Epic Crossover IC - Gotham City Freeplay

[Michale CS]

"Gotham City. Since everything changed, it went from being just another crime-infested pit of a city to being the capital of New Jersey - and still crime-infested. Only difference now, is some people get paid by the government to add to that infestation. Politicians. People who think that because people punched a piece of paper saying, I think you're right for this job, that gives them the right to do whatever it is they want, as long as their adoring public never finds out about it. Sometimes even after."

"Not that Gotham doesn't still have it's share of trashy, slum-ridden neighborhoods. It does, even with that fancy new monorail zipping all around town like some demented theme park ride. I gotta admit though, a lot harder to dispose of a body via train 'accident' when you have to get 30 feet up in the air to do it. These are the neighborhoods that I cover. For some reason, I, and a select few other people, lucky or not, can remember how things were before. There were no Avengers, no SHIELD, no Daily Bugle or Spiderman. Or... and this is going to sound crazy, but there's these turtle guys who live in the sewers across the river. I swear, I saw one. Wearing a mask. Isn't that rich? As if a little swath of cloth across your face was going to hide you were some sort of mutant half human half turtle. People here, they need answers. Thankfully, I can answer them. Who am I? They call me..."

"The Question."

[[ OOC - This will serve as the freeplay thread for Gotham City for members of the Epic Crossover clan. Interested in playing here? Join!

POST ANY AND ALL POSTS RELATED TO THE MOB WAR IN THE BODY PARTS THREAD NOT HERE ]]

 

[Gands]

So

How much did yah have in mind Boyo ? Lets try tah keep it reasonable the first time out eh ?

@Ringmaster @Michale CS

 

[York]

The next evening, promptly at 5:00 pm I am once again at the shop. I have flowers, the neighborhood florist having never seen me in her shop was all questions, smiles and grins. I am nervous, not so bad as shaking hands, but butterflies in my stomach.

Today, I'm dressed in new black jeans, red denim shirt, my normal matching belt and boots. I broke out a silver and turquoise necklace for the occasion. I want it to look like I took effort...without making it look like I took..too much effort.

I go into her shop, just inside and waited for her, caught her attention and then waited politely outside.

Lilly Briant (Argent Sentinel)
@Gands

Lilly didn't take very long to step out, closing up shop as she did... Even with an somewhat strained salary on her hands, she appeared to be dressed nicely too. Grady was greeted with Lilly wearing a dark blue dress, contrasting her usual appearance, though the dress seemed a little worn with age, it looked like it had been well taken care of.

Though her shoes were also more... Tidy than they usually were, it was apparant that she wasn't a big fan of heels, which was only natural; she didn't like to handicap herself just for the looks, but, then again, it was probably unlikely to begin with that she had any heels with her at all.

"Ready to go?" She asked calmly.

Noticing the flowers in Grady's hands, she carefully reached out for them... Her actions were usually meant to be precise, spot on, as she had been trained for a good few years of her life to be alert at all times. However, here, when her life wasn't constantly on the line, and she was supposed to be enjoying herself, it... Felt a bit strange, to let her guard down like this.

Well, all she could do now was cross her fingers and hope Grady wouldn't pry too far into her past, for both of their sakes.​

 

[Gands]

I smile at you.

As ready as I every will be !

I drive you to my home. A three story brownstone with a well kept façade.

I seem to go through three or four layers of locks to get in. The front area is well lit and you spot at least one camera up high.

Inside, a well kept entryway which seems a little bit dusty to Lilly's eyes. Inside the home Lilly's keen eye will notice, that outside of the couch, the home seems decorated some twenty years back. Several bookcases line the walls, a large stereo system in one corner with large speakers, which would be expensive state of the art equipment twenty years ago.

A modern curved screen television, quite large is opposite the couch and chairs. I snap a finger and lights go on. Using a remote hidden in my pocket, the stereo starts up, a vinyl recording of the English band Queen in the background.

Welcome to my castle Lilly. I don't get the chance to show it to visitors. Make yourself at home while I put the finishing touches on our meal !

 

[Ringmaster]

So

How much did yah have in mind Boyo ? Lets try tah keep it reasonable the first time out eh ?

@Ringmaster @Michale CS

"My best case scenario would be a quarter million. It'd be enough to cut corners and yet still keep optimal efficiency for my work. I'll rob, terrify and the like, but I won't kill. That's about my limits."

@Gands @Michale CS​

 

[Michale CS]

A three story brownstone with a well kept façade.

