tapping on her arm, and shortly thereafter she'd resorted to doing some design work in her head on a project or two back at the warehouse. Thankfully, the disguised hero(ine?) made her reappearance before the young woman had resorted to solving math puzzles - nothing good ever came of being bored enough to do math puzzles.

As soon as the door guards turned their heads Dragonfly stepped out into the open, gauntlet raised and firing off a first shot at the closest thug, the other gauntlet already charging.

[trollthumper]

Nick moved in just as Dragonfly did. He extended his will to the shadows lurking behind the other guard, feeding them and opening them. As the man's eyes moved from Slick to the blast that had just gone zooming towards his colleague, the shadows began to pool out under his feet, drawing him down into a small, secluded little place in the crossroads of the dead plains.

Been a while since I used the old favorite...

[Supercape]

GM

Whilst Dragonfly's aim was true, the thug was tough, and seemed to shoulder the blast and is it seared over his chest and shoulder. He took a step back in surprise, and pain, turning to face the source of the assault.

His unhurt comrade turned in unison, but no amount of street - experience and hardship could prepare him for the creeping blackness of Nick's magic. With a scream of terror, he fell into the blackness and was gone.

[Fox]

surprisingly durable for a street thug - doesn't matter - will just have to hit harder Dragonfly hadn't even stopped moving; even as the one gauntlet wound down after the first shot the other was winding up, building a charge and distorting the air around it as she brought her arm up. Before the thug could regain his balance from the first shot her other hand was already leveled at him, launching another twisting shockwave at the man's chest.

[Supercape]

And hit harder was precisely what happened. The burst hit the thug squarely on the chest this time, with no evident blooming of the energy or dispersal. The Thug was lifted off his feet to land squarely at the feet of Slick, out cold.

"Nice shot" commented Slick, prodding the man and kicking his machine pistol away from him just to be sure.

"As for that trick" he said, referring to Nick's mystic assault "I'm not sure I even want to know what happened there. Or where that goon went. I would guess I wouldn't want to join him".

All in all, it had gone well enough. The guards had been dispatched without a shot being fired.

"Now, to get in. Quietly does it. There may be innocent civilians in there" Slick said. "Well, relatively innocent" he added, on reflection "don't look like a house the pure of heart and soul would visit socially".

[Fox]

Dragonfly jogged up, flexing her hand as she admired her handywork. never feels right to charge a shockwave that high - tingles "Suspect...dimensional pocket?" She glanced up at the magic man, tilting her head. "Something similar. Can do it myself, though not that...disturbing. I think. Told it's uncomfortable, though."

She turned to regard the building. "Quiet...would be good. Yes. Chaos leads to building fires, explosions...property damage. Unsafe. Tactically unhelpful. ...after you," she added, noting that they both looked a bit more durable than her 5'5", fairly slim figure.

[Supercape]

Slick creeped up to the door, and opened the letterbox a fraction. It creaked alarmingly, but there was no sound from inside.

Without moving, she waited for a few seconds, before whispering to her comrades "one person in there, about 10 or so feet away. Male probably. Place stinks of cigarettes, booze and other drugs. Hasn't been cleaned much either. There may be more above or below, but that's all I can make out near the door. "

She hadn't actually visibly sniffed, but clearly she didn't need to. Her whole body was a living olfactory sensor.

[trollthumper]

"As for that trick" he said, referring to Nick's mystic assault "I'm not sure I even want to know what happened there. Or where that goon went. I would guess I wouldn't want to join him".

"It's just a shortcut into the crossroads of the various Underworlds," Nick explained. "No threats. Well, no major ones. In any case, the psychopomps will realize he's still alive and shunt him out to the nearest graveyard."

His little explanation concluded, Nick followed Slick into the house. The minute he crossed the threshold, he felt something like cold mist roiling off of his skin, at the same time as being assaulted with a sensation like being bathed in crude oil. After a few seconds, the sensation subsided, but the general sense of being coated in something did not. "Yeah, that's some ward," he whispered. "I wonder who his contractor is..."

[Supercape]

Slick crept forward into the house. The odour was overpowering, but she could smell several people amongst the fumes. The house itself was battered, dirty and barren. The sorry sight of needles on the floor, peppered with the cigarette buts and bottles fitted in with the ambience. The lighting was from naked bulbs, several had smashed.

Half asleep on the stairs was another crony, resting on a Klashnikov. He nodded his head dimly in time with the heavy beat of dub music coming from the floor above.

Slick looked at her two companions. One stoned thug was hardly a challenge, but the fact that he was so well armed didn't bode well, especially if the gangsters here started letting loose without discrimination. And she didn't really want even one shot let off as a warning.

The floorboards looked creaky. She pointed at them and the thug, and silently asked for suggestions.

[Fox]

Dragonfly tilted her head and just...quietly jogged up, calmly trotting up to the half-awake man and striking out with an arm to take hold of his shoulder. Lines like creases in paper ran across his body, and before he could so much as yelp the world folded up around him and he just...disappeared, leaving his Klashnikov where it was.

Dragonfly dusted off her hands. dirty - always easier when they're half-asleep - won't be getting out anytime soon

[Supercape]

Slick gave an involuntary gasp, and followed up with a "thumbs up" sign to Dragonfly. Creeping forward, it was as she had expected, the floarboards were rather loose and in bad condition. At one point, she nearly put her foot through a rotten one.

Reaching the Klasnikov, she took out the clip and scattered the ammo on the floor. No need for bullets here, if it could be avoided, although from the looks of it, bullets may well be flying.

The stairs didn't look in much better condition, but at least there was heavy music coming from upstairs. Slowly, she started to creep upwards, beckoning Nick and Dragonfly to follow.

[trollthumper]

Nick followed along, making sure to step lightly. He'd done this many times before -- in old haunted houses, in apartment buildings, even in a police station once -- but it didn't mean that he was an expert in landscapes like this. Sometimes he'd managed to call on a ghost to mute his footsteps -- or at least create a commotion somewhere else. This time, he was on his own...

[Fox]

Dragonfly was rather surprised by how well that had worked. A second check of her gauntlets showed that the guy was...surprisingly well-contained. Amazingly so, even - the usual instability was not there, and he showed no signs of being able to even try to get free. She would have to remember to diagnose her gauntlets later on, and see what had gone differently; maybe she could reproduce the effect. A truly inescapable cage would be an extraordinarily useful tool to have....

She realized that she was about to step on an obviously unsafe and creaky step barely a second before actually doing so, and frowned. focus - save the science for later Skipping that step entirely and keeping a much more careful eye out, she silently followed the other two upwards.

[Supercape]

The music got louder on the second floor, and the smoke got heavier. Slick smelled the next room before she could peek in.

There six men, and three women. One woman was unconscious on the floor, and another was as good as unconscious.

Three men were similarly heavily armed, and looked very tough. Ex-military, perhaps, holding automatic weapons and dressed in street fashioned mixed with combat fatigues. They were lead by a fourth man, a wild, red haired man, stipped to the waist with an impressive wiry physique and a berretta tucked into his trousers. At his side was an attractive oriental woman, perhaps his girlfriend.

Pleading for "one more hit" was a dishevelled looking addict, highly emaciated, who looked like he didn't have much longer to live.

Finally, in the corner, in some kind of trance and breathing in some obscure green fumes from a glass bong, was a nearly naked rastafarian man with white paint over his body and a large skull painted on his chest. A few bone ornaments hung around his neck and on assorted pieces of jewelery. He hardly looked aware of his surroundings, but one couldn't exactly tell.