12665/Still got that Fighting Spirit!

Still got that Fighting Spirit!
Date of Scene:	03 September 2022
Location:	Central Park
Synopsis:	Trouble brews between three cats in the park and one 'ordinary guy'. New revelations are realized.
Cast of Characters:	Artemis Crock, Thomas Blake, Jade Nguyen, Michael Hannigan

---

Artemis Crock has posed:
It's a brisk early morning and the first few rays of sunlight are just starting to creep over the horizon. As a few dedicated joggers run laps around the park, a certain superhero? villain? dressed as a tigress, lurks in the trees in a quieter stretch of the park, watching, waiting, scanning the park for..Someone..

Thomas Blake has posed:
Artie hears a soft, growling voice close but not too close. "I give you credit... Tigress. You almost caught me. Your mistake was hiding in the best place to hide. You need more lateral thinking. Anyway, you found me, one cat to another, what's up?" Catman reposes on a branch. He still looks like he'd land on his feet if gravity suddenly reversed. He idly bats at his cap, blowing in a breeze.

Jade Nguyen has posed:
Over in another tree lurks still another cat. Ever since Jade ran into Artie in this very park, she's been curious about what her sister-at-arms has been up to. They were both been trained to be assassins, so she knows what Artie is capable of. But is she USING her skills?

Following wasn't exactly easy, but certainly possible. So now, the figure in green silk with the stylized white Cheshire mask watches from a bit higher up. Thomas might catch a whiff of light, jasmine perfume with his senses.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Not wearing any costumes or hiding in the trees, one Mike Hannigan is using the early morning rays to illuminate a different task. In this case, he's cutting through the park to head to the side of town that contains Rock Wallz. On his back is a bookbag. Due to the morning chill, there is a light set hoodie being worn, just enough to cut through the morning breeze. But the hood is down. His long hair has been firmly secured by hair bands.

Artemis Crock has posed:
Artemis Crock is, dressed as Tigress again as she attempts to stalk Catman. But really, she should know better, he always seems to be one annoying step ahead of her, which frankly drives her crazy. She snarls, taking a swipe at him with one clawed hand. "Didn't come here for a social call, I came here for a rematch!"

She darts back, then springs towards the ground, landing lightly, still hidden from the main road as she crooks a finger at him, "Come catch me if you can..." There is a slight challenging smirk on her lips as she darts into the nearby bushes.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Catman calls after her: "Don't want to. Don't have to. Get Batman if you want someone to chase you. I have a life you know!"

Catman tilts his head to one side momentarily, then sees Mike trudging along. He drops down lightly behind him and says, "Bro, watch yourself. I got a crazy chica with a Juggernaut sized chip on her shoulder wants to start with me. I'm trying to be nice cause it's really like bating on Pixie or Honey Badger. She shoots stuff. Aaaand SOMEONE ELSE." The last is said loudly. Yes he's ready to dodge.

Jade Nguyen has posed:
Interesting. Cheshire wasn't exactly -trying- to disappear... she can't REALLY disappear, unlike her namesake... but his senses must be very good. Probably thirty feet up in the tree, the woman in the green silk with the mask just leaps down to the grass.

It's a tumbling maneuver, with a couple of turns and a half-twist before she sticks the landing with deeply-bended knees. She got some good distance as well, because she's only about 10 feet from Mike.

And Cheshire doesn't say a thing.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Perhaps it is because of how early it is. Or maybe it's because the planned workout hasn't occurred yet. But there's still the slight edge of sleepiness to Mike's senses. This perhaps can explain his behavior for the next few moments.

The Tigress hopping out of the tree, landing before him while issuing a 'Catch me if you can' challenge to the canopy before dashing into the bushes is odd enough.

And then there's Thomas's voice responding back. A dawning sense of curiousity causes for the musician to pause in his walk. Glancing around. And then Tom's behind him speaking.

"JEE-" Mike turns his head looking to the Thomas behind him, "-sus -." He holds back on the name as he sees the costume and processes the warning, "It's too early for this shit."

