11172/Holdup at Al's Corner Store

Holdup at Al's Corner Store
Date of Scene:	15 May 2022
Location:	Al's Corner Store
Synopsis:	A pair of robbers pick a bad night to rob Al's Corner Store. It all goes wrong when someone gets shot, leading to an intervention by those nearby - and a disturbing encounter as two monsters in disguise reveal themselves.
Cast of Characters:	Kim Hayes, Sarah Rainmaker, Michael Hannigan, Andi Benton, Robbie Reyes, Susan Sullivan

---

Kim Hayes has posed:
    It's late night in Hell's Kitchen. The neighbourhood seems relatively quiet, for once - at least, the corner of the neighbourhood that serves as the namesake for Al's Corner Store.

    It's not too far from the Clinton Apartment building, and that makes it a prime choice for Kim Hayes when it comes to needing her regular late-night fix. Not cigarettes or booze, on this occasion, or most occasions - rather, it's for King Sized Hershey bars. The grungy young woman is carrying the handful of them up to the counter when she stops to look into one of the liquor fridges.

    <<Stop procrastinating! Why do you even want that poison?>>

    "'Cause it makes it easier to ignore you," Kim mutters to herself as she rolls her eyes.

    "Going on a camping trip again, kid?" the clerk calls over to Kim.

    "Yeah, man. I love camping," Kim replies with a sidelong glance and half-hearted smile, holding up the mittful of chocolate bars and giving them a shake.

Sarah Rainmaker has posed:
Sarah Rainmaker is out for a walk and working to clear her head some. Sarah is wearing a t-shirt and jeans, nothing that particularly stands out. Meandering her way through Hell's Kitchen, somehow managing to not stand out or get too much attention as she does. So she's over in a light jog and generally keeping a low profile. She's passing by over towards the direction of the convenience store. A bit hungry, and at this time not seeing any other options that really grab her attention, at a slow pace she goes to arc over in that direction.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
This is not the most ideal store nor the closest for one Michael Hannigan. But at this hour, and with an emergency call from a friend feeding in a request, he is here now. The usual efforts have been made to avoid being recognized for his stage persona. And usually it works.

Cheaper clothing, trademark hair pulled back and tucked under the shirt to hide the length, a change in posture and quiet mannerisms are on the menu tonight as Mike opens the door, stepping into the shop. He glances around quietly before he pulls a sheet of paper out of his pocket. He starts wandering towards the back. Maybe the third store will be the charm.

Andi Benton has posed:
<<Mania>> We are hungry, Andi.
<<Andi>> You're always hungry.
<<Mania>> That is not the point. We are hungrier right now.
<<Andi>> We already had chocolate earlier. You want more?
<<Mania>> Yes. You do not know this by now? We did not just bond yesterday.

With that, a grumbling young woman in a goth/punk style trudges her way into the convenience store, hands stuffed into the pockets of a hoodie. Andi heads straight to the chocolate section, taking no heed of others, and is left to gesture at it. "Really? What the hell? It's almost empty! Don't they pay attention here?"

<<Mania>> Down there, Andi.

"Mr. Goodbar? Nobody eats those. Not even in the mixed miniatures bag."

Robbie Reyes has posed:
Hell's Kitchen isn't Reyes's usual stomping grounds. And the sight of the immaculately maintained, black '69 Charger with its hood-mounted BDS blower pulling up outside Al's certainly draws a few sets of eyes. It doesn't exactly blend in.

Robbie parks, switches off the ignition, and surveys the street in front of the convenience store for a good minute or two before climbing out. Leather jacket unzipped over a white hoodie, black skinny jeans and converse; he looks like a punk. Type of kid the clerks keep their eye on around here.

Keys shoved into his jacket pocket, he moseys on over to the door, and opens it for the older lady having some trouble getting out.

Kim Hayes has posed:
    Wearing a grey hoodie over an oversized t-shirt and striped wool pyjama pants, Kim looks to anyone who happens to care like she wasn't even planning to leave home - or else she's simply phenomenally lazy. Of course, you could draw either conclusion and you'd still be right. Of course, it gets even worse if you realize that all she'd have to do to be wearing appropriate attire is tell her Symbiote to turn into jeans and a nice shirt. Fortunately, people generally aren't aware that she has a Symbiote, if they've even heard of them. She doesn't share because nobody would understand what it's like, obviously.

