Backlash (IC)

[ca_lazerdwarf]

While the thug tried to help Slice to his feet, Coiled Lightning moved in to press his advantage against the reeling criminal. The electrical lash ripped across Slice's chest, delivering a series of loud bright sparks and dropping the criminal to the ground.

 

With another flick of Charlie's wrist the whip danced up toward the nearby thug, but he ducked away before the whip could connect. The hero smiled anyway, "He's just going to slow you down and you'll both wind up in jail. Leave the van and go home."

[gankun]

The stars began to fade and Liquify began to regain his senses. He groaned in disapproval. Uggg, this is no way a hero should act. Liquify then stood up and pulled himself back together. He noted Slice laying on the ground, Wow! The blue guy managed to do it. And the fact he did it solo while I was seeing stars... I need to up my game next time. Or maybe I can redeem myself now. Wanting to get some payback, Liquify took a step towards the others, winding up his arms for another punch.

 

"You made a mistake turning your back on me! Shoulda finished me off when I was down." Liquify hurled a long punch at the back of the big thug. A pow was heard as the watery fist connected. The attack hit and did some more damage to the henchman. Meh, not a finisher, but I'll take it. Liquify pulled back his fist and planned out his next move. Do I hit the thugs trying to get away? Or should I deal with this bigger guy as a threat?

[Thevshi]

A second hit from Coiled Lightning's electrical whip sent a jolt through Slice that pulled him from the hands of the man who had been trying to help him.  The costumed villain then collapsed onto the floor, clearly unconscious.

 

The large thug took the powerful hit from Liquify, grunting slightly in pain.  He then snarled at Coiled Lightning as he took another step forward, swinging at the costumed hero.  But the attack was clumsy and Coiled was easily able to duck underneath and put a short distance between them.

 

The thug who had been holding Slice seemed to take Coiled Lightning's words to heart, or at least partially.  The man jumped into the back of the van and yelled out at the man behind the wheel.  "Let's get outa here!"

 

The other man apparently needed little encouragement to get away from the two superheroes, and pushed his foot down on the accelerator, pulling the van away from the loading dock.  The van swerved slightly as it pulled away, and then turned onto the nearby street to try to speed away...

[ca_lazerdwarf]

"No, I said LEAVE the van," Charlie yelled at the retreating vehicle. He considered chasing it, but it would quickly outpace him. Besides, we wasn't really concerned with the small fry. He was here to settle his score with Slice and big ugly. He really must have an actual name.

Shouldn't take long to take him down Liquify and I work together, he thought. With a big green he advanced on the big thug, swinging hard and leaving himself overextended. The electric whip wrapped around the thug's body but he merely shrugged it aside with a grunt. "Even tougher than I thought," Lightning muttered.

[gankun]

Liquify turned to the van getting away. Definitely can't let those punks get away with whatever was in the back. I only get one shot. He started moving towards the direction of the van and began loosening his arm. It was gonna need to stretch a long ways to hit the driver. "Hold it right there! Who said you guys were off the hook." After a good wind up, Liquify threw his arm along the street to catch up to the speeding car. As the car turned around the corner, for a split second the window of the van lined up with the path of Liquify's arm. The arm went through the window and straight into the jaw of the getaway driver, knocking him unconscious with a direct blow. A slight grin formed on Liquify's face as the attack hit. "Bulls-eye!" As the vehicle started to lose control, Liquify pulled his arm back.

 

He figured that the vehicle and the other thug wouldn't be able to get far at this point, so Liquify turned his attention back to the thug and Coiled Lightning. The hero's attack looked painful, but the thug's ability to shrug it off surprised Liquify. Looks like this guy isn't going down as easily as his boss. Better go in to help clean up this mess.

[Thevshi]

The van veered to one side, slamming into the back of a parked car and coming to a sudden halt.  The other man that had jumped into the back was flung about by the sudden stop and knocked unconscious as well.