Artemis Crock has posed:
Artemis Crock doesn't look behind her to see if he followed, although his tone of annoyance causes her to smirk. Moving quietly, quickly through the underbrush without making a noise, she lurks beneath the cover of the bushes like a real cat..And while not quite as well trained as the infamous Catman, she does her best to angle herself where he can't see her..Wielding her compact crossbow this time, Aiming and letting her arrow loose, aimed at Catman's face still up in the tree. Not a killing shot, just a warning shot. She is not to be taken lightly.

And then she pauses, peeering at Cheshire. Hmmm? Who is that? She seems..Familiar somehow but..She steps out of the brushes, just enough for a keen eye to notice her.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Catman hears the snap, distracted by both the new arrival and Mike. He shoves the musician away as the quarrel strikes and continues. He snaps his head back as a slash begins bleeding on his cheek, close to the eye. She has his attention now. the green eyes glitter coldly. The Catman jumps into the foliage, but Mike catches a glimpse of his eyes. They are emeralds that could cut diamonds. He might have seen them that way on occasion, fighting the Gentleman Ghost or... the EX.

There's no reply, except a half heard growl.

Jade Nguyen has posed:
Cheshire turns her attention to... Mike, actually. The quarrel shot is a good one; too good to be just lucky. And the way this.. Tigress... moved. Very curious indeed.

The two Cats have some previous business to finish, apparently. And Cheshire is content to leave that to them.

The masked figure in green regards Mike for a moment. "You are valuable to him." she declares, voice muffled by the mask. And when she points, there is a glint of light from her fingertip claws.

"How valuable, I wonder?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Although Mike may have been a little sleepy at the beginning of this encounter. The events already incurred have stacked up to a large pile of 'pay fucking attention'. The shove away from the arrow that wasn't technically aimed at him but he could have easily shifted into the path of was a key component.

To Mike's credit, with the shove, he did not fall to the ground. There was a slight stumble but the musician righted himself. Catman's running into the bushes to confront someone and previous hints of another does the rest, making Mike a bit more alert than before. His posture is defensive. Upper torso bent forward to offset the weight of the backpack he had on. But his hands and arms are positioned loose.

It is there he sees the woman in green. Wearing a mask and based from the positioning of the mask, looking right at him. This doesn't bode well.

And then she states her observations. There's a glimpse to the claws as they gesture to him. This REALLY doesn't bode well.

"...Is that an actual or rhetorical question?"

Artemis Crock has posed:
Tigress grins as she sees the anger in his eyes. Good, maybe he'll actually put up a fight this time. "Got your attention I see. Let's see if I can beat you round two." she darts back into the bushes, darting, rolling, dancing with him as he comes, and there is a bemused smile on her face as she playfully swats at him, not going for a killing blow in the least, clearly she's just playing and not trying to actually *kill* him, judging by how her claws not as sharp as they could be. "Don't hold back either, I want to see if you've still got it, if you're as good as they say.."

She's still got an eye on the jade warrior, storing that info away for later. But, Catman has most of her attention right now, knowing cats can be deadly when they're angered. And he looks quite mad..

Thomas Blake has posed:
Catman dodges, rolling into the brush. For a moment, nothing. There's a swoosh by Artemis. "You're good." Another swoosh. "But there's no..." Swoosh. "Substitute for..." Swoosh. "Experience. And I train here."

Then a haymaker out of nowhere, right in the solar plexus. The force lifts her off the ground. Her toes are clear of the grass for a moment of zero gravity. He takes a moment to listen to her gasping, holding her upright then begins tugging her back to the clearing and Mike, a knife close to her throat.

Close? He can feel her pulse through it.

"Whoever you are, mind your manners. Let him go and you get this nutcase back in one piece. then anything we have to settle, we'll settle. You, Lady Shiva here, and me." Blood trickles down his cheek.

Jade Nguyen has posed:
Beneath the mask, Cheshire has part of her attention focused on the fight between the two Cats. The young woman's voice is certainly familiar now, as is the way she moves. Not to mention her impulsiveness.

She tilts her head a little at Mike's question, that artificial and exaggerated smile on the mask seeming mocking.

"Is it?" she replies, on the subject of a rhetorical question. Mocking, indeed. And with that, Cheshire advances smoothly, arms whirling as she pivots and dances closer with those claws.

Is it an attack? It certainly will be if he doesn't move or try to defend himself.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike can hear Thomas's voice calling out in their direction. Asking this stranger to let him go. But it doesn't appear she heard him. Or chose not to. Whatever the reason it's not a subject for debate at the moment as there is one thing clear. The (definitely a) woman is moving towards him, claws quite literally out. And he's got a STRONG suspicion that talking is not going to get him out of this.

