I Moderate (i_moderate) wrote in we_archive, @ 2005-12-10 17:19:00 |
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Entry tags: | apollo, barbara gordon, bruce wayne, death of the endless, gun battle, helena wayne, jesse custer, kyle rayner, plot, theodore kord |
i_moderate Part 2
From: [info]i_shine Date: 12/12/2005 07:35:55
The sound of gunshots seemed to be coming from every street in the city; Apollo wasn't sure if the City was trying to confuse any potential intervention, or the gunmen were multiplying and moving out. Either way, he was doing what he could to contain one large group.
It involved a lot of broken bones.
Bullets held little power of Apollo, as long as he kept up his concentration. A super-heated aura around him made sure nothing got closer than a few feet, and even if he was hit he would heal fairly quickly. He as also trying to keep an eye out for other costumed people; a niggling voice at the back of his mind told him he couldn't be the only one in the City.
From: [info]i_seekgod Date: 12/12/2005 07:49:39
Even in the hospital, he could hear the gunshots. But, then, Jesse wasn't entirely unused to hearing gunshots, coming from Texas. Sometimes people liked to fire a gun just for the sake of wasting a bullet.
But this didn't quite sound like that.
He'd heard of things like this on the news. He'd seen things similar on television. But he'd never really been in the same place at the same time.
There wasn't much he could do about it. He didn't think his nurse would allow him to hobble outside with his IV still attached so he could scream at the city to stop it, or shut up (in that special way).
And he wasn't entirely sure the city would listen anyway.
So, instead, he sat back on his pillows, and ate his pudding.
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/16/2005 15:07:38
Batman (cnt)
" He's distracted and unfocused." He didn't oblige with further conversation. Instead, he climbed up further onto the roof the building and turned south.
The first crossing was a leap, cape lightly extended for lift. The second required the grapple again. The stability of the building held.
He paused on his way across to the third. Down below the street itself seemed to be changing, alley storefronts appearing where the backs of apartments once were. But the tallest building held.
He used it to cross.
"Where is the Green Lantern ?"
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 12/16/2005 19:17:08
Re: Batman (cnt)
She looked at her screens and then back at the red flashing beacon that was Batman. "Five buildings in, three to your left. He's been moving in slowly, and I don't blame him. I suspect everyone but you is going in blind. Are you seeing anything interesting I should take note of?"
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/17/2005 15:00:01
He swung over to building number four and paused, looking down into the street itself. There playing out was a mini skirmish of gang warfare.
No rhyme. No reason.
A turf war over turf that changed when it felt like it. Could they not tell ? Was there no one down there who remembered a city other than this one ?
He tapped his communicator again, it didn't need to be voice activated right now. "No leaders. A lot of street soldiers with weapons trying to establish turf and dominance."
The comm link snapped off and Batman dropped. He wasn't interested in talking to them right now. They weren't all wearing colors or identifying costumes. But if he wasn't the only one out here in costume, it'd soon occur to the shooters to find a way to tell their own from the rest. Why inspire them early.
Dangling upside down from his lifeline, he tapped one on the shoulder who was straggling, and when the man looked around, a hard punch knocked him out completely.
It was easy work to haul him up to a nearby fire-escape, tape his wrists and dump him by a an open trashcan for the cops; if the cops ever showed up.
Hidden in the shadows of the alley, he caught two others before returning to the rooftops.
A tap of the ear and, "Have you seen any police ?"
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 12/19/2005 21:17:55
"Yes, and they're just as... shall we say, cautious, as the GPD." Babs said, smirking to herself as she looked at the ring around the shooting the police had formed. It didn't seem to be doing anything as the shooters certainly weren't walking out and turning themselves over to the cops. "They've set up a peremiter around the shootings, but that's all. No one is actually going in. It's going to be up to you all in the costumes, I'm afraid."
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/20/2005 14:09:33
'Cautious'. He knew what that really meant. And it explained a lot. But he'd worked without police back-up before. He could again.
A glimmer of something familiar, a woman , caught his eye.
"Going offline." He said abruptly.
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/19/2005 20:49:50
Even with a brush with death by way of a bullet, the call sometimes just couldn’t stop the Blue Beetle. The face of death, from it being a stupid mistake, a gut feeling, or his dicky heart finally giving out, didn’t seem to matter.
He knew bright blue made him an easy target, and that moving, flipping, through the rain of bullets wasn’t the brightest of ideas. But as he approached one of the goons with a quick striking kick and a punch later, the adrenaline flooded in his veins and he didn’t care. “How could you not see me? Want me to wear florescent tape, next time?” The Blue Beetle snarked, barely moving to the side to hear a bullet go whizzing by his ear.
