13961/Hunt Hunt Hunt

Hunt Hunt Hunt
Date of Scene:	24 January 2023
Location:	Sheldon Park - Bleake Island
Synopsis:	A black kitten, lost in the big city. Two evil monsters lurk, but it manages to tame them and eventually gets fed. So sad!
Cast of Characters:	Cassandra Cain, Alderic, Austin Reese

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Cassandra Cain has posed:
Darkness is the standard, sometimes. Gotham is almost known for it, though the crime rate is slightly higher on folks' minds. Someone else is in town, and Cass slips through the shadows, looking for signs.

It's weird. There are people all over Gotham City. This isn't even an abandoned area, so seeing signs of someone passing isn't even a sign per se. That's why Cass isn't watching the street. She's watching people.

This couple is looking confused, as if they just saw something odd. The teen on the doorstep has pulled her legs in close. She says that she's not sure what she saw, every motion crying it out to Cass' eyes. The cat on the block over has his fur straight up.

The signs are there, if you know where to look. Someone, or something, came this way.

Alderic has posed:
    It wasn't as if Alderic were incapable of going about unseen, like a lot of the more unusual sorts in Gotham seem to. Typically, when he's seen, it's only a brief glimps of a flank or fur that someone catches in the corner of their eye and when they look, it's gone. There have been reports of spottings in the city - a lion on the loose, or something of that nature, but so far Gotham's PD has turned up nothing. Even the caped crusaders that swing around the city haven't turned up anything. At least, none of them have admitted to find anything.

    Sometimes, Alderic isn't so lucky. He has to cross the streets sometimes, and though he's fast and keeps out of sight as best he can, he still has to bolt between cars and crowds of people, and that's when the calls come in. It's why people are looking so unnerved in the moment, like they just had an encounter with something they new was dangerous but were lucky didn't harm them. It's an unfortunate side-effect of being a wild creature loose in Gotham.

    Alderic wasn't all that far away, though. The dark alleys offered abundant places to hide, and the cougar-man is quite skilled at keeping himself hidden. Cass might notice just the glimpse of reflective eyes peering out from the darkness, far too large to be a simple stray roaming the streets. A glance away, though, and they're gone again.

Austin Reese has posed:
Growing up in the streets of Gotham, you get to see a lot of weird things. Austin knows what to look for when something weird is going down. There was sort of a flow to it, really. One person would see something and their reaction triggers another. Cass was right to watch people, but she was usually right.

Not that Austin would tell her that.

He had met up with her above neighborhood a few minutes after the first calls had come in to the GCPD dispatch, but now the two of them had split back up, and he was perched on the roof of a small bodega, looking down over the street.

<"You see anything yet?">

Finally the silence is broken by the comms as he reaches out to Cass for an update from her end.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
A single tap on her earbud signals an affirmative, as she walks past an alleyway. Cassandra continues past, her eyes taking in the glow just for a moment, then continuing past. Her body says nothing, calm and still searching. But timing is everything, Osprey gets all the information that he needs.

Whatever is in the alley? It gets that the girl moved on past, not pausing to investigate. Normal, normal, until she's around a corner. By which point Osprey should be in position.

Easy, if it's wild you need to not scare it.

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic was, indeed, hiding in that alleyway. Part of hiding, though, means you're not racing around trying to escape being cornered. He's deep down the alley though, in the darkness near the end of it, hiding in a gap created by the corners of two other buildings. It's too narrow to slip down, but enough of an area for him to keep out of sight from the people passing by the alley. Except, perhaps, for those who are more skilled at tracking. There's a low rumble that comes from the darkness, the kind of low growl that a cat makes when someone's getting too close for comfort. It sounds almost exactly the same, but far bigger than a housecat.

Austin Reese has posed:
The signal that she gives is all he needs. Osprey moves away from the bodega's roof and towards the alleyway, shifting across the rooftop until he was at the end of the alley. He hopped onto a fire escape, and slowly made his way down, until he was perched above the alley, on the final level of the fire escape before the ground.

He switches over to thermal vision on the domino mask he wears, giving him a view of the alley and any heat sources within it. He wants to have some idea of what he's about to hop into before he jumps down, after all.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cassandra isn't dressed like a Bat. She doesn't even own a suit like that. She looks like a lady in a dark hoodie with dark pants, and the fact that there's high-tech stuff involved usually doesn't even register with those she deals with. It's a more stealth based approach toward being who we are, and she hopes that it catches on.

Still, she pauses at the corner and checks on Austin's location. He's good, moving into position with all the efficiency she expects. Good. She taps once more, then turns and moves back to the alley. She's allowing her scent to penetrate, allowing whomever is in there to know that there's somebody here. But not above, never above. That's Austin's tack.