(( Just helping with an image link. @Gands try the Image link button nearest the X2 ​ button when you want them to show. the "with options" thing tends to glitch up - The Editor. Excelsior! ))

 

[thatguyinthestore]

Previously, in the daily adventures of our friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man;​

But then, the blade-like object that cut his web earlier came back; a small remote-controlled Vulture drone.

Oh crap!

And now, the thrilling conclusion;​

"You have the right to remain silent!" shouted Spider-Man as he was rapidly thrown back and forth by the Vulture drone between a multitude of buildings making up the Gotham City skyline. Although the impact of his body didn't do any irreversible damage to the buildings, it still hurt like hell for the young hero. While normally he would just let go of the web-strand, this time it was a little different.

To speak frankly, his hand had gotten tangled up in the web-strand and now, he was pretty much stuck. Great job, Spidey.

In the distance, Adrian Toomes, aka "The Vulture", was rapidly approaching him, watching as his drone played with Spider-Man as if he were a yo-yo. A wicked smile spread across his face as the Vulture readied the vibranium blades attached to his feet (his 'talons') to slice the Spider in half, pressing a button on his suit's left wrist to call the drone back to him.

"Anything you say can and will be held against you in a court of--OH SHIT!" Peter watched wide-eyed as the Vulture-Drone suddenly did a U-Turn and rocketed him towards the Vulture, who was preparing his 'talons'. The constant tingling of his Spider-Sense wasn't making the situation easier to get through, but luckily, Spidey managed to come up with a quick solution. Quickly grabbing the snagged web-strand with his free hand, Spidey used all of his strength to pull himself into a swing, kicking his legs out in an arching motion. Unfortunately for Toomes, he wasn't expecting this and quickly tried to pull back, but the velocity of his drone was his undoing.

Delivering a powerful kick to Adrian's chest, Spidey managed to knock the super villain into a mid-air spiral, giving him time to properly find a solution to his webbing dilemma. Reaching into his utility belt with his free hand as the drone circled around for another pass, Spidey pulled out a small pocket knife and quickly cut the strand, dropping him onto the roof of a nearby building. Quickly throwing the knife back into his bag, Spidey located the Vulture in the sky. He was just beginning to recover from the blow, having pulled himself out of the spiral, but Spider-Man wasn't going to give him the chance to attack again.

Dashing off the roof, Spidey leapt into the air and fired off a few blasts of webbing towards the Vulture, hitting him directly in the face. Temporarily blinded, Toomes tried to clear his vision, but his attempts were interrupted by a sudden weight-shift originating from his back. Two legs wrapped around his neck and he felt a set of arms grab his wings; Spider-Man!

"GET OFF ME!" shouted Toomes, still blinded by the earlier attack. Despite being unable to see, the Vulture began to swerve frantically in the sky, rocking violently back and forth to try and force the red-suited vigilante off of his back. "WOOHOO! Hey ma' look a' me! I'm in th' rodeo!" Spidey called out, putting on a fake southern accent as he yanked on the Vulture's wings, guiding him away from various buildings they passed.

"YOU DOLT! THE WEIGHT RATIO IS TOO GREAT! IF YOU DON'T GET OFF NOW, WE'LL BOTH--"

BANG!​

​

Almost as if on-que, the hover-blade on the Vulture's left wing suddenly exploded in a violent array of sparks, obviously having been over-encumbered while supporting both Spider-Man and the Vulture's weight.

"Uh... Giddy up?"

Immediately after the explosion, the Vulture began to veer off to the right, his suit now completely unstable due to the loss of equal propulsion. Spider-Man knew he had to act quickly otherwise risk seriously injuring both himself and Toomes, as well as putting civilians at risk. Moving swiftly, Spidey attached a few strands of webbing to the back of Toomes' wings and fired their opposite ends back towards a skyscraper just behind them. As the suit began to loose more altitude, Spidey's efforts increased, but the velocity of their descent was putting a lot of strain on the webs, forcing them to snap. Knowing that he wasn't going to get away with just webbing themselves up, Spidey quickly tore off the front of Toomes' suit before yanking the balding man out. Firing off a line of webbing, Spidey launched the two of them towards a nearby building and quickly strung up Toomes so he wouldn't fall until he came to get him.