    She grabs a case of Smirnoff Ice from the fridge and turns to make her way to the counter groggily.

    <<Doesn't that give you a 'funny tummy?'>>

    "Shut up, nobody calls it that," Kim mutters seemingly to no one as she steps up to the back of a line that's formed in front of the register.

    <<I took it from your thoughts.>>

    Meanwhile, two men ahead of Kim in the line give each other a look before each nodding in turn.

    "EVERYBODY FREEZE!"

    Both men pull sidearms from inside their jackets, one pointing his gun toward the clerk and the other toward the rest of the customers in the store.

    "GIMME THE MONEY!"

    "YOUR MONEY, NOW!"

    Kim's eyes go wide as her coolers and candy bars clatter to the floor.

Sarah Rainmaker has posed:
Hearing the loud yell going out of 'everybody freeze' Sarah Rainmaker goes to mutter quietly under her breath, "Lovely." She goes to cautiously approach over towards the convenience store. She's walking along slowly and quietly, trying to assess the situation ass he sees the mwn with sidearms, but she can't get a really good look through the window from the distance she's at. It's Hell's Kitchen, any sort of police response is at best going to be severely delayed even if there is one.
    From the distance seh's at, she'll take a few moments to get closer. And that's not going to put her in any real position to immediately help without escalating. So she's quietly trying to slowly cross the street, heading towards it.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"FINALLY." Mike walks over, picking up a few of the Mr.Goodbars. Giving a sigh, he turns to head back towards the chips aisle. "Feel like I'm in a warped scavenger hunt." The musician mutters, scanning the aisle for the next item on the list. "Combos...combos..." Pale eyes set on the assortment, comparing the flavor options to the one on the list. He crouches down for a better look. No match.

"F-"

The shout from the front of the store causes for him to bite back the remainder of that comment as he slowly turns his head in that direction.

You've got to be kidding him.

Andi Benton has posed:
"Ooh, someone forgot a Kit Kat." Andi scoops it up in hand and resists the very real urge to simply eat it on the spot. When someone else comes over and expresses joy at seeing a Mr. Goodbar, she eyes him with suspicion.

That is the time the robbers make their move and start training their guns on people, along with the clerk. "Motherf.." she begins to say under her breath, tucking the chocolate bar in her pocket after all. Best to keep it protected and pay later, or accept it as thanks. "Oh, no! I only have a couple dollars!" she gasps, though she finds she is nowhere near as fearful of this as she once would have been. There is a very good reason for that.

<<Mania>> We are thinking what you are thinking, Andi.
<<Andi>> Obviously.
<<Mania>> Then when the time is right, we will act.

While one of the gunmen is focused on someone else, Andi casually lobs a roll of sugary candy over toward the soda machine, where it makes a bit of a clatter.

Robbie Reyes has posed:
Robbie's ducked inside the shop with a jangle of the bell above the door, and started making his way toward the coolers at the back, when all hell breaks loose. Which.. is sort of fitting, given the locale.

The young mechanic pauses to take brief stock of who's nearby. One guy's started screaming, huddled on the floor in the cereal aisle. A couple of people who look to be in shock, and some girl trying to create a distraction by lobbing candy.

He cracks his neck and heads for the front counter, keeping his eyes locked on goon number two's. "Drop the fucking gun, before someone gets hurt." Spoiler: by 'someone', he means this unlucky thug.

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Demona walks along the rooftops in Hell's Kitchen. Why was she in Hell's Kitchen? Hunting, of course. She 'balances' her silver-inlaid iron staff on the 'nose' of her skull-themed gas mask and jumps down to a building's fire escape. She bounces down, grabbing each landing as she does some parkour toward the ground. She swings under the lowest level to grab the ladder, sliding with it to the ground before letting go, the ladder springing back up to prevent people using it to sneak into people's homes...presumably.
    Guns is not a good sign in a convenience store. Still, even from the street, the woman dressed in black can see the fruit basket sitting nearly untouched. A few apples and bananas get to pretend anyone at all ever cares about not-candy in a convenience store. Susan focuses, closing her eyes.
    Walking forward, traffic slows as she walks across the street, ignored by passers by. She crosses through the people on the sidewalk without anyone turning up from their phones. She makes it all the way up to the sensor on the door without being noticed by the robbers (and possibly by anyone else inside the store, either). However, as the doors open, she's given away, and quite obvious.
    She stands, breathing like darth vader, more noticeable than if she'd been directing traffic as her qi goes elsewhere. She says nothing and holds very still as someone seems to throw an apple at one of the robbers.