 

The large man let out a grunt as he shook off Coiled Lightning's latest attack with seemingly little effect.  The man stepped forward again, this time taking advantage of how exposed the costumed hero had left himself, delivering a powerful right hook to Coiled's left side.  But the hero had at least seen the attack coming, and if he could not completely avoid it, he had managed to twist just enough at the last moment that the blow was not quite as solid as it might have been.  It still hurt, but could have been much worse.

[ca_lazerdwarf]

Charlie grunted from the big thug's solid punch. Nothing broken, he didn't think, but it enough to knock him off his overconfident streak. "Ok, Liquify. Good work stopping the van. We just have to wrap this guy up, and drag everyone down to the station."

Charlie edged the power on the whip up, feeling it start to hum and vibrate, jerking his hand around. He flipped it again across the big thug's chest, leaving a burnt mark across shirt. "You know how this is going to end, big guy. Let's do it the easy way."

[gankun]

"No problem. Let's finish this!" Liquify got to the other side of the big thug. He now had nowhere to go. Liquify taunted his opponent. "You're outnumbered. We already defeated your boss, continuing this fight doesn't do you any good. Now is a good time to back down unless you want another set of bruises."

 

Liquify prepared himself for another attack. The big thug wasn't backing down anytime soon so there was only one option left, to force him down. Liquify didn't complain, he still had a score to settle with the guy. "Well, looks like we're doing this the hard way." yelled Liquify as he rushed towards the thug. His entire mass converged into a giant wave that slammed into the thug. As the thug fell back, Liquify bounced back up. Now that the fight was over, Liquify placed his hands on his knees to catch his breath. "Nice job. Looks like we took care of everyone. What next?"

[ca_lazerdwarf]

Coiled Lightning turned off his whip and leaned back against the wall to catch his breath. "Well, we need to take everyone down to the police. I guess we can see if the van will still run. Or should we have a look to see what they were stealing first? Can't imagine these two were just here to steal televisions."

 

He hopped off the edge of the loading dock and went over to look at the van, to see if it was still drivable after its crash. "Really good work back there." he called back to Liquify, "I faced off against Slice and his goon before and took a beating, it helps a lot to have someone watching your back."

[gankun]

"Certainly, those firms deal with some pretty cutting edge stuff. I figure it wouldn't have much value to the common street thug." Liquify also began to walk down towards the van. To be honest he was also quite curious on what they were attempting to steal. Maybe it would give a clue onto what the bigger picture was. Perhaps Slice was only a pawn for something much more evil.

 

"Thanks, though I would have been nothing on my own. That big guy had me knocked out for a bit. Those hits really connected because he was distracted by fighting both of us. Well now that the fighting is over, I feel like I need to introduce myself properly. I'm Liquify, a newer hero trying to make my place in the world." Liquify's gel face formed an expression somewhat resembling a smile as he reached out for a handshake.

[ca_lazerdwarf]

Lightning stopped and extended a hand. He hesitated a moment, unsure what the liquid hand would feel like, but then reached over and grabbed it firmly. "I'm Coiled Lightning. I haven't been at this for very long, either. Trying to make a name for myself. It had been eating at me for weeks that I let these creeps escape, so when I heard they'd been seen involved in several break-ins around these parts, I just needed to come track them down."

 

He opened up the van to have a look inside, "That big guy does quite pack a punch on him. Maybe that's why I couldn't forget him."

[gankun]

Liquify shook back with an equally firm handshake. "Good thing we caught them then. They aren't escaping this time." He followed behind to try and get a look of what they were trying to get their hands on. "So what do you think someone like him would be interested in stealing? Can't be just money if they were going after these high tech companies."

 

He wasn't an expert on technology, but Matt remembered several talks on tech relating to his field as well as some articles on the internet he read when he was bored. Hopefully something he's come across will help them better understand what the villains were attempting to do. "So do you know more about the guy? Since you've encountered him before, maybe something he's said will give us a clue."

