ic All About The Franklins

[EternalPhoenix]

The Franklins had money, and half the city knew it. They didn’t live fancy. They didn’t have a big house, or any servants. They lacked even so much as an automobile, preferring Freedom City Transit instead. They lived in Southside, and very quietly at that. Sadie, Thomas, and their lovely little girl Hannah were, for all intent and purposes, anonymous and nobody. The problem was that Thomas’s family members, though deceased, were all unrepentant though relatively minor criminals and had been for generations. Thomas himself managed to stay out of it, but with no one left to inherit the family money upon his father’s death, Thomas was stuck with a substantial amount of illegally gained cash. This alone earned him a jaundiced look from Freedom’s criminal underworld, but the exact amount of money remained unknown, so no one took action. Yet. Sadie’s unknown great uncle dropping dead and leaving her a similarly large amount of legal money provided a fine opportunity for the couple to legalize the extra cash. Unfortunately, it also provided a fine opportunity for someone to kidnap Hannah for ransom. Going to the cops was not an option - see illegal cash. This was where NPC Investigations came in.

August 30, 2014. 1:45 AM. Southside.

Penny Nihara simply stood on the roof of Rocket Records. The store was closed for the holiday, and wouldn’t reopen until Tuesday. She tapped her foot, impatient. The heroes were late. She had done everything but send up a flare. She briefly considered doing just that, but discarded the idea as she was too close to the airport. Even accounting for skepticism, someone should have shown up by now. The message was simple enough. “A young girl has been kidnapped. I need your help.†Penny had it relayed by various means, as well as the location to meet. Yes…any minute now. Honestly…she was almost surprised that a hero wasn’t on the job to begin with. Almost meaning that after a few years of doing this job, she knew that an awful lot of small things slipped past Freedom’s champions. The locally focused types did what they could, but ultimately it was a numbers game. There just wasn’t enough of them, and likely never would be. Freedom had the curious habit of becoming more dangerous the more heroes patrolled it. Ah, there one was now. Good.

[Supercape]

Warning: Height parameters are not tactically optimal...

 

It was fair advice. A gun fight on a rooftop was not a good idea. No where to run, everywhere to fall. On the other hand, it was off the street. 

 

She approached silently. That she could do, even up the old fire escape ladder. The Red Rat was a sneaky as they came, light of foot and agile as a fox. 

 

"Penny, I presume?" she asked, sliding up beside the woman. 

 

She wore her bullet grey Spandex, and Rugged Red Jacket. Around her thigh, a holster with her top range silenced pistol. Rubber bullets, of course. She had no wish to kill anyone. Any more

 

"Red Rat, at your service" she said, giving a half turn to show the picture on the back of her jacket. 

 

"Kidnapped girl, is it? I'm not too fond of that. Whatever I can do to help, I will!" she said, keenly. Whilst she smiled, there was a little bitter steel, as she recalled her own Political Incarceration in Hungary, ripped from friends, family and home. 

[Raveled]

Blue Jay usually distrusted technology, but even she had to admit that the police scanner radio had bee a good investment. Even if she did have a tendency to yell on it when something exciting was happening. It had alerted her to the situation here in the Southside, and she had responded.

Which is why she was running over the roofs of the apartments late at night. She would have preferred to swing in dramatically or climbed up stealthily, but two-story buildings rather limited her approaches. She slowed to a brisk jog and eventually ran to a stop at the edge of the roof, eying the woman in the dark spandex and gun. Blue Jay herself was wearing a grey-and-green windbreaker with a blue-and-gold Claremont tee-shirt underneath it, cargo pants, boots, and her mask. And her bow and quiver, of course, though the quiver was capped and the bow was stored.

After a long moment of evaluation, she gave Red Rat a nod and approached Penny. "You have the missing kid?" she asked with her usual lack of tact.

[Tiffany Korta]

Compaired to the other Lucy looked remarkably normally as she gently touched down on the roof. The suit she wore might be a little out of fashion but it wouldn't look out of place in downtown Freedom. There was nothing really to suggest that she was a fellow superhero.

Not until realise she'd just jumped up to this roof from ground level, or looked at her coal black eyes.

"I guess we're all here for the same reasons. So what do we know about the situation," her normally sunny disposition was replaced with a more stern serious tone.

