10179/Words That Begin with L

Words That Begin with L
Date of Scene:	12 March 2022
Location:	First National Bank of Gotham (Luck Avenue Branch)
Synopsis:	When Acid-Rock Spinning Lamas arrive on Acid-psychadelic-breathing Llamas and are confronted by Acid-spitting Lamias, who answers the call to Gotham's Luck Avenue First National Bank? M.A.N.T.I.S. and Bella, who threatens to leave the WORST review this bank has ever had!
Cast of Characters:	Phoebe Beacon, Miles Hawkins, Bella

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Phoebe Beacon has posed:
Lamentingly, Gotham City likely lacks latitude for lazy, long likeable Saturdays. As such, a likelihood of rain has resulted in a lax atmosphere, a leak in a lavatory, and a laughingly lacking attempt at containment -- a blue bin marked 'LUKE'S'.

The First National Bank of Gotham City (Luck Avenue Branch) is a smallish, but powerful branch of the bank, with offices up on a second floor, and the ground floor dominated by the tiled lobby and long tellers' desk.

The quiet is split by the sound of hoofbeats and the nearing sound of artistic guitar distortion before a group of five men, wearing orange and red robes with sports sunglasses, each astride overgrown and wooly llamas sporting DJ turntables trot into the bank, causing all to turn and stare.

The Lead Lama drapes his arm forward.

"Good afternoon, people of the Gotham City First National Bank! I would like to be come one with everything..." he pauses for dramatic effect, and lowers his sunglasses "... in your tills and vaults, please."

And the llamas begin to burp, with acid green and vivid violet swirling gas coming from their nostrils rising up.

Miles Hawkins has posed:
It's probably not a good idea to be out and about during the day when you're looking to make a career out of working outside the law, but if you're determined to actually do some good with it, there are times when you don't have the option to pick and choose your battles. This was one such time in which the M.A.N.T.I.S. didn't have the luxury of waiting until nightfall, but fortunately was able to resolve the issue without too much hassle.

It's on the way back from the successful run that Hawkins is taking a discreet flight path back towards the Seapod, and just by coincidence is veering past the block where an.. odd procession happens to catch the eye, Hawkins giving a doubletake down to the street below before switching on his comms. "John -- was there a parade scheduled through Luck Avenue today?"

"Not that I've heard of."comes the answer back. "Why?"

"I'm not sure you'd believe me if I told you. Stand by." And so saying, Hawkins aims guides the Chrysalid down to land on the rooftop of a building across the way..

Bella has posed:
It's not often that Bella ventures outside of the New York City area, but the bad rep that Gotham has keeps a lot of decent people out of it. Also happens it means the First National Bank of Gotham City has a good rep for security, what with the multitudes of crazies trying to constantly rob it. There's also the added benefit of the Bat Patrol or whatever they're called, giving an extra added level of safety.

So that's why someone like Bella would have no issue have significant savings in the bank's vaults, and today she just so happens to have come in for a transaction. She does stand out in her manner of dress, almost looking like a cosplayer, or a very deeply invested goth, complete with shades and a black parasol.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Bella, coincidentally, garnered a couple of Looks walking in, but it's nothing too out of the ordinary for Gotham City. Has Goth right in the name.

    Everyone else in the bank is pretty focused on the Llamas being ridden by Lamas, with acid snot and acid rock.

    The silent alarm was pressed long ago, and Gotham's Finest are already en route -- minus that one of Gotham's Finest was on the odd daylight patrol for the sake of a bit of training, but also had to stop into the bank to check on a safe deposit box.

    Phoebe steps back into some shadows, and does a quick-change of her outfit, in lieu of the nice dark blue pantssuit, she was now hooded, with black leather leggings and combat boots, showing her scarred up left arm as she gathered a little power in her hands.

    The rank and file of Gotham's blue class know the drill, they duck and cower off to the sides while the tellers begin to empty their tills.

    "That's right, nice and easy, friends. Money is the route of all evil, after all. The root of suffering is desire, and we are here to remove such temptations from you." the Lead Lama states, urging his snorting, smoking llama forward. The gas from the nostrils of the wooly camelid begins to drop down, heavier than air.

Miles Hawkins has posed:
Crouched down on the rooftop across the way, Hawkins blinks behind his headset lenses as he's able to get enough of an angle to get a view of the inside. Not a *complete* view of all that weirdness, enough of one at least. "John, do you see this?"