Kim Hayes has posed:
    Someone paying close enough attention outside could probably notice the low-rider that the pair of robbers in the store arrived in across the street idling, its driver looking between what's going down in the store and the street ahead and behind, alert for the approach of sirens. There aren't any yet.

    "NO CELL PHONES!" the robber who's training his gun on the customers warns, the gun shaking in his hand. He has the appearance of being less cool and collected than his partner.

    Said partner, meanwhile, steps up closer to the store owner. "Empty the f***ing register, gramps."

    "What did you say to me, buddy?!" the gunman aiming toward the customers asks, turning to train his gun on Robbie.

    Kim, for her part, has gone full deer-in-headlights. Standing as close as she is to the gunman looking in her direction, she holds her hands up in fear.

    When the candy clatters against the soda machine, though, drawing the attention of the crowd-control gunman, the panicked stoner turns to make a break for it - causing the gunman to panic in turn at the sudden movement, swivelling and firing twice into the back of Kim's hoodie. The brunette falls forward to the ground.

    "Jesus CHRIST, Manny, what did you -"

    The gunman holding up the cashier starts to turn, but notices Demona standing in the doorway, pointing his gun in her direction. "What the hell is going down now!?"

    'Manny,' for his part, gets a wild look in his eye as he trains his gun back on Robbie, failing to notice that the oozing liquid spilling from the back of Kim's hoodie and pooling under the floor rapidly isn't red - it's a disturbing mix of green and purple. And within moments, all of the stoner's clothing is starting to flow and shift into the same semi-fluid matter, rapidly creeping over her form on the floor...

Sarah Rainmaker has posed:
There are already other people in there ersponding. She goes to tense up however. Then she moves to settle herself outside. Hmm. Now is not the time to throw herself into things when there's enough chaos already afoot. More heroes can probably make things worse. So instead Sarah just positions hereslf halfway across the street to wait to see if there's any sort of backup needed. She goes to relax just a bit. At least openly. Then quickly jogging across quietly still across the rest of the street so that she's not in a position where she might get in the way of late night traffic or other things.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike remains crouched down as he processes the situation. An oddly crowded store for this time of night with two gunmen in it. Hardly a formula for calm outcomes. Now in theory if people don't try to antagonize the gunmen things should resolve themselves. But, shit happens.

The scar upon Mike's right forearm shifts over to his left, essentially protecting himself should the fan blow things his way.

Speaking of blow-

When the gunfire occurs. Mike's brows raise as he glances up to the mirror for the security camera, seeing the girl get shot in the hoodie.

Oh Fudging hell it's one of those types. Shifting back up, he starts to make his way towards the front of the store. Glancing down to the fallen woman before looking over to Robbie.

Andi Benton has posed:
Andi Benton lets out a short swear when things look to be going belly up. It was hoped that this wouldn't need anything like the next step, but after she ducks away from the gunmen and gets herself to an adjacent aisle, the gunshots ring out. No time to wait.

From over where she is, it's easy to miss the pool of inky blackness that flows around her in whip-like tendrils, coalescing and forming into a whole. Hair turns more 'spiky,' facial features smooth out, lacking a mouth, eyes become solid white and overly expressive. When Mania rises, there are more spiky elements to her forearms and shins, and a hand rises. "That was a mistake," comes a voice that holds a duality to it, as a flow of tendrils lash out at one of them, beginning to surround his gun hand. In doing so, multiple needle-like spikes begin to stick out from within, enough that just about anyone would find letting go of the gun the wiser option right now. "We will be taking that."

Robbie Reyes has posed:
"Hey-- hey!" Robbie's too late to get in front of the two shots aimed at Kim, so now he has a choice to make: go check and see if she's okay, or stop the guy from shooting anyone else.

He lunges for the thug on 'crowd control', putting himself squarely in the path of the weapon and attempting to tackle him to the floor so he can hopefully wrestle the gun away. Sadly, and perhaps surprisingly for the thug, Robbie hits like a goddamn freight train, even when he's pulling his punches. He'll attempt to smash his fist into the guy's face once, twice, then snap his wrist and kick the gun away.