Drawing back to another time, Mike's feet move, backing up while his arms lift. The hoodie sleeves obscure much of his skin which is a blessing and a curse. But once more, something to discuss at another point. Either way it is apparent in this form Mike's only armed with his limbs and they are set to do what they can to keep Jade's claws and other limbs from coming into contact with anything vital.

Artemis Crock has posed:
Artemis Crock is really enjoying this. This is what she was trained to do. To track, to fight..Sometimes to kill. And it's rare that she has such a skillful opponent. Maybe too skillful. He catches her off guard and she yells, staggering back, the breath punched out of her. It's enough of a distraction for him to be able to grab her by the neck, that knife at her throat. Dark eyes narrow on the knife, but she keeps her cool, smirking a bit.

"You're good..Really good. Are you the one who trained my mom too?" she smirks, reaching for the hand around her throat, "Cuz maybe you're good enough to..Help me find the bastard who hurt her.." she is gasping a bit for air, "Just needed to know...You were serious.."

When Cheshire is mentioned, she arches a surprised brow at her and Mike, "What the heck? I have no idea who she is, although.." she peers more intently at her..No..Could it be..? But she can't be sure.

But those moves, so smooth, perfect. Familiar. And her voice...She smirks, "She's pretty good, isn't she. Hope your friend can defend himself.."

Thomas Blake has posed:
Catman says, "I'm sorry, I'll regret this but..." He throws Artemis at Cheshire, trying to block her attack. Improvise!

The knife in one hand is joined by a 'rang in the other. "Seriously can you please just forget that guy and deal with me?!" N0 trace of exasperation in his voice. Wy the hell is Mike just standing there?

Jade Nguyen has posed:
Cheshire's deadly dance continues and she suddenly changes the pace, closing distance rapidly with a swipe of her own. One of those claws slicing the length of Mike's forearm as he defends himself. Making short work of the hoodie fabric, it's a shallow cut that immediately starts to ooze. And burn.

Then Catman throws Tigress, and Cheshire has to duck. The following roll disrupts her attack, but when she comes up to one knee a handful of 4-inch throwing spikes is hurled at Catman.

"So he -does- matter to you. Interesting."

And Mike's forearm might already be starting to go numb.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike is NOT just standing there. Sure, he could have tried running but considering how insistent Jade was on an encounter, it'd meant turning his back to someone who very much seemed intent on harm. Considering past experiences, attacks from the front were considerably much better to deal with.

But that's not to say that the cut through the hoodie didn't hurt. So much for layers adding some semblance of additional protection. The open fabric exposes the cut on the forearm, almost parallel to the the old scar right beside it.

The Tigress's unintended interference with the attack does give Mike a bit of breathing room and the musician uses it to put more distance between him and Cheshire. The burning pain in his arm becoming more and more noticable. And then the numbness sets in. That wasn't just a cut, was it?

His good arm clenches the cut one. "What did you-?"

Artemis Crock has posed:
Artemis Crock blinks and stumbles towards Jade before catching herself quickly, rolling out of the way of any sharp objects. "Hey, how rude!" she catches herself easily enough, handspringing out of the way of Cheshire and Mike's fight, and as she sees the knife and catarang poised in his hand, she counters quickly with her crossbow, aiming another bolt this time at the hand holding the catarang, using the distraction to rush at him with more claw swipes.

Interesting, how similar her moves are to Cheshire's and yet honed to her own unique style. Almost as if they trained together or something..She glances briefly at the green clad warrior and smirks, so she's on her side. Nice.

"You should be more worried about me, Kitty." she drawls at Catman. "Did you even hear a word I said, earlier?" probably not in the heat of the battle, that's okay, she's having fun, got lots of steam to blow off.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Catman knocks the quarrel aside with the rang, making a pinging sound. He rolls, the throwing spikes whizzint over hs chest as he demonstrates he'd be a champion limbo player, rolling completely and back on his feet. He continues backing up from the swipes.

"Does Paula know what you're doing? I though we left on good terms! Why are you doing this? Are you psychotic?" He stops dodging suddenly meeting the claws with 'rang and dagger. He blocks with more force than necessary, trying to force her down and back.