Then, Spidey turned his eyes back to the Vulture suit and pushed himself off the building, firing a cascade of web-lines between two more buildings in order to create a hammock-shape. Once he had weaved a proper pouch for his web-hammock, Spidey swung over to the falling suit and caught it just inches before it hit the ground. Civilians watched in shock and awe as he caught the suit before Spidey began promptly ripping out the wires keeping it running. The suit let out an audible 'hum' as it shut down and Spidey sighed with relief. Before he left, he removed the suit from the hammock and set it down on the street just as the police arrived on the scene. "Everyone okay?" Spider-Man asked, looking around the crowd of people to make sure his encounter with the Vulture hadn't affected anyone. A few people gave quiet nods while some various murmurs echoed through the crowd. Peter scoffed slightly under his breath. Of course Gothamites didn't feel completely comfortable talking to costumed vigilantes; most of theirs operated at night.

Shaking his head lightly, Spider-Man pointed towards the strung-up Vulture and looked at the arriving GCPD officers. "Alright, so that's your guy up there. You're probably gonna need a crane. And make sure you give his suit to S.H.I.E.L.D. after you've filed the proper paperwork. Those guys are anal about people running around with bad-guys gear." he explained. The officers were just as dumbfounded as the civilians, obviously a bit shocked that the vigilante wasn't either brooding nor wearing a completely menacing costume. Giving them a small salute, Peter ran off in the opposite direction and jumped into the air, firing off another blast of webbing at the Gotham skyline as he got back to his patrol.

As he swung by Vulture, he mockingly called out "Hope you like Arkham better then you like the Raft, Toomes!" He was pretty far when the Vulture finally offered him a response, but Peter chose to ignore it given its vulgar nature. But as he continued swinging, Peter thought about what the Vulture had mentioned earlier. He was in Gotham for a reason... But Spidey still didn't quite know why. Maybe later, he'd pay Commissioner Gordon a visit to see if they found anything out. After all, the Comish never seemed to have a problem working with vigilantes in the past.

But for now; he had to get back to class.

@ch0sen1

The room was filled with soldiers, each wearing clothes that were covered in maroon and white camouflage, and with the Arkham logos on each shoulder. They were all directed towards one screen with what appeared to be Batman's armor thoroughly outlined, with the Knight standing in front of it. "Remember: Don't shoot at the giant Bat symbol on symbol on his chest. It's a trick, where his armor's the strongest. Aim for the outlines in the shoulders and coordinate fire where the plates meet." Todd said in his modified voice as he paced around the small, wooden stage. "You're all dismissed." As they began to leave, Jason pointed at a rather tall looking man who appeared to have some extra armor. "Lieutenant, you stay."

The man walked over to the Knight and stood tall, as a good soldier should. "Sir?" The man asked Todd. Jason nodded and brought him into the other room, just in case any others heard their conversation. Todd didn't trust all of his men completely, they are just hired guns after all. Todd stood to the man's side and looked at him directly for the first time since their conversation started. "Do we have any leads on that Spiderkid?" Todd said. Jason was keeping tabs on every so called "hero" that stepped foot into Gotham. He didn't want anyone to interfere with his plan for Bruce when Scarecrow launched his attack on Gotham. He could keep SHIELD and the rest of the government out by setting up roadblocks and watchtowers all over the city, but people like this kid were different. He figured that perhaps he could figure out why he was in Gotham and help him accomplish his goal. No one came to Gotham for a place to live, after all.

The soldier shook his head. "No sir, we have practically nothing about the kid except that he used to operate in New York." Jason sighed and looked down. "Well I guess that I'll have to find him in person. Be on a lookout." The soldier nodded. "Yes sir!" And with that, Jason waited for the next time Spidey made a public appearance.
@mr_pibbs

 

[Gands]

Tell yah what boyo, under that mask I am guessing you weren''t a bad fellah once and may not be now. I am gonna give yah Eighty grand up front. You are on call..hero for hire.

When that runs out, come talk to me and we will make more arrangements savvy ?

 

[Ringmaster]

Tell yah what boyo, under that mask I am guessing you weren''t a bad fellah once and may not be now. I am gonna give yah Eighty grand up front. You are on call..hero for hire.

When that runs out, come talk to me and we will make more arrangements savvy ?

"I'm not in the business of accepting charity...I earn my keep."

Pride talking perhaps, but I wasn't about to accept a handout from anyone. Experience had made me wary of that.

"So before I take the money, I'll ask first what I can do to earn it."

@Gands @Michale CS​

 

[Gands]

Yah said yah weren't a hero. I intend to prove otherwise. Be available for hero type work when I need yah. Bill me for your time, when I run out of credit boyo, we can talk again. That seem fair ?

 

[Ringmaster]

Yah said yah weren't a hero. I intend to prove otherwise. Be available for hero type work when I need yah. Bill me for your time, when I run out of credit boyo, we can talk again. That seem fair ?