[ca_lazerdwarf]

"From what I've seen he's just a hired gun. The last time I saw them they were stealing evidence about an old unsolved murder. It doesn't seem at all connected to these crimes. Someone new has probably been paying him to do these jobs. That's who we need to go after now." Charlie scatched his head

 

"When they wake up, maybe they can tell us something. Or maybe there's something incriminating left here in the van." As well as looking at the stolen goods, he looked around the van for anything to identify its owner.

[Thevshi]

Moving over carefully to the van, the two heroes found all the thugs inside unconscious. The van’s engine was still running, and it did not seem so smashed up that it could not still run.

Examining the collection of boxes that the criminals had managed to get into the van, Charlie noted that it was an assortment of high tech mechanical and electrical components. While they certainly were expensive, it still did not quite seem like just your typical heist for cash, particularly as there had been a number of break-ins.

Matt took a look at the various components as well, noting the same sorts of things Charlie had seen. While there was likely a number of possible applications for these components, looking at what was in the van, Matt was struck with the thought that they all seemed very much like what one might use in putting together some sort of advanced robotics.

Opening the driver's door, Charlie climbed part way up and looked around the front of the van, the second driver still slumped unconscious in the driver's seat. For the most part, the van seemed empty of anything save the boxes they had been stealing, a few empty coffee cups from Starbase coffee, and map of the city. Picking up the map, Charlie noted a small red circle over a section of Greenbank.

Off in the distance, the sounds of sirens could be heard drawing closer…

[ca_lazerdwarf]

Charlie smiled when he heard the sirens, "Well, I guess the cops are coming to us. We don't have to take these guys anywhere." He brought the map out and shows it to Liquify. "I imagine if we had a look around here, we might find something interesting, don't you think?" He showed him the circled place on the map. "Probably where they were supposed to take the goods."

"Should we take a trip accross town? Or do you want to wait to talk to the police first?". He asked. "They'll be here any minute."

[gankun]

"Looks like we'll find the answers we want over there." Liquify stared at the circle. Hmmm, what could possibly be waiting for us in Greenbank? He thought as the sirens drew closer. Liquify looked back to the knocked out thugs. "I say we hurry up and take the van there. I imagine by the time the police arrive and round up these thugs, whoever was expecting the shipment will realize the plan failed. Maybe we can get a jump on them from the van."

 

Liquify examined the knocked out driver in the front seat. "Hey, you think you'll fit that mask over there," pointing to the unconscious getaway driver.

[ca_lazerdwarf]

Coiled Lightning pulled the mask off the driver and held it up. "Sounds like a good plan. We drive right in to the hideout before they realize who we are? As long as the cops don't see us driving off in the van with the goods wearing masks. Wearing burglar masks, that is, not THESE", he corrected, pointing to the blue mask he was already wearing. "That might give them the wrong impression." He started pulling the unconscious criminals out of the van, transferring them to the loading dock with the others.

[Thevshi]

With a plan decided upon the two heroes went into action to carry it out. Coiled Lightning took one of the ski masks off an unconscious thug and pulled it on over his normal mask, then got the van moving once more. Liquify meanwhile moved the two unconscious thugs from the front into the back with the third thug and then crouched down in the back out of sight as he waited for them to reach their destination.

Coiled Lightning managed to get the van away from the scene without running into any of the police making their way towards the scene. Turning west on Gould street, he went about ten blocks and got onto the Wallace Expressway heading south, the quickest way to Greenbank from the North End.

The trip took a short while, taking the two almost to the South River, but Coiled turned the van off about a quarter mile before the Mona-Glen Bridge and then started into Greenbank. The area was filled with train tracks and warehouses, some of which were dark and rundown. The location circled on the map turned out to be an underpass beneath the E Street bridge along a section of Greenbank right by the South River. As Coiled Lightning came to a stop near the underpass, a pair of headlights flashed from darkness of the underpass.