[EternalPhoenix]

Penny didn’t even blink. “No, archer. You must lack message comprehension skills.†Penny stepped out of the slight shadow where she had been, and the three could see she wore a black shirt, shoes, and slacks. A small pack was on her back, and she did not appear to be armed. “I don’t know very much about it. Normally, I would handle this myself. Heroes can make things…messy. However, I haven’t the time to deal with it personally.†Her English was slightly accented, fitting her Asian appearance. “So…what was that word again? Ah. I’m subcontracting.†She blinked, momentarily discomfited. “My apologies. I haven’t introduced myself. Penny Nihara, senior partner, NPC Investigations. I do most of what you do, only I get paid for it.†She put down the pack, opened it, and pulled out three identical photographs. She placed them on the building’s ledge. “This is Hannah Franklin. She is seven years old. She did not come home from school on Friday. There may have been an arrangement to stay the weekend with a friend, but she did not arrive there either. Her parents, Thomas and Sadie, have recently come into some money. An hour after she was expected, her parents received a ransom call. The person used a scrambler so his or her voice would not be recognized. Two people knew about the money.†She reached back into her pack and pulled out two more photographs. “The first is their lawyer, Bortolo Ferretti. He recently broke the lease on his office and his house was just put up for sale. However, this may be explained by the recent sale of his practice to Hartford, Grayson, and Cole. The other is Esther Henson. She was a friend of the family, but they recently had a falling out. She hasn’t been seen in approximately a week. However, she does work from her home and was described to me as ‘not the most social of people’. Both of them can be found in the phonebook.†She straightened, reached into a pocket, and pulled out three business cards. “My number, should you need to reach me or speak to the Franklins. They do not know I am subcontracting. I would like it to remain that way. Questions?â€

Edited September 6, 2014 by EternalPhoenix

[Supercape]

"Both of them! They both did it!" said the Rat, snapping her fingers into imaginary guns, pointing at both pictures. 

 

She was suspicious. Not in a paranoid persecutory way. More in a practical, spy way. 

 

"So, what connects the two main suspects, eh? Any phone calls? Clandestine meetings? Did they have a love affair?" she said, tapping her finger on her chin and her boot on the roof. 

 

"Can we bug them? Tap the wires? Access phone records? E mails? Just get me close to them and I can hack em!"

 

And maybe the Franklins too...she added to herself. 

 

Data intrusion on Corrupt American Capitalistic Americans is highly recommended!

 

For once, Slave may have been right...

[Raveled]

Blue Jay listened cooly to what information Penny had for them, and then gave the card a blank stare. Thankfully, the outburst of the woman with the gun let her ignore the offer in passing rather than ignore it outright. "Neither of them could be guilty," she pointed out, "but if they both might run away then we should look at both of them." She glanced at the woman in the suit but added, "I will focus on the friend, Henson. If she was taken, then I can find her." Jay looked around at the nearby buildings, already considering which were best to swing off of.

[Supercape]

GM

 

Analysis: Woman with Bow is Expert Archer

 

You think?

 

The Red Rat could normally ignore the constant text Slave flashed in front of her eyes. But sometimes the sheer lunacy of it was undeniable. 

 

"Good thinking, Robin!" she smiled at Blue Jay. "I am the Red Rat, by the way! Superspy! New in town, but not new!" she quipped, giving a half turn and a point to the Red Rat Motif on the back of her jacket. 

 

"I guess Ill  take the Lawyer then. I guess he has an office? Something we might, you know, accidentally fall into by accident, and maybe accidentally trip onto his computer and accidentally turn it on, and accidentally press the keys on his keyboard to accidentally find out what he is doing?" she asked their employer. 

 

"Give me an address, and I'm in!"