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Okay, that's enough punching, now. The man being punched slides on his heels away from Robbie. He is pulled first just away from a punch, then out the door by some unseen force. Lifted off the ground, his arms and legs spread out as it looks like he's being drawn and quartered, though there's nothing holding him there. The woman in the skull gas mask walks to his side. "It's pretty cool you can fly," she says up to him through cosplay speakers in the mask. "Is your buddy in there a super, too? Is that why the monsters are after him, or is it because you guys shot that lady in the head?"

Kim Hayes has posed:
    Along with that oozing biomatter that Kim is - bleeding? Being consumed by? Melting into? Whatever it is, it's accompanied by a visible haze - and a smell that absolutely stinks, a stench that's almost necrotic, lending to the notion that the girl is somehow rapidly decomposing. Someone getting too heavy a dose of the pungent gas may find themselves feeling a narcotic lethargy - or worse, hallucinating.

    Once it has fully covered the woman's body like an unfortunate victim in an Ian Fleming film, though, she starts to rise - half-flowing, half staggering to her feet like some kind of zombie. Once-brown hair, now replaced by bile-green tendrils, hangs over the feminine creature's face as it straightens upright, concealing any facial features as the ends of the woman's fingers slither and harden partially into what look like talons. The haze emanating from the creature causes its shape to appear even murkier and nightmarishly indistinct.

    Weirdly, it almost looks a bit like that other thing now occupying the store -

    "Don't worry, she's fiiiine," a multi-tonal hissing rasp comes from behind the curtain of green tendrils.

    Even in spite of his stronger nerve, the gunman at the register widens his eyes when Mania's lashing tendrils start to wrap around his gun hand.

    "Holy /shit!/"

    The sidearm is fired once -

    *BLAM*

     - the bullet fortunately harmlessly lodging in the wall before the weapon is relinquished, the robber struggling to try and pull his hand free.

    "What did you get us into Manny?!"

    Manny, of course, is busy being interrogated, with a recently snapped wrist and broken nose.

    "FUSH!" he swears through blood pouring from his nostrils. His eyes well up with tears as he's overwhelmed by the juxtaposition of pain and loss of control. "Make it stop! Make it stop!"

    Back inside, the green-and-purple Symbiote turns to the door where Manny disappeared to, then seems to look toward its kin. "Heeey, no faaaair! Bring back the shooty one, I want one too!"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Well. From this new vantage point, things have gotten interesting. As Robbie takes down the one guy, Mike runs over, grabbing onto the gun that Robbie and the gunman were struggling to control.

Perhaps they lost their grip or maybe something more but soon the gun was in Mike's hands. He promptly moves the firearm and himself away from the struggle By the time he looks back, the guy Robbie took down just got zooted out of the door.

As for the other gunman, they seem to be otherwise engaged by something that looks a lot like what he encountered in Limbo.

Yeesh.

Andi Benton has posed:
Mania makes sure that 'handshake' won't be easily forgotten, thanks to the spike-laden interior of the mitt-like covering in place. By the time the gun's fired, it's torn away from him and carried back her way thanks to another tendril, and she lets go of the hand in order to strike him in the face from that distance. That would be one thing, except for what's going on with Kim.

<<Mania>> Andi, it is another..
<<Andi>> Symbiote? But what's it doing?
<<Mania>> We have not seen one do that before.
<<Andi>> Whatever it is, don't let that stuff through.

The guard goes up in order to help keep any of that foul-smelling odor from reaching her, a step or two backwards following. Skull gas mask lady is picked out, dealing with the guy Robbie had tackled and Michael had moved over to aid with. But, more than anything else, Mania is /staring/ at whatever has taken shape around Kim. "Another one, but different."

Robbie Reyes has posed:
Robbie scrambles to his feet, confused as hell for a hot minute when his quarry starts levitating toward the door. The guy's disarmed, at least, so not his problem anymore. The dull pain in his shoulder and side remind him he's been shot a few times, and he backs up a step or two, *plink, plink, plink* as his body rejects the bullets and drops them to the floor. "Joder," he grumbles to himself, and stops dead as he sees what Kim's morphed into. Not to mention Andi, who looks like another variation on the theme.