Back at the Seapod, John Stonebrake stares as he keys into the view from the headset, and gets enough magnification to see inside. "I am. *What* I'm seeing, however, is another matter entirely. Are those -llamas-?"

"It appears so." That's Gotham City for you.

Stonebrake glances aside as an alert comes up on another screen on the console. "Miles, the silent alarm's been tripped. Whatever's going on in there, I very much doubt it's an outing of the local zoo. What are you going to do?"

A long moment's pause before the reluctant answer. "Too many people inside. I'll have to wait for a chance."

Bella has posed:
It's when the llamas invade with their noxious breath or whatever it is Bella couldn't be bothered with, that she turns to look about with dismay painted on her face. "Are we seriously turning this bank into a circus...? Did it have to be on the day I have business here...?" She says to no specific, exasperation heavily dripping from her words. "Is there anyway at all to postpone this ridiculous promotion to a day...unimportant peasants come about? I have a reputation to keep!"

"Oh...money takes a bad rep, but I can promise you there's greater evil out there," Bella addresses the man giving his speech on how he has a noble goal behind it all. "Like you for instance, disrupting very important business for pagentry."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    That is, indeed, Gotham for you.

    THe noxious gas begins to settle thicker. The captives closest to the llamas begin to give gasps, reaching out and trying to grasp at thin air as they begin to hallucinate.

    The girl in the black hood gives an amused look to Bella, and gives a whisper of "New in town?" before she takes a deep breath of the air, wrinkling her nose.

    "Hallucinagens? Where'd they get llamas that smoke acid?!" she wonders out loud,

    And then the girl with the black hood twists her fingers and gives a mutter in Latin under her breath, and the air vents seem to activate on full. swirling the smokey green adn violet gas. Why was it always green and violet?

    Meanwhile, Hawkins is going to see another curious happenstance. A crack in the sidewalk glows a white-red, and then errupts with a most curious event -- three women begin to crawl out, thin, emaciated, enlongated limbs, stringy hair, Greek-styled curiasses -- AND SNAKE BOTTOMS.

    People on the sidewalk scream, since even this is more than unusual for GOtham City, and begin to scatter about as the three snake women rise up to a terrifying ten foot height, and begin to converse, reaching for the doors of the bank.

    Inside the bank, the lamas riding acid-gas llamas are beginning to collect their illicit gains when they notice the winds... have changed!

Miles Hawkins has posed:
Stonebrake gives a start as the sediment seems to split, sending forth sinister snake-women. "What the Devil?! -- Miles, they're heading for -- "

"I see it!" And just like that, waiting is no longer an option. Hawkins straightens, then leaps forward, dropping effortlessly down the several stories to land...

"STOP!" And it's the M.A.N.T.I.S. who's come to land behind the trio, disorted voice booming as the dark figure with insectoid harness and helm rises to his feet, hand raised in a forbidding gesture. "You will go no further!"

Bella has posed:
Bella eyes the girl in the black hood, and a glimpse would suggest something is 'different' with Bella, considering the weird crystalline blue hue, and her pupils being...just odd. "New is not a word many use to refer to me," Bella says indignantly. Another thing of note is that Bella doesn't seem in the slightest bothered about the noxious gas, nor does she seem affected.


"Oh my..." a rather chill Bella mutters with a sharper annoyance, "you've brought in nagas too...? Ugh...can you please let me know ahead of time when you bring your circus in so I know not to waste my time, and come in a different day? This is inexcusable!"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The three snake women stop at the door. One tilts her head, stringy hair draping down like wet seaweed as she regards the MANTIS, and she stretches her inlongated fingers with sharp nails.

    <What is this? A bug? Do they have giant bugs in this city?>

    <I don't know,> the other replies, and shrugs. <What do we do, eat him?>

    The two towering snake women look at each other, grin menicingly, mouths full of sharp teeth, and then with surprising speed for snakes they launch themselves at the MANTIS, trying to grab his arms and put him to the Gotham street!

    Inside, the llamas are getting restless. One of the Lamas spots the Lamia peering in, and she gives a toothy grin, too wide for her narrow face as she opens the door and allows fresh air in.

    "-- no, no that's Greek. Lamia, not Naga." the girl in the hood replies, and she eyeballs Bella with a little concern, but as the Lamas turn to regard the Lamia, the Llamas stomping and increasing the output of the psychedelic gas, and suddenly one Lama spinning up some Jefferson Airplane, it's probably not the best time to ask.