[EternalPhoenix]

Penny arched an eyebrow. These certain were…eccentric people. Then again, heroes did tend to have eccentric personalities. She addressed the Red Rat first. “I don’t care what you do. However, I don’t want to know about it. And-“She gave Blue Jay pointed look. “I’m only subcontracting after a fashion. You won’t be paid. A little girl had been kidnapped. Despite having the inclination, I do not have the time to deal with it. You, however, have both the time and the inclination.†The implication being she wanted Jay to adjust her attitude. She reached into her pack again, and pulled out two slips of paper. “Feretti’s office and home addresses are on the top, Henson’s home is on the bottom. Do as you please.†She paused for a moment. She breathed in and out, as if bolstering herself for something. “My associates tell me I can be…brusque. I do not mean offense. The case is yours to do with as you see fit. I only request that you do not contact the Franklins without me, and that you call me when you find Hannah so I am not left in suspense. And it is just that, a request. If you find me so distasteful, please, ignore my small wishes to your heart’s content. I am just a humble private eye, after all. I claim no authority or superiority over you. You now have all the information I do. Good luck.†She closed her eyes briefly, and placed the two slips on the ledge, under what on closer inspection could be seen as a shuriken. Then she grabbed her pack, casually vaulted over the ledge, and completely disappeared.

Edited September 12, 2014 by EternalPhoenix

[Supercape]

"Hey now, that's a neat trick!" said the Rat, leaning over the roof to see if she could find the ninja woman. Which she couldn't. 

 

"I'm gonna have to learn how to do that one day" she laughed, impressed. It genuinely was a pretty neat trick. 

 

A glimmer of suspicion hit her. The emphatic demand to not contact the Franklins was an invitation to do so. Or perhaps a cunning psychological manipulation to make them do so. Still, the Red Rat had learned to live with a Spies paranoia rather than be a slave to it. 

 

"Well, I guess we split up, or we stay together. Doesn't sound a lot like we got a lot of heat with a housewife and a lawyer" she said to Blue Jay and Revenant. "But in any case, we should stay in touch. You guys got cellphones, or something?" she asked. As for her Slave would be able to pick up and receive radio transmissions, and keep them scrambled. 

[Tiffany Korta]

Lucy had been quiet for a few moments considering the various options when there employee, she had defiantly been around the Fred to long, left she finally expressed her opinion.

 

“If we rush this we could end up making things worse, but we can’t count out that the two of them are working in concert.â€

 

She sat on the edge of the building her feet kicking her feet into the air as considered the option.

 

“How about me and Red there go visit the lawyer, I have some experience of the profession.†she smiled at her personal joke “Whilst our little archer there keep an eye on the other?â€

[Supercape]

"Works for me, Lady" said the Red Rat, giving the lady a quick scan with her artificial eyes. There were some funny readings, for use. But then, this was Freedom City, and the Revenant was a superhero, after all. 

 

She twirled her gun and holstered it. 

 

"Hopefully won't need that, anyway. But better to take it and not need it, rather than not take it and need it, huh?" she said, ready to go. 

 

"I hope you got some transport, Revenant. I don't fancy a long walk"

[EternalPhoenix]

Red Rat & Revenant

Bortolo Ferretti lived in a pretty nice two floor house in Bayview. It wasn’t that far from Claremont, as it happened. This being night, of course the house was dark. Worrisomely, there wasn’t a single vehicle in the driveway, and a glance through any of the windows would reveal that there wasn’t a stick of furniture on the first floor. Even the kitchen was bare of appliances. It lacked so much as even a stove and refrigerator. The front door was, of course, locked. However, the back seemed to be not just locked, but nailed shut.

Blue Jay

Esther Henson had an second floor apartment (with a convenient balcony!) on the edge of the Southside, right in that fuzzy area that wasn’t quite the Southside but wasn’t quite Lincoln, either. As it was still the middle of the night, one would expect that there wouldn’t be a light on in the place. This was not the case. In fact, every ceiling light, lamp, and even some flashlights were on. The glow of two television screens and a computer screen was also visible, but they did not appear to be playing anything other than static and a bright colorful screensaver, respectively. However, what was not visible was Miss Henson herself. And even more oddly, despite having all the lights on, it seemed a little…dimmer inside than is should have been.

Edited September 18, 2014 by EternalPhoenix

[Supercape]

"Gimme a computer, I can hack it" explained Red Rat to Revenant on the way. "I just can't understand Legal. Need you for that!" she smiled at the deathly beauty. Whilst Revenant looked spooky, and even more spooky when looking with infrared vision and X-Ray vision, she had a magnetic unearthly beauty that could captivate. And besides, Revenant was even more out of time than she was. 