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/19/2005 21:14:27
His interlude with Death over with. Batman landed on the nearest roof, trying to see who the most integral parts of this firefight were. Perhaps they could be taken out, despite how difficult the city was making it. And without even these dismal leaders...
Out in the distance, between the dark colors that meant urban thug, someone was dancing with bullets in a bright blue outfit.
A flick at his waist, brought out his scopes. Pressed to his eyes, measuring distance and zooming in for a close up, Batman observed a not half bad martial arts technique. Which combined with an outfit that strange, meant hero.
Binoculars replaced, he ran lightly over a tar covered roof, before dropping down into the middle of the fight, body already spinning to kick a gun out of an assailant's hand, his cape fluttering like a ghost or the whisper of a demon.
Batman let go of his grapple gun, long enough to punch one of of the idiots in the face. The handle skimmed up along it's line, awaiting a remote signal to lower again.
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/19/2005 21:28:17
The Blue Beetle barely heard the whisper of the cape, he barely noticed the new comer into the fight. He wasn't half bad, but he still had flaws. While atempting to dodge a bullet, one of the closer thugs slipped by allowing a punch to connect to his jaw. Beetle grunted, hating the pain but tried to push it away. He heard a grunt of someone else getting punched, as his fist knocked hard and sure into one of the thugs' stomach. He glanced up, and nearly gasped.
It could not be him, it just couldn't.
"You son of a bitch," He found himself growling, throwing another punch, trying to keep his focus and wishing he had something with him, even the damn light gun would have been helpful right now.
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/19/2005 21:38:28
Not taking the words as directed at him, and not immediately recognizing the costume; though given Oracle's intel it wasn't a surprise not to, he molded his style into something that could compliment the man he was now fighting with.
A fourth thug went down, with a sharp jab to the throat and a twist of Batman's arms straining the wrist almost to a hairline fracture. An almost casual looking finishing backhand lowered the numbers around them once again.
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/19/2005 21:55:34
"You!" A swift kick to one of the thugs groins, aiming for the scrotum. Not fair at all, but now Beetle was furious. How the hell could Batman be so casual, but then again, it was Batman. Or at the least, the one he remembered.
"After this, you are not gonna do that damn 'I am the Night!' bullshit and sneaking off. We're going to talk." Another kick to another thug, the numbers falling quickly. Beetle's voice notably, did not change much throughout his life... He never adopted a 'hero voice'.
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/19/2005 22:04:34
Behind his mask, in his eyes, there was the slightest glimmer of a smile. Whoever this man was, he certainly sounded like someone who knew him. In fact, he sounded a little bit like Barbara in her younger years when she got particularly pissy and had to be taken down a few pegs.
There was something a bit amusing and not unnerving to run into people who seemed to know him. Or maybe it was realizing that despite the tone and simmering anger, the other hero was relaxed around him. Trusting in his body-langage and openings.
Batman's fingers brushed his belt. He wouldn't fight with someone distracted. The pellets hit the ground with a slight crack and then a puff of grey gas.
A crook of his fingers had the grapple gun receding from the night, into his hand. Batman made a grab for the man in blue, and pulled them both out of the way of the sleeping pellets before they could take effect.
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/19/2005 22:28:12
Ted felt someone grab his arm as he drew back to throw a punch. He would have tossed the man over his shoulder, a simple judo move he learned when he was younger, and not much else. He was hoisted into the air with a brief yelp of surprise. It wasn’t as if flying through the air was a new thing to him, but getting yanked up with out any warning was something totally different than using his own grappling tools to lower himself from the Bug.
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/19/2005 22:35:23
It wasn't the best grip, and he was briefly tempted to release and grab again, preferably around the waist or by the hand; something solid. But without knowing the other man would automatically relax his body and not strain anything, he didn't.
A swing inward and they were landing on a fire-escape four stories up. He felt a brief pang of sharp nostalgia for Gotham's turrets, walkways and convient gargoyle niches. This was still too exposed. Though not as exposed as the bare rooftop might be, with someone in bright electric blue. It looked even brighter than Robin's uniform.
Batman folded his arms, head tilted sideways and forward a bit, a listening position, even if the arm blades on his gauntlets were every so subtly turned out defensively.
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/19/2005 23:02:39
Breathe, that was the first thing that Beetle did as his feet landed onto the fire escape. It was turf he was used to, he had swung down from them often enough to kick or pull himself up to safety. His stance was somewhat easy as his hand moved over his heart, expecting a flaring pain that cursorily did not come.