"That's....Acceptable. Though I'd like the right to determine my own missions."

Getting up, he adjusted his collar.

"There are some things which would make me too public which I can't afford and others which may step on the toes of others I have dealt with. Beyond that, I find these terms acceptable."

@Gands @Michale CS​

 

[York]

I smile at you.

As ready as I every will be !

I drive you to my home. A three story brownstone with a well kept façade.

I seem to go through three or four layers of locks to get in. The front area is well lit and you spot at least one camera up high.

Inside, a well kept entryway which seems a little bit dusty to Lilly's eyes. Inside the home Lilly's keen eye will notice, that outside of the couch, the home seems decorated some twenty years back. Several bookcases line the walls, a large stereo system in one corner with large speakers, which would be expensive state of the art equipment twenty years ago.

A modern curved screen television, quite large is opposite the couch and chairs. I snap a finger and lights go on. Using a remote hidden in my pocket, the stereo starts up, a vinyl recording of the English band Queen in the background.

Welcome to my castle Lilly. I don't get the chance to show it to visitors. Make yourself at home while I put the finishing touches on our meal !

A three story brownstone with a well kept façade.

(( Just helping with an image link. @Gands try the Image link button nearest the X2 ​ button when you want them to show. the "with options" thing tends to glitch up - The Editor. Excelsior! ))

Lilly Briant (Argent Sentinel)

@Gands

Lilly looked around, taking in the sights... Things had certainly taken a quick turn from the bustling city, to what looked like a mantion of some sort. Looks like Grady had some wealth on him, but, unlike her... Late father, he had been alot more productive with his money, either that or his house was inherited, it was a little too early now to tell which one it was.

Though, her observation about his potential wealth seemed to be correct, as indicated by the four layers of locks they had to go through, but her attention was focused on a camera up high, near where she was. Years of time performing increasingly higher risk tasks have taught her to be cautious, and she had to fight the urge to take the camera down with a well placed shot or two, more of a force of habbit than any sense of personal distrust, but fortunately enough, nothing like that happened... And they seemed to make it inside without an incident.

Once she entered though, it became pretty clear the place was kind of dusty, hmm... Well, perhaps this was just an family heirloom? She had little intel on most people, other than potential targets, so in this case, she was going in with little knowledge on Grady, except what he had already told her.

Even if she was probably able to acquire some intel on him, she had chosen not to... Out of trust, granted she still had her guard up, just in case. Lilly looked around one last time before she finally sat down, cleariing her throat a little as she waited for Grady to make dinner; almost anything would taste better than her diet at home at this point.

"Family heirloom, right?" She asked, gesturing around at the house.

It was an inquiry she knew she would have had to make sooner or later; she really was curious how Grady came into possession of a place like this. As it was apparant that he didn't really have any hired help to keep the place in good condition, though it was unclear if he simply didn't want any, or just couldn't afford any.





​

 

[Gands]

My father's place, the home I grew up in. He died when I was fourteen or so.

I'm sorry about the dust, I usually come in through the garage.

The smell of the cooking comes into the living room as dinner is warmed up.

As Lilly looks more closely, much of the décor and contents of the living room is well over twenty years old. Well maintained, for example the stereo system, very state of the art for 1996.

 

[Gands]

Fair enough Boyo, but I'll need a way of contacting you. have yah thought of an old school Pager ?

@Ringmaster

 

[York]

My father's place, the home I grew up in. He died when I was fourteen or so.

I'm sorry about the dust, I usually come in through the garage.

The smell of the cooking comes into the living room as dinner is warmed up.

As Lilly looks more closely, much of the décor and contents of the living room is well over twenty years old. Well maintained, for example the stereo system, very state of the art for 1996.

Lilly Briant (Argent Sentinel)
@Gands

Lilly just nodded slowly... She couldn't imagine growing up without a father was very easy, but then again, she didn't exactly have much of a father figure to begin with. After all, how close could you really get to someone who had long since strayed from their rightfull path? Especially if they wanted you to follow in their own footsteps.

She shook her head a little, focusing her thoughts on something else for the moment, which happened to be the decor... Around a few decades old.

"Guess you didn't feel like redecorating?" She asked.

The smell of food was making her a little hungry, but fortunately... She was patient enough to wait as long as she needed for the food to be ready.
​

 

[Gands]

Yeah, its not really a monument, but every time I think about changing and modernizing the living room something distracts me. Some of the rest of the house has been done. But the garage and the living room. That's were the memories of my dad were the strongest. It's been about seven years now, and I can still feel him in there sometimes. Stupid right ?