Well, hot damn. He can't very well take them both down in full view of civilians. So what's Robbie gonna do? Dig his cell phone out and start taking pictures surreptitiously.

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Demona makes eye contact with one of the creatures, though only for a moment. She gestures toward the floating guy and shrugs, but the monster has its sights set on the other monster in the store. "You know," Demona says as she just manages to notice bullets FALLING OUT OF A GUY, a guy who broke this floating dude's arm, "maybe you were right to leave when you did." As soon as he's free to do so, the other thief slides out from under the creature inside the store. "Oh, look, your buddy can fly, too," Demona says through her gas mask as he claws at the floor with arms and legs, screeching as something grabs him while he's looking at the most terrifying monster he's likely ever seen in person.

Kim Hayes has posed:
    "What the F*** did you get us INTO, MANNY?!" the horrified, yet-unnamed gunman begs to know, voice cracking.

    "I DON'T KNOW, WAKOWSKI!" the other gunman wails, naming the previously-unnamed gunman.

    Lurching like a demonic weeping willow, the malnourished Symbiote whose host was fired at sweeps its hidden gaze around. A long tongue slathers through the curtain of 'hair' in front of the face, giving a brief glimpse of maddening eyes and a flash of teeth that most would likely prefer not to glimpse.

    "Where's the shooooter? It maaakes her nerrrvousss, and she'sss annoying when she'ss nerrrvousss..."

    The creature stalks a couple of steps forward, leaning over a shelf to look for Michael and the gun that he's retrieved - but its mercurial attentions are drawn back to the more curious concern of a fellow Symbiote.

    "Ohhhhh... a fellow 'usss...'"

    The creature seems to hunch a little, arms low, taking on a more territorial air as its head shifts from the Klyntar to the pile of candy bars lying on the floor, then back to Mania.

    <<Wait. There are more of you?>>

    <<Of course there are.>>

    "We are... Haaaaze," it introduces itself.

    Then, after a moment's hesitation, a tendril leaps from the middle of Haze's left hand to latch around the chocolate on the ground and pull it into the Symbiote's grasp.

    "And the chocolate is ourrrsss."

    "Well, I'm not gonna argue," the clerk says behind the counter, hands up and shivering.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
With the other gunman being snatched out of the store. There is the slight inkling to follow to see what happened to them.

Slight.

Instead he moves over to Robbie. Hearing the inquiry to where the shooter is, he sets the gun on the floor to avoid unwanted confusion.

The attention goes back to Robbie "You oka-" Mike pauses, watching the bullets pop out. "...I'll take that as a yes."

Andi Benton has posed:
Predictably, much of the symbiote's attention is now taken up by the other one in the place. There is a curious look to the eyes, one arching larger and higher than the other before both narrow in the form of a squint.

<<Andi>> How do you know if it's a friendly one or not?
<<Mania>> If it attacks, it is probably not friendly.
<<Andi>> Gee, thanks for that.
<<Mania>> You are welcome, Andi.

The appearances hold some similarities, but also a definite uniqueness. The one calling itself Haze certainly has a different attitude and look compared to the more punk-based version Andi has become.

"We are Mania, and we will let you have the chocolate..this time. We can get more somewhere else. What we really want to know is..."

Attention turns toward the one in the gas mask. "Who are you, and what are you doing with them?"

Robbie Reyes has posed:
"Fine," Robbie tells the guy who addresses him, somewhat distractedly. Then does a little double-take, and realises he recognises him. From.. somewhere. Damned if he can remember where he's seen that face before.

However, with the gunmen both under control, and the two symbiotes battling over chocolate.. he decides to leave while the getting's good. Before his own nastier side gets the better of him, and decides to make a scene. "Catch you later," he tells Mike, and shoulders past, and out the door with a click of his car keys.

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Cue the pants-crapping in three...two...one...
    The monster inside the convenience store turns and looks, as far as Demona can tell, right at her. She would swear, but all she really wants to do is get away. These things are about as dangerous as anything she's ever had to deal with--probably way moreso. She's killed tigers with her bare hands, but she still doesn't want to face whatever that is in there.
    "You guys had the right idea," she says. She tosses her staff down. It doesn't reach the ground, but stops just above it. She jumps onto it and balances effortlessly on it like it's a surfboard. "I think it's time to go." The two men clump together like balloons following a running child, though without bouncing around, and the gas-masked Demona swoops to turn before going up and away. She looks over her shoulder, wondering if either of the creatures are planning on pursuit.