Ted looked up with a scowl, then pulling off the goggles and cowl, still assuming this Batman was the same. “Son of a bitch. You didn’t follow up, did you? Guess it doesn’t matter now, does it?” His fists tightened, knowing he couldn’t win a fight against Batman, “We’re ‘here’, whatever this place is. And the JL, the rest of them, they don’t know what the hell is going on.”
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/19/2005 23:11:04
He hadn't recognized the costume, but the face. Bruce knew the face. And as Batman, he had some familiarity as well.
"Ted Kord." There was the barest hint of a question in the low voice. He made a hard mental note on the name 'Max Lord'. The chaos down below them was a sure sign of the vacuum in the Underworld. Or rather that there was no Underworld. No power players. No one to be as afraid of as those who came out to fight injustice in the night. Not yet.
But all out gang warfare could create legends, even as the City brought what it needed.
"I don't know a Max Lord." It seemed the simplest way to get the point across that he was likely not the Batman, Ted was expecting.
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/19/2005 23:34:18
"Yes, Ted Kord. Who else wears a stupid blue..." He began to say and trailed off when Batman spoke in that low tone. "... you don't remember Max? But you remember me- no..." He fell silent, gathering his thoughts. "Shit."
His shoulders slumped for a moment, the day's events weighing upon him and remembering the young man he was talking to before, and the man in leather. Different worlds. He had to figure this out. "Only time I can even think of you knowing about me was installing the security system, before college..."
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/19/2005 23:44:06
There was a slight head movement, as if Ted were being looked over. Carefully. Then a short abrupt nod.
Age. That was what was different about him. "You grew into yourself." A pause. "Good moves."
Leaning back a bit, Batman slid into a familiar crouch on the banister of the fire-escape. "Is there an Oracle in your time ?" Because if Barbara knew anything about 'Max Lord' why hadn't she told him ? And if she didn't, was Ted from a future further ahead than her ? A future the Batcave came from, perhaps ? And why wouldn't he have followed up on a tip ?
The series of questions made him mildly pensive.
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/20/2005 00:10:40
Despite his bluster, he still couldn't help feel just a tad nervous under the Batman's gaze. He smirked slightly, the praise still forgien sounding coming from the taller and larger man. " 'Good moves'? Okay, that's freaky." Part of Ted was still frustrated, the figure was so familiar, yet alien. A compliment, actually listening to them. "You keep remembering that if you ever go back and hear the word, Kooky. Just realize I'm making a mistake of youth and I'll get a kramatic punishment in the end. If you... get back."
Ted glanced down and listened to the gunfire fade and the sounds of fighting. It seemed to be slowing down. "Yeah, I know Oracle, Barbara, we're friends... where I'm from." He rubbed his neck, still trying to find his bearings. "I'm just out of it. I got here... eariler today?"
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/20/2005 00:18:39
So he knew the Oracle personally, enough to know her name."She still had wings where I'm from." It still bothered him, knowing she'd been shot. Knowing and not having the memories of trying to fix it somehow.
He looked out over the city a moment, and then back at Ted. In costume. Probably pulled here in costume.
A hand went up to his ear. "Oracle. I have Ted Kord. I need an address."
From: [info]i_seeall Date: 12/20/2005 15:34:39
"Ted Kord?" Babs snapped up at attention, the name making her smile. "Blue Beetle... his address you need? One second."
She imputed the needed data into her computer and then waited while it pulled up what she wanted. "Is he alright?" A beep. Babs looked over at the screen and zoomed in on the house. "1736 Vauxhill Avenue, are you headed in that direction?"
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/20/2005 16:09:57
"1736 Vauxhill Avenue." He said it outloud so that Ted could also hear it.
"He's fine. But he should know where he lives here." He glanced Ted's way and held out a micro-transmitter and a radio ear piece.
"If you still need to talk, Oracle can find me."
From: [info]i_countcalories Date: 12/20/2005 19:10:42
Ted took the transmitter with a slight frown and a confused look. "Where he lives here?" He echoed, promptly putting the transmitter on and slightly grimacing at the feeling of the ear piece in his ear. He absolutely hated the feeling of something in his ear. "Or do I have to ask Oracle about this one?" He knew better to refer to Barbara by her real name on the job.
From: [info]i_walktheline Date: 12/20/2005 19:38:23
The Batman gave Ted a scrutinizing look." Your address in the City is 1736 Vauxhill Ave. Oracle can guide you there." Because it would be more than just directions. It would be having the place in mind.
He moved to leave the fire-escape, a line shooting out to a nearby rooftop.