"Tigress was a professional and a friend. You're playing games. I'm not. I have the advantage. I'll give you another chance, for the Tigress to stop. tigress was a woman... you're a girl playing GAMES!" He strikes at her with the pommel of the dagger, trying for another knock out.

Jade Nguyen has posed:
Cheshire turns away from Mike and turns to Tigress when the young woman smirks, the mask hiding her own expression with that maddening grin of its own.

"I synthesized it from jellyfish toxin. Far from a fatal dose, and temporary, but you should lose the use of your arm fairly soon."

She apparently considers Mike out of the fight, at least for the moment, since she turns her attention to Catman. "You fought with Paula?" Apparently Jade was aware of Artemis' mom and her activities. "I assure you that I am -not- playing games."

But then again, neither does she seem inclined to fight anymore.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
After Jade gives her explanation, Mike reaches his hand up, tugging his hood on. An odd gesture to be sure but being he's not advancing from the spot, nothing too concerning. The guy did just get dosed with something and people do odd things to get some sense of control over their situation when things are not going their way.

With Jade moving away from what she so generously termed a 'fight', Mike makes no general response back to the explanation to encourage any more of the one sided aggression. He knows he's not going to die. That's sufficient.

He crouches down, and brings a hand over to cover the cut on his left arm. From under the hood, he watches Jade's approach to Thomas intently.

Artemis Crock has posed:
Artemis Crock certainly seems to be enjoying herself, is this just a game to her, or something else..? She just smirks, shaking her head, dipping and dodging his next couple of attacks. But when he goads her like that, her dark eyes narrow, snarling, "I'm NOT a child! I'm Tigress! And what do you really know of my mom? You couldn't protect her when she needed it..No one could!" she seems upset now, blinded by rage..

Which opens her up for attack by that dagger, hitting her across the head, causing her to Yelp in pain, staggering back. "Gah!" her head is at least partially protected by her cat mask, but it still hurts, it might even leave a bruise.

She clutches at her head, flinching a bit, "Fine! I surrender..For now..!" she glances at the jade clad woman, not sure what to call her..But that mask..Maybe. "I was wrong. These aren't our enemies. They might be our allies...I thought maybe he could help me find the bastard who attacked and seriously injured my mom, given his connection to her.." Tigress jerks her chin towards Catman, arching a brow when Cheshire blurts out her mom's name. Aha. She must be *her*..

But for now, her secret is safe with Tigress. Glancing back at Catman, she gives him a slightly apologetic look. "I needed to know that you could take him on, that you still had that fighting spirit. Knowing you're some kinda retired villain had me a little worried.."

Thomas Blake has posed:
Catman sheathes his weapons. "Sweetie, you don't have to surrender. I never wanted to hurt you and anyway... I don't take surrenders." He actually seems a little disturbed h struck her such a painful blow. That temper once again.

He turns to Cheshire, now plainly pissed off. His eyes narrow when he pulls the mask off to display any signs of falsehoods.

"I never fought with Paula. She trained me, she kept me out of jail when I started my first crimes. She made a man of me. I love her like a second mom. Now, you better be on the same page and his arm better feel better goddam soon. You're more in my weight class than Giganta here. I will mess you up."

Jade Nguyen has posed:
Cheshire keeps her focus on Thomas, now, but her voice is a little lower when she speaks. And clearly directed at Tigress. "Avenge your mother? You should have said something to me, Little Sister." The way she says it is more like a formal title than an actual relationship.

As for Catman? She gives an absent hand-wave. "Cheshire. I am called Cheshire, if you wish to call me anything. I knew Paula, and if the scales need to be righted where she is concerned, if people need to die, then I am willing to help."

Artemis Crock has posed:
Artemis Crock pants a bit from the fight, seeming a bit sad as she learns a bit more about his relationship with her mom. "If that's the case..Then you owe her. So please. Help me. Let's avenge her together.." she seems upset, full of anger, still running high on adrenaline. But clearly taking that rage out on the wrong person.

And then..She turns to face Cheshire, staring at her long and hard. Sooo, she recognizes her too. Of course she does. She sighs, "Didn't realize you were even in the hero business, big sis." she smiles weakly at her.