The oven bell rings and I start putting things on the dinning room table. Home made chicken pot pies, Mashed potatoes, mixed salad and iced water. The dinning room has been dusted recently but doesn't quite have that lived in feeling. When Lilly gets to the dinning room though, she can see the thoroughly modern and clean kitchen. As she moves into the dinning room a record drops onto the record player and the dulcet tones of Elvis can be heard clearly.

@york

 

[York]

Yeah, its not really a monument, but every time I think about changing and modernizing the living room something distracts me. Some of the rest of the house has been done. But the garage and the living room. That's were the memories of my dad were the strongest. It's been about seven years now, and I can still feel him in there sometimes. Stupid right ?

The oven bell rings and I start putting things on the dinning room table. Home made chicken pot pies, Mashed potatoes, mixed salad and iced water. The dinning room has been dusted recently but doesn't quite have that lived in feeling. When Lilly gets to the dinning room though, she can see the thoroughly modern and clean kitchen. As she moves into the dinning room a record drops onto the record player and the dulcet tones of Elvis can be heard clearly.

Lilly Briant (Argent Sentinel)
@Gands

Lilly shook her head, smiling a little... Though despite what one may think, she wasn't really patronizing Grady... On the contrary, actually. She understood why he wouldn't want to redecorate; losing a father figure like that probably wouldn't sit well with most well adjusted folk. Though admittedly, she couldn't exactly call herself well adjusted, given the circumstances of her life and all, but of course, even if she wanted to, she couldn't exactly blab all about it. Not just for her own sake, but for everyone's sake, really, the past should stay just that; the past.

"It's only... Natural." She said finally.

Her tone had some pity in it... And, perhaps a hint of jealousy. Of course, to someone who was not so knowledgeable about her past, this sort of thing would seem puzzling indeed.​

 

[Gands]

You think ? My tone is softer, still laced with plenty of self doubt as I sat down for dinner.
Well, it is what it is I suppose. Change regarding my father or what remains of his stuff comes very slowly for me. He was something of a wiseguy, and pretty successful. He left me the house and a bit of money.

How about you ? You are in great shape, with the killer outfit. I smile at you, but I'm looking into your eyes. How is it you come to be... well... in this business ?

 

[York]

You think ? My tone is softer, still laced with plenty of self doubt as I sat down for dinner.
Well, it is what it is I suppose. Change regarding my father or what remains of his stuff comes very slowly for me. He was something of a wiseguy, and pretty successful. He left me the house and a bit of money.

How about you ? You are in great shape, with the killer outfit. I smile at you, but I'm looking into your eyes. How is it you come to be... well... in this business ?

Lilly Briant (Argent Sentinel)
@Gands

Lilly took a moment to consider Grady's question, frowning a little, before she shrugged a little, and spoke.

"Chance, I guess. Can't just stand idly around with all that corruption on Gotham." She said simply.

Well, it was pretty obvious there was more to it than that, but at the same time... There was probably a good reason Lilly kept the whole thing classified. For someone with an remarkable amount of training, she didn't seem very wealthy, so the question was still up in the air about who she was, before her life began as a crime fighter, that is.​

 

[Gands]

I laugh a bit, Okay, fair enough.

I have to remember, she's a mask and doesn't know me very well yet. Trust may come in time.
Probably remarkable we've gotten this far. I've looked at Lilly several times, trying not to be obvious at least. It's clear she doesn't do this very much. Probably more prepared to kick my ass if I do something stupid than she is to talk about her secrets.

Do you like old movies Lilly ?

 

[York]

I laugh a bit, Okay, fair enough.

I have to remember, she's a mask and doesn't know me very well yet. Trust may come in time.
Probably remarkable we've gotten this far. I've looked at Lilly several times, trying not to be obvious at least. It's clear she doesn't do this very much. Probably more prepared to kick my ass if I do something stupid than she is to talk about her secrets.

Do you like old movies Lilly ?

Lilly Briant (Argent Sentinel)
@Gands

Lilly paused, considering the question a bit more, she'd been more occupied with the local news than movies, especially older ones, but, she did recall a few from her childhood. Admittedly she had been secretly watching a few movies here and there while her father had passed out, typically from getting a little too much to drink.

"Hmm... Seen a few." She said, raising a brow.

At the least, it looks like Grady had her attention, but as per usual, she didn't seem to be revealing too much. Perhaps it was for the sake of her pride though, if anything right now.​