[ca_lazerdwarf]

Coiled Lightning tried to make out the source of the headlights in the darkness, "There's the signal, that's our guys. I assume we're supposed to go hand off the goods."

 

He looked at Liquify, "Do we want to try to play along for a while, see if we can get more names or information? Or do you think they'll be too suspicious and we should take the first opportunity to grab them we can get? I'm not much of a fast talker, don't know that I could fool them." He kept his left hand on the door handle, nervously drumming his fingers on it.

[gankun]

Liquify turned back to Coiled Lightning. "I say we play along as long as we can. Hopefully we can at least get a name out of them before they notice that something is up. Who knows? Maybe they'll lead us right to the boss." Liquify turned to the goods. "But let's make sure they don't get their hands on this stuff. I'm not much of a fast talker either. Plus I think they'll notice pretty quick once they see me oozing. Hmm..."

 

After a second of examining the dimensions of the box, "you think I'd fit in here. Maybe that can help me sneak in with you. Plus I'll be ready for backup." Liquify peered out of the window. There wasn't much time to lose. Any more waiting and they might get suspicious. "Any objections? We should move out soon."

[ca_lazerdwarf]

Coiled Lightning looked at the box, then at Liquify "You're the best judge of that, I've never squeezed into a box as a liquid before. It's going to be heavy with you in it, though. Try not to soak the bottom too much or it might rip apart."

 

After Liquify hid himself, Charlie returned the flashed headlights signal, and slowly drove forward under the bridge, his heart pounding nervously. "Try not to look suspicious" he whispered to himself as he approached the vehicle waiting for them. "Just keep an ear open in case things go wrong and I need backup."

[Thevshi]

Pulling forward into the darkness, Coiled Lightning pulled up in front of a dark Volvo station wagon that was parked underneath the bridge.  When the van came to a halt, there was a few moments pause which seemed to last an eternity to Charlie, before the driver's door opened on the Volvo and a man in his late forties with long grey hair climbed out.  He was dressed in a long trenchcoat and what could be termed "business causal" clothes.

 

"It is about time Slice."  The man called out.  "I was beginning to worry that something had gone wrong.  Let's not waste any time getting things loaded up."  He then started walking around toward the back of the Volvo as the popped open the rear door.

[gankun]

Liquify was nervous, but did his best to keep quiet as the car approached. He managed to fit into the box all right, but it certainly wasn't the most comfortable position to be in. Like Coiled Lightning said, he did his best to avoid seeping through the box. Liquify heard the door open from outside the van. I hope this all goes well. I'm counting on you. If something goes down, I hope I'm not too late. 

 

As soon as the door opened, Liquify stopped moving around, having found a position to stay as silent as possible. He couldn't really see anything, but it sounded like Charlie was gonna need to play it smart to pass off as Slice.

[ca_lazerdwarf]

"We should have thought to bring Slice's mask." Charlie said quietly before he took a deep breath and got out of the van. Too late to worry about that! He stopped to pull out the box with Liquify in it, then began walking over to the car. 

 

"We were just taking our time, trying to be thorough. Good work takes time, you know. Ride us too hard and someone's going to slip up," he calld out in replying, trying to sound tired. As he got closer, he tried to get a look inside the Volvo to see if the man who addressed them was alone. He didn't look too tough himself, shouldn't be a big problem.

[Thevshi]

Picking up the box containing Liquify, Coiled Lightning quickly realized that the liquid hero's weight was going to be something of a problem. While Liquify might be liquid, he still weighed his normal weight, which was hard for Charlie to lift. It was so heavy, that the electric whip using hero could only move slowly toward the other car.

The man moved back into sight from around behind the Volvo, looking back over toward the van and the approaching Charlie. "Well, hurry up! Where are the others, and where is Slice?" The man called, seeming rather impatient.

Charlie was about halfway toward the Volvo when the box, which was not designed to hold a hundred and fifty pounds of liquid, gave out, the bottom ripping open and Liquify spilling out on the ground…