She steps into the alleyway, then walks inside. Into the darkness, allowing herself to be blinded. Weak, easy prey. It would be harder if she were actually alone.

Alderic has posed:
    One of Alderic's weaknesses is that felines have a much higher body temperature than humans, and so when Osprey activates that thermal overlay, he stands out like a sore thumb in the alley. What he sees though might be more unexpected. A humanoid shape, large and hunched over in the alley, on all fours rather than standing upright. Maybe Osprey can make out the animalistic features on the beastman. The muzzle, the ears, the tail. They may blend in with the rest of the thermal image, though, and just look like a large man hiding in the alley.

    Then Cassandra is walking down the alleyway, and as she draws nearer to Alderic's location, he doesn't have much choice. He moves out of the shadows - at least as far as the alley is out of shadows. The feline man moves on his hands and feet with as much ease and grace as any other feline would. He moves a few paces away from Cassandra, towards the back of the alley, but she would clearly see the mirror sheen of his eyes reflecting the light in her direction. His lip curls back to bare his fangs, and the large cougar-man hisses at her warily. It seems he isn't particularly fond of strangers, just like any other cat.

Austin Reese has posed:
Using the distraction provided by Cass is exactly what Austin needs as he hops down onto the pavement once the cougar man moves forward to hiss at Cass. She can see him, or at least he assumes she can see him. After all he wouldn't expect her to miss his landing.

Alderic may well hear him land, however. He's not making any hostile moves, but he's definitely there, as he waits for Cass to make her move. She's the one who's going to run the show here, it's her neck literally on the line right now.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Cass glances over at Austin. She nods, then turns back to the shadow that she can barely see. To the eyes in the darkness. She can't tell as much as she normally would, but there's also something she can smell, in the air.

Of course she saw Austin. Of course she's in danger. And yet, she hunches down a little. Drops to one knee, and extends her left hand. Palm down, she does that while holding the gaze of those yellow eyes. Golden eyes, in the dark.

Is she afraid? Nobody in their right mind wouldn't be. But her body says, it's okay. She even keeps her other hand calm, patient.

Faith in Austin? Yes. And the shirt is armored as well.

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic, with his heightened senses, likely knew Osprey was there before he even landed. When he did, though, the big cat-man twisted around to hiss at him as well. He looked a lot more vicious on thermal imaging, that's for certain. He looks back to Cassandra though, able to see her quite clearly despite the dark. He watches as she extends her hand and waits patiently. No words needed to be exchanged, the both of them reading each other's body language. Alderic still hissed at her, but it was less aggressive, more stating his nervousness than a threat.

    Gradually, Alderic took the bait, moving slowly closer to where Cassandra sat on one knee. The cougar-man sniffed at the air, taking in the scent of her, and of Osprey behind him. His ears were still turned back, though plenty alert if Osprey made any sudden movements. Satisfied after getting Cassandra's scent, Alderic backs up a little again. He settles into a slightly less defensive positure, looking between the two. His tail twitches nervously, but he's stopped hissing at them. As long as they don't make any sudden movements, anyways. He seems a little more trusting of Cassandra than of Osprey as well, the cougar positioning himself a little closer to her than to the costumed man.

Austin Reese has posed:
Osprey has both of his hands up at about chest height, "Easy." He says, keeping a steady tone, looking over to Cass for a second, "I don't want to hurt you." Could this be another mutant? He had a run in with a mutant fox in town a couple of months prior.

Since he seems to be leaning more towards Cass, he tilts his head up towards her a little bit, to see if she wants to try giving the cougar a talk. He hopes it can talk back, otherwise this might become a bit one sided.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Osprey's words make Cass glance in his direction. Her eyes look at him, but as she finds that his words are directed to their new friend, she lets her attention lapse a moment. There's only so much you can do, and she needs to focus on the cat.

Her eyes are adjusting now. There's a trick to seeing in the dark, mostly of seeing the dark spaces instead of looking for light. But now she needs to be able to see, to identify. And she raises her right eyebrow a bit as she does, her brain clicking and not being certain what exactly she's seen.

Her hand lowers, and she folds her arms across her chest as she stands. There's no threat in it, it's just a graceful lift and then she backs away. To the side, not toward the alley exit.

She's made a path, so the new guy won't be entirely trapped. Then she nods, head pausing afterwards to look at Austin again. She's looking for his opinion, asking what he thinks?