Kim Hayes has posed:
    The sound of the gun being placed on the floor seems to reach whatever passes for the Haze Symbiote's ears. A pair of tendrils snaps out from Haze's other hand to latch onto the gun around handle and barrel, dissembling the weapon into components with a swift violent motion before retracting into the palm.

    Haze's head tilts slightly to one side, exposing a single large eye that seems to swirl with almost hypnotic madness in the fog that surrounds the creature.

    "Glad that you sssseeeee our waaayyy..."

    <<Dude, don't be a dick.>>

    <<What?>>

    <<Taking all the chocolate like a greedy whatever! Sharing is caring.>>

    <<But I don't care.>>

    <<Trust me, you'll have way better karma.>>

    "...but we will... 'shhaaarrre.'"

    Haze stretches its arm out, dropping half of the chocolate for the other Symbiote to collect at its leisure. It seems that the creature isn't entirely of one mind.

    <<Your fear is delicious, you know. You should try to get shot at more often.>>

    <<Shut up, dude.>>

Michael Hannigan has posed:
As the scene has more or less de-escalated, no one's at risk of getting shot and the symbiotes appear to actually be...cordial? Mike sets the Mr. Goodbars back on the shelf and opts to head out.

He can look for the items on the list elsewhere.

Andi Benton has posed:
Mania watches as others find reasons to scram, soon leaving just Haze behind. Even the one in the mask has left, via an unconventional method of escape. "Was it something we said?" is wondered.

Attention diverts toward the frightened clerk, before Haze gets the majority of the attention again. "We do not want to fight with you, and we will not unless there is a reason to." That much is made clear, and while both are having their own internal conversations, Mania waits. They could be so much alike, in spite of their visual differences and whatever is going on with both bonds.

As soon as some of that chocolate is left behind, it is scooped up as a mouth with all those teeth and that tongue takes shape, some of the goodies quickly devoured once the packaging has been removed. "Mmmmm. Good." In exchange, the Kit Kat that had been claimed earlier is lobbed toward Haze from nowhere in particular, and Mania starts toward the exit. "Do you patrol around here?" comes the question.

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    As soon as it's clear they're not following, Demona parks herself a few stories up over the street and waits for the police. I mean...she's not going to NOT give these guys over into the relative safety of police custody. She's also not going to miss seeing these new things, whatever they are. They're...really interesting, and she can't decide whether they're demons, trolls, aliens, nanite swarms...if only she had her lab with her. She just watches from the darkness.

Kim Hayes has posed:
    The other Symbiote host follows Mania's turning eyes, resulting in the clerk being momentarily subjected to the gaze of both creatures simultaneously. He swallows thickly.

    Suddenly, with a liquid lurch, Haze is looming over the clerk, who looks up in fear.

    "Sheee says beee chiiillll and pleeeeaaase keep thisss a sssseeeecret," the creature says, holding up a finger and breathing a 'shhhh.' The Symbiote's breath causes the clerk to look a bit dazed, eyes glazing. The Symbiote places a hand on the counter.

    "Sheee also saysss... keep the chaaaanggge, duuuude."

    As Haze turns away, a twenty dollar bill is left behind on the countertop - what was previously held in Kim's pocket before Kim's pocket turned out to be an alien hive-creature.

    "Patroooolll?" Haze asks as she - it? - catches the Kit-Kat, turning to follow Mania out of the store. The Kit-Kat is hastily unwrapped and consumed ravenously behind the green curtain. "We do not patrooolll. Sheee prefersss 'video gamesss.' Sheee doesssn't even let usss go for walksss."

Andi Benton has posed:
Mania gets back outside, the sound of sirens a few blocks away, perhaps more. Could be coming here, might be going elsewhere. The one with the spider symbol at the chest and back peers directly at Haze, and with everything that's been noticed so far it isn't that difficult to figure out part of the creature's inspiration, let alone the name. "Video games? Somehow, we are not surprised." The arms cross, fingers tipped with similar claws.

<<Mania>> They do not sound like they are bonded well.
<<Andi>> Maybe it's new.