 

At Ferretti's house she started studying it, peering through walls and doors and windows with X-Ray vision. 

 

Analysis: House. Said Slave, its words flashing up in bland and unhelpful letters on her cybernetic eyes. 

 

Really? You are a real help sometimes, you know that, huh? Now be useful and lets see if we can't find something to hack into. Even if he just has a personal computer, you never know what he might be hiding on it...

[Raveled]

Blue Jay hung outside Esther's apartment, doing a chin-up on the balcony to look into the unit. She hadn't been expecting it to be fully lit up; that added a wrinkle she hadn't considered. Not only would she be completely visible (for even farther away than she would be in the daytime) she couldn't even go around dousing the lights. That would draw as much attention as seeing an armed woman skulking about the apartment.

The archer sighed and pulled herself up onto the balcony, then skulked over to the door and started picking the lock. Things wouldn't get any easier if she waited, after all. Slipping inside, she moved slowly and softly, keeping to the walls. On impulse she kept her bow stowed for the moment. It wouldn't do much good in these close quarters anyway, and it scare Esther less to haven armed woman in her house than just a strange, masked woman.

[EternalPhoenix]

Red Rat & Revenant

The Rat’s scan of the house also revealed a open window to the basement. Here was where all the furniture had gone. Or at least, the filing cabinets. There was an even dozen of the things scattered throughout the basement, and they were all creaky, old, and somewhat rusted. However, in the corner, all by its lonesome on a small table, sat a PC and monitor. The design was years out of date. However, it was plugged in, if not on. Next to it was an open liquor cabinet. A glass rested on the table. There was approximately a millimeter of liquor left in it. Then there was a sound from upstairs. Voices. Two men shouting at each other.

Blue Jay

The apartment should have been drowning in light. But it wasn’t. It was dimly lit, at best. Despite that, there didn’t seem to be anyone here. No signs of a struggle, either. Nothing in the living or dining rooms seemed out of place. In fact, it seemed obsessively well organized. However…the kitchen showed no signs of use. There were no dishes in the sink. The refrigerator was largely empty, as well, aside from a smidge of orange juice and some spoiled milk . There was even dust on the countertops. Not very much, but enough to notice. The bedroom door was shut. There was no one in the bathroom, but traces of bright red remained in the sink and bathtub. When the bedroom door was opened, the brown skinned woman inside gave a shriek-and everything in at least a two or three block radius went black as the middle of an unlit cave. “Who are you? What do you want from me? If you’re a hunter, I know how to fight now. You won’t win.â€

Edited September 24, 2014 by EternalPhoenix

[Raveled]

Blue Jay moved slowly through the apartment, noting details distantly while her sense reached out for any sign that the unit was inhabited. The empty refrigerator made her think the woman had already left, but she figured that Sam lived like that, too, so it wasn't a conclusive sign. The red spots in the bathroom piqued her interest, but they were too old to be very useful.

And then she was in the bedroom facing a woman dressed in swimming clothes, and there was a scream. Jay blinked quickly in the dark, surprised that her mask's enhanced senses didn't seem to be doing anything to the gloom. She opened her mouth to reassure who she could only assume was Esther Henson, but hesitated. Technically, she was a hunter coming for the woman, and Jay didn't lie very well. "I am a hunter," she said finally, "but I am not here to fight you, Esther Henson. I have never even seen you before."

Edited September 24, 2014 by Raveled

[Supercape]

Red Rat

 

"That doesn't sound good" sad the Rat to Revenant, cocking her ear. "Violence is golden. But also imminent!" 

 

"I guess you can handle yourself in a fight?" she asked her differently alive partner. The pale pugilist was looking less spooky and more beautiful by night. And from what she understood, she had the strength of twenty men. Twenty dead zombie men who each had the strength of twenty living ones. In other words, she could snap the Rat in two if she wanted!

 

"Can you check out the men about to tear each other s head off? I got a date with a computer..."

 

With that climbed through the basement window, up to the computer, and turned it on. It looked pretty ancient, but even old files could be interesting. As it fired up, she activated the SLAVE system in her head, connecting directly to the old computer and starting to slide through the files...

[Supercape]

Files and data swam before the Red Rat's eyes. She was barely conscious of the sifting and hacking that Slave was doing, it felt like she was steering a ship, giving directions whilst the engines did all the real work. 