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic is still clearly wary of them, uncertain what to make of the pair - one costumed, one not - who seem to have found him in the alley. As Cassandra moves to clear a path for him to escape, if he chooses, Alderic naturally moves closer to it. He doesn't run though - he seems to be under the impression that they might want something, and in true feline nature he's curious what that might be. He prowls closer to the open path, giving them both a good look at his limber, athletic form. But then he turns, facing them again, settled into a crouch with his tail curled around his feet. The tip of it twitches idly, and he looks from Cassandra to Osprey and back again.

    "Rraow," he announces, the sound coming in a raspy tone. He watches them both with a curious interest, no longer quite so apprehensive now that he's got a path to escape. One or both of them might notice the collar around his neck - though it seems to have been there a while - indicating he either belongs to someone or escaped from somewhere. There's also the matter of his cleanliness. For someone prowling around in the alleyways of Gotham, he's surprisingly clean, even for a cat. Someone must be responsible for that.

Austin Reese has posed:
The collar is noted, though Osprey can't quite get a good look at it to read the tag. The response is less than encouraging, "Can't talk huh?" He asks, he keeps his hands up still for the moment, "Or just not the talkative type? Look I can help you if you're hurt or lost. I've run into another mutant before." He doesn't know too much about them, but they're usually based out of New York, he thought.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
Hm. Well, Austin's worried about him too. Cass supposes that he's got a history. She turns back to the cat, then shakes herself off a bit. She straightens up, then takes a step toward the guy. The cat guy, to be clear.

She's giving him a test, to see what he'll do. If there's a threat here, she needs to know it. So, an abrupt motion. Something that could be a threat, if he's the type to take it that way.

She's got other people to save tonight after all.

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic tenses up when Cassandra steps towards him, and he's instantly back on alert when she makes that sudden motion towards him. There's a reflexive hiss from the cougar-man, but he doesn't lunge at her. He does reach out to swat at her, but it's the light kind of curious tap a cat might give a kitten. He seems aware he's much bigger and stronger than Cassandra and his response shows he's trying to establish boundaries - or figure out what kind of relationship they have to one another - without actually hurting her. It seems he's more just uncertain - they're still strangers after all - but with patience she would be able to get closer to him. He seems to understand that they're not -trying- to be threatening, and just doing the same thing that he is.

Austin Reese has posed:
Cass' sudden motion makes Osprey tense up just a little bit, as he's waiting to see what happens. The cougar's reaction, the hiss specifically, makes him realize that he's still operating on instinct at least. He knows how Dorito responds to stuff like that when he's scared.

The armored figure holds though. Cass can handle herself in response to that paw. No claws visible, so it's not an attack, <"I don't think he can talk. Collar makes it look like some kind of escaped experiment, maybe?"> He relays to Cass over subvocal. He figures she's probably got some ideas of her own.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
The tap on her head makes Cass bob a bit. She knew it wasn't an attack, she didn't even tense up. One of the benefits of her level of body reading. She turns toward Austin, then nods. And then?

She smiles, and steps backward, away from Alderic. Arms still down at her sides, she walks back, away, holding the cat's gaze. Giving him the space he needs, and the tracker she's put on him? Well, he might not ever find it.

Or he might, it's really a matter of patience. The nod to Austin suggests that she's understood, and she mouths 'food' at him. So she's probably going to end up leaving somethign for the cat to nibble upon.

She's leaving though, letting the non-threat be what it is. No reason to fight, not here.

Alderic has posed:
    If Cassandra gets close enough to put a tracker on him, she might notice - just under that collar at the back of his neck is another tracker! It seems there's more than one person keeping tabs on the feline now! Alderic certainly doesn't notice that Cassandra stuck a tracker on him, and he rumbles warmly as she steps away. It seems they've made some progress in their understanding of one another, and his tail flicks behind him, almost playfully. He looks between Cassandra and Osprey, uncertain what they might be saying to one another because the mountain lion is unfamiliar with their personal body language - but he knows they're communicating, and about him. It's just a matter of translating it. He'll probably figure it out eventually. He didn't see what Cassandra mouths to Osprey though - he might have had a bigger reaction if she hadn't been facing away from him.

Austin Reese has posed:
Osprey nods in response to Cass. He steps backwards into the shadows as she gets Alderic's attention, and then ascends up to the roof. Not hostile means they can leave him be. They'll still need to keep tabs on him, but he's given them no reason to try to fight.

Cassandra Cain has posed:
And that motion gives Orphan (Cass) the chance to vanish herself. She's there, then she's gone. And given how kittenish the cat-man has acted? So not a threat, and Batman won't be getting the call on the red phone. You know the one, the phone. Oh for heaven's sakes people, watch Adam West one time.

Cass is gone. Thanks for playing!