     So, with all that in mind, Phoebe utters another phrase in Scouse-stained Latin, and launches a fireball at the feet of one of the llamas!

Miles Hawkins has posed:
This insect however, is going to prove somewhat difficult to catch, much less crunch. Exoskeleton-boosted reflexes kick in as the M.A.N.T.I.S. is able to, at least briefly, match speed for speed, springing back even as the duo spring forward and letting them grab at empty air. His arms coming up, targeting reticles tracking the motions of his eyes as he fires off a pair of darts, one from the back of each wrist and one for each target. Whether they'll actually strike is one question; what they'll actually *do* is another. The paralytic mechanics behind the darts were geared specifically for human targets, after all...

Bella has posed:
"Lamia...?" Bella seems to doubt it as she considers, weirdly enough not at all concerned about having a small debate in the middle of all this chaos, "I'm pretty sure Naga was it...no? I mean you see them around soooo rarely these days, they used to be much more common in the 5th century," she notes, before breaking in laughter, "which is just a wild guess of course!" After this faux laugh, she asks the hooded girl, "so...are you on some kind of schedule here? I really do need to make this one transaction, if you could postpone this..." she twirls her fingers dismissively, "ruckus, by say...10 minutes? I would really appreciate it...I mean, having to kill the lot of you would be sooooo bothersome."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Bank's closed, Sister Smalls." Phoebe chides, drawing her shields up as one of the llamas spit at her. It strikes an eight-pointed star, surrounded by Old Heremetic text, illuminating her fce and the glint of rose-gold in her eyes. "And pretty sure they're Lamia -- I speak Ancient Greek!"

    One of the Lamas is struck off his llama by the fireball making the llama toss the lama in a YEET like fashion, the llama then coming at Bella with a bleat and preparing to spit its noxious fumes at her.

    Meanwhile the Lamia who have been struck by the paralytic darts off MANTIS lurch forward. The darts have struck true, and they are getting a little lethargic, lazily lunging for the clergyman insectoid hero!

    Meanwhile, the head Lamia has entered the bank, and snarls out in Ancient Greek that she can SMELL the filth of human magics in this place, and vows to consume everyone in the buildling. Pretty scary should you speak the language.

    Most people don't, and have decided that they are done. They begin to evacuate through side doors now that the Llama-riding Lamas are turning their attention to the new interloper.

Miles Hawkins has posed:
Mental-note: supernatural-looking (ever the scientist, Miles will leave it at 'looking' for now) snake women are only partially affected by the darts. Which just leaves brute force as the other option. Fortunately, they *have* slowed the duo enough that he can spare a few precious seconds to focus on one at a time, at least. Pulling aside to avoid those grasping claw-hands before dropping down, and then springing up and over, boosted strength letting him clear that ten-foot height easily. And darting a hand to try and seize hold of one lamia's head as he goes, and bring it slamming it down into the concrete as he lands.

Bella has posed:
"It really depends if you are looking to the Greek or the Hindu though," Bella remarks impatiently at the woman, annoyed at the argument itself. "Gosh...look at this pandemonium...such a travesty when proper gentlemen and ladies can't perform simple transactions at a well reputed bank. Shambles!"

Waving her hand about, pointing at random hapless employees, Bella calls out, "this is very unprofessional, and wated a day time journey for me, which is a hassle in and of itself! I'll be leaving you all terrible reviews which you aptly deserve!" Having yelled her opinion, Bella grumbles as she turns to leave, doing her best to avoid panicing people are llamas.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Bella is permitted to leave the premesis, admittedly through a side door as further pandemonium breaks out. The ruckus refuses to be contained until a ripping sound is heard, like a rent in very strong fabric.

    The lamia on the outside goes down, her head slammed against the concrete. The paralytic component in the dart appears to have FINALLY done its work, the other Lamia languishing liquidly on the sidewalk as the one who entered the bank toussels with one of the DJ lamas and his acid-spewing llama.

    The girl in the hood, meanwhile, has appeared to have had quite enough.

    "Valeo! Horribiles visiones, ad fontes tuos redi et abi!" she commands -- and Llamas, Lamas, Lamias, spewing, spinning and spitting Acid are torn asunder like so many paper dolls.