 

Getting into the system was easy. Understanding all the complex legal jargon less so. She was fluent enough in English, but this didn't feel like English. Or at least, not the English she knew. 

 

She crept back and poked her head out of the basement window. 

 

"Pssst!" she whispered at Revenant to get her attention. 

 

"I can't understand half of what's on the computer. Actually, I can barely understand any of it. You know these Lawyer types, huh?" she hissed. "But I found something, looks like the man here is in debt. Really bad debt. Five million dollars, to be exact. That's not spare change, is it?"

 

"This guy must be in over his head really bad. Looks like he has been trying to pay of the debt several years. Keeps on borrowing, keeps on paying off, but never in the black"

[EternalPhoenix]

Red Rat & Revenant

The argument upstairs got louder. One of the men was yelling at the top of his lungs. Then there was a thud. Then another, harder thud. A series of thumping sounds that got louder and ended with a crash as something landed at the foot of the stairs to the second floor. The Rat could actually understand what was being said now. Revenant, being outside the house, was still in the dark. “You said this would be easy, Ferretti. One ransomed kid, and all your money problems go away. But nooo, you have to be obvious.†The man speaking came down the stairs. His voice was somewhat muffled, but it was a strong, confident baritone. “Yes, yes. You got a job offer. I know. Gonna move to a new town. I know. Who, do you think, was responsible for that? Who, do you think, whisper a few words into a few ears and gave his ol’ pal Ferretti a break? And how am I repaid for this favor, you ask? By my ol’ pal Ferretti behaving like an amateur after his first murder.â€

Blue Jay

“I see. So you don’t know yet. Good. Then I don’t have to…nevermind.†Esther’s smartphone started to ring. The ringtone belonged to a group Jay didn’t recognize right away. Didn’t sound too bad, though. “I’m sorry, I have to take this.†She answered the phone not as if she could see, but as if she was used to finding her way without any light. “Olive? No, I-Yes, Olive. I know, Olive. Y-you’re here? Where?†The mattress squealed as she moved around on it, and there was a sound suspiciously like a sliding window opening. “I don’t see you. Right, sorry. Someone-I don’t know, some woman in mask with a bow. No, I didn’t-All right, I’m coming.†Her tone indicated the conversation was over. “Look, I’m sorry. I have to go. I’m…sick, you see. But these people, they can fix me. They just need money. I just gotta go baby sit for a bit, and then I can have my life back. Easy as pie.†There was a click and then a soft thud from outside, like she’d pushed the screen out. “Look. I know you wanted to talk to me about something, but I don’t have time. So…come back later, I guess? Who knows? Maybe I’ll be cured by then.†There were several shuffling sounds. A soft thud as something was knocked to the floor. And a thump from outside. Esther had just jumped out her second floor window and landed without injuring herself.

Outside waited a redheaded woman in the proud Irish tradition. She was dressed in a dark green bodysuit. There was belt with a holster on her hip, but the weapon was in her hand. It looked like some sort of blaster. "Olive" perhaps?

Edited October 5, 2014 by EternalPhoenix

[Supercape]

Murder?

 

The Stakes, as they said, had rose. 

 

"Heads up, Pale Lady!" hissed the Rat to Revenant. "Ferrati is here...and its a shakedown...or something....something about a murder!" she finished with all due urgency. 

 

She scanned the walls with her X-Ray Vision, trying to see who was where, and if possible, why and how they where there two. 

 

She flipped her gun into her hand, fingering the trigger. Rubber bullets today. She had a loaded mag of the real deal too, but she was here to stop a murder, not cause one. 

 

"I don't think we have the time to sit this one out...some goons sound like they are ready to break a few of Ferratti's bones..."

[Raveled]

Blue Jay started at the sound of the smartphone, not understanding what was going on for a moment. Esther seemed to be having a one-sided conversation in the dark... Oh, a cell phone. Of course. Jay strained her ears to hear the other side of the conversation, but it kept getting drowned out by Esther's eager responses.