Which leads to Mania asking, "How did you meet? We cannot stay long, but you are not the only one like us."

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    It is about that point that Demona wishes she had better hearing. Sitting down on her staff and swinging around it like an up-side-down witch on her broom, she gets as close as she dares while staying out of sight as best she can. Not the only one? Does she mean Spider-Man? She really needs to get in touch with him and figure out where all his spider-themed friends lie. Still, it was good she didn't start something with this creature and possibly hurt one of his friends.

Kim Hayes has posed:
    Haze looks slightly more alert at the sound of sirens - head canting as it peers along the street, then up the other way. The nearby lowrider peels out, mostly unnoticed by Haze - leaving the road mostly empty for the moment.

    "Weeee found each otherrrr..."

    <<Dude, you gotta hide before the cops get here.>>

    <<Fine...>>

    Passing through a shadowy spot, Haze retreats back into the form of Kim's clothing, the frazzled young brunette's face reappearing as the biomatter becomes hoodie and jeans again.

    "...behind my apartment when I was putting the garbage out," Kim finishes Haze's thought, reaching around to her back to feel where she'd been hit earlier. Two warped shells fall to the ground at her feet - the shots, it seems, had been absorbed by the disguised Symbiote. "It was dark. I thought it was a cat."

    <<You indulge far too much in your intoxicants.>>

    "Shut up."

    The sirens sound like they're getting closer. Kim turns her eyes to Mania, head tilting. "Hey, maybe you could - uhh, shit - we should probably split..."

    She frowns, looking dismayed at the thought.

Andi Benton has posed:
There is little that escapes a symbiote, especially one in tune with its host, its bond. Though Mania does a good job refraining from giving it away, Demona has been spotted moving around. That one has the would-be robbers. Let her do with them what she will.

However, it leads to Mania leaning in closer after Haze goes away again, leaving Kim behind. Andi does not reciprocate, keeping the Mania appearance intact. "Asteroid, for us. Scientist captured..bad tests. Then we found each other." A few details are left out, but that covers the basics.

If there's anyone who would understand the seemingly random 'shut up,' it's Andi, it's Mania. Internal conversations that slip out. A sniff of amusement follows, and the mouth has now faded away again to disappear, leaving only the shapely eyes behind. Leaning closer, she adds in a quieter voice, "Come around Happy Harbor sometime if you want to talk. We will find you." That said, she glances in the direction of a few taller buildings, then displays another talent: lines of webbing shot off from the hands, allowing her to swing out of the area.

Exactly like Spider-Man.

Susan Sullivan has posed:
    Damn it, that only raises a LOT more questions. Demona isn't NEARLY that fast, and the other one isn't really as connected as the spidery one seems to be. She moves back to the convenience store and loops a couple of cargo strap around the criminals, then focuses.
    The thieves break down as they quickly forget they're in her presence. Moving slowly, Demona takes a handful of refrigerator magnets and walks carefully behind the desk and past the gentleman still hiding. He doesn't seem to care that she's around, either, his mind on other things. She opens the door to the back and finds exactly what she's hoped for. The server with the camera feeds. She walks up to the front of the server and flips open the drive bay, sliding the drive out. She sets it carefully on top of the server rack, then dumps all those magnets onto it. The police are inside the building, but they join everyone else in not seeming to find Demona's presence interesting enough to note as she walks out the back door, bypassing the automatic sensors. Then she runs like a bat...well, if bats ran like upright-standing hairless apes.

Kim Hayes has posed:
    "Bummer," Kim remarks eloquently upon hearing of the encounter between Mania and its host.

    Whether Haze catches wind of Demona, Hayes (Kim) is oblivious to the gas-masked woman's presence - the bond between that pair, while not adversarial, doesn't afford the host quite the same sensory awareness. It doesn't help that the two are almost always sharing some level of impairment.

    

    Besides, she's too busy watching Mania swing off into the night, Spidey-style, mouth slightly agape.

    "Dude. Can we do that?" she asks.

    <<Not really.>>

    "Bummer," she repeats herself. She gives one more glance's consideration to the convenience store, then quickly starts heading up the street toward her apartment building, unwrapping a Hershey's bar as she walks. She pops a piece into her mouth and savours it for a moment.

    <<What a good night.>>

    "You're nutsh," Kim tells herself as she chews.