15714/Cruise Holdup

Cruise Holdup
Date of Scene:	25 August 2023
Location:	New York Harbor Docks
Synopsis:	The caricaturish Count Nefaria goes to try and steal a slowly cruising cruise ship. He is stopped in the process by Thunderbolt and Batman in the Bat-Marine with a last second sparkly save by Tarot!
Cast of Characters:	Emma Frost, Mary Bromfield, Bruce Wayne, Marie-Ange Colbert

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Emma Frost has posed:
It is New York Harbor. The area is always busy - with passenger ships, freight ships, and even the occaisonal cruise ship for those with too much money and not enough sense to realize that New York was not hte most habitable place to go in for a weekend, and there were far nicer places to ship out of. Today's cruise liner is a large one populated by the (doddering) rich and famous. It is currently slowly chugging it's way over through the harbor at speeds akin to a 1960's Volkswagon Beetle going through the mountains overloaded with hippies like a clown car.
    Then, over in front of said cruise ship goes to fly several meters in front of it. Wearing a cape, a blue and white costume, and with a.. Very, very twirlable mustache. In fact the most pronoucned thinga bout him.
    He goes to hold his hand over, stopping the cruise liner from going.. Even slower than it had been.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
A voice echoes from behind the figure, "Do you happen to know how much waste a cruise ship puts out? I mean, it's really pretty ridiculous, and holding it in place doesn't make it any better. Actually, considering the stress you're putting on the engines, you're probably making it worse." The source of that lecture is, well, Thunderbolt, the super-heroine hovering about ten feet behind Count Nefaria.

Emma Frost has posed:
One hand goes up to twirl at his mustache. THe other holds the cruise ship at a full stop. "Zee stress veel stop vhen I have vhat I vant! Namely zee contents off-alla eet!" His accent is so over the top, it's hard to take it seriously.
    "Aye-ah am Count Luiii-gii Nefaria!"

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Fortunately for Bruce Wayne, he has done his full of stupid rich events for the month, and so he is _not_ trapped on the cruise liner being attached. Which means that it is a prime opportunity to test out his new Bat-marine.

Crouched down in the one seater that looks more like a torpedo than the vehicle that would launch it, the Batman races through the river towards the stalled vessel. He gets a few reports of what he is about to be dealing with as he goes.

This is definitely a new one.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Thunderbolt sighs, "Okay, look, Luigi, I know you have an inferiority complex compared to your big brother Mario, but let the ship go and this doesn't have to get nasty." Clearly she is not taking this that seriously yet, which might be a mistake. But really, who could blame her?

Emma Frost has posed:
Count Nefaria grunts, "So, zhat-a eez the way that'sa will be!" He goes to take his fist up and over and then moves to try and swing it over at Thunderbolt's jaw! Presuming it does impact she would feel that it's strong. INCREDIBLY strong.

OTher hand still holding the cruise ship in place.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Almost there...the Dark Knight is slicing through under the water, aiming towards the vessel and to render whatever aid he must to those that are dealing with the Nefarious Count.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
And Thunderbolt admittedly was caught off guard, sent flying with that punch, soaring through the sky before she catches herself. "Okay, Waluigi, you wanna play it hard, we'll play it hard." She rubs her jaw a bit, then soars back in, building up speed and coming it at a sideways angle.

Eventually, she comes around on the side and leads with her fist, intending to return the favor and punch the Count clear of the cruise ship so he can't keep holding them up.

Emma Frost has posed:
Batman in the Bat-Mersible comes along to periscope depth to see a superivllain with a huge mustache being punched away over by Thunderbolt with a -ZOT- from the impact of magical super-powered fist imbued with the power of the Greek Gods send him flying through the air!

"I don'ta know who this Wayluggie is, but let me introduce you to zee amazing man that-a I am! Count NEFARIA!" His eyes would go to blaze up and blast over at Thunderbolt with a considerable force that if Mary could recognize it (as well as Batman tell via his sensors) would be ionic energy!

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Frowning, Batman draws near enough to the vessel that he is almost ready to target Count Nefaria. The question is, with what? He watches through his display as Thunderbolt takes him on, and he idly wonders if perhaps he should just hang back and let the young hero get all the glory.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary doesn't recognize it as ionic energy, but she does recognize it as something that she doesn't want to be tagged with. At least, she does the second time, since she wasn't quite ready to dodge the first, getting winged in the shoulder and knocked back again. "Look, I get it, Princess Peach is hot and Mario wooing her probably kicked you over the edge, but this isn't the way to express your frustrations!" With that, she angles in, going low as she says, "But let me demonstrate something from a franchise that I prefer..."

With that, she angles up with remarkable speed, giving Nefaria a wicked uppercut as she shouts, "SHORYUKEN!"

Marie-Ange Colbert has posed:
Marie-Ange Colbert is far from rich or famous; she's not entirely poor or unknown, either. More like somewhere in the middle. So no, she was not on the ship.

/However,/ what Marie is, is quite fond of the water, and the redhead from across the ocean had chosen the night to take a walk out by the water. Well. More accurately, her cards had made that decision for her. She didn't exactly know why -- but she doesn't argue these things. She is fate's servant; the unseen forces speak, and she obeys.

When the floating man is spotted -- and more importantly, when the presence of Thunderbolt makes it clear that the mustachioed one is a foe, Marie reaches into her purse and draws out her pouch full of tarot cards... trying to pick her spot so as not to get in the other heroine's way (and other hero's as well, little does she realize!)

Emma Frost has posed:
The blow goes to CLOBBER the ill intending count hard on the chin! There's a *WHAM* to it as his head would snap around at an angle and he would grin, "So, you-a want-a to go? Then let's a go!" And Count Nefaria goes to charge in over at Mary, even with a idslocated jaw! Body glowing over with Ionic Energy as he would move to try and pummel her hard over from the side! "You will be cruising for a.. How do they say eet here in zee states? A bruising!" Going with about as much finesse of the vernacular as Batroc the Leaper, here.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Finally reaching the scene, the Batmarine hangs beneath where Nefaria is tangling with Thunderbolt. Based around what he has seen, the Batman is fairly confident that the Marvelous one can take this villain. And any time the younger heroes can gain some confidence, it is good for all of them. So he lingers, waiting to