“Look, I’m sorry. I have to go. I’m…sick, you see. But these people, they can fix me. They just need money. I just gotta go baby sit for a bit, and then I can have my life back. Easy as pie.†There was a click and then a soft thud from outside, like she’d pushed the screen out. “Look. I know you wanted to talk to me about something, but I don’t have time. So…come back later, I guess? Who knows? Maybe I’ll be cured by then.â€

"Esther, no!" Blue Jay was still blind, but she didn't want to lose her. The archer moved forward, trusting in her own natural agility to save her shins. She did knock against the bed (soft) and the wall (hard), but a little searching found the open window. Jay climbed out, took one step, and was falling through the air.

It didn't take her very long to fall, and her instincts had her tuck and roll at the end. She stood shakily, holding out a hand to Esther. "Where is Hannah Franklin? What did you do with her!"

[Tiffany Korta]

Lucy was normally a fan of subtle in cases like this, she had to be what with Fred being like a bull in a china shop. But there was time when subtly went out the window and now was looking like one of those times. She couldn’t quite make everytjin out, even though her eyes cut through the darkness as though it was daylight, but was finding out enough to tell that thing were getting serious.

“It’s Lucy. I’m going to create a distraction just follow my lead.â€

 

Taking a few steps backwards to get a run up Lucy jumped up to the second story and came crashing through a window nearest where she believed the argument was coming from.

Edited October 7, 2014 by TiffanyKorta

[Supercape]

She ain't exactly one for subtle...

 

Not that it didn't help the Rat. In fact, it was damn handy. Fast but silent, the Rat creeped and slinked up the stairs to the commotion, gun in hand, eyes sweeping through the walls and ceiling and floor with floods of X-Rays. Had to hand it to the Soviets, these eyes of hers were damn handy. Probably didn't make up for removing her eyes in the first place, but at least they gave her something to replace them with. 

 

With a low side step, crouching on a bended knee, she planted herself round the corner, gun up, plastic bullet magazine in place...and eyes glittering, taking in the sight...

[EternalPhoenix]

Red Rat & Revenant

Delano Light swore under his breath. Something had just crashed into the top of the house. In this town, that could only mean one thing. Heroes. Wonderful. He had gotten this nice fancy black body armor (complete with mask and cowl, making him look a little like a real hero), gone through all that combat training, and the (goshdarn) lawyer had to screw it up. He gave Ferretti a kick. “This is your fault, idiot.†He then turned, bolted through the living room, and somersaulted through the bay window at the front of the house. Landing in a roll outside, he keyed the cellphone in his cowl to life and made a call. “Olive? We’ve got a problem.†A break as the person on the other end spoke. “Playtime? Olive- Fine. Two minutes.†He stood up

Blue Jay

Jay’s fingers touched skin, which then jerked violently away. “Don’t touch me!†The brief touch was not warm. In fact, Esther’s skin was cold and clammy, without an iota of the warmth it should have had. The utter absence of light took that very moment to start to subside. Esther Henson was a Southeast Asian woman of below average height. She appeared physically fit. She had sprawled backward jerking away from Jay. “Everyone freaks out when they touch me. Say such mean things. Chill of the grave. Ice queen Esther.†She pulled up her lower lip, exposing an especially long and sharp pair of canines. “Vampire. Monster. Evil dead thing. I’m not dead. I’m not.†She sobbed slightly. “I’m not.â€

A heavy sigh drew attention to the street, where the redheaded woman stood. “Esther, shut up already. I told you. It’s a problem with an easy solution, so there’s no need to blubber about it.†She adjusted a dial on her blaster device. “At any rate, need you to hold up your end of the deal, not go all woe is me on a frickin’ superhero. Yes, Miss Jay, I know one when I see one, unlike certain half dressed idiots I could name.â€

Esther jerked her head around. “Olive! You’re not gonna-“

Olive aimed and fired. Esther disappeared in a green flash of light. “Only way to travel, chica. Well, only free way.†She adjusted the dial again. “Now, what to do with you, hero?†She checked a nonexistent watch. “I suppose I’ve got some time. Let’s play.†Her waist rang. “Hold on a second.†She pull out a disposable flip phone and keyed it on. “Light? Give me two minutes. It’s play time.†The person on the other end spoke, but Olive cut him off. “Let me have my fun, already.†A few moments later she was slipping the phone back into her belt. “Now where were we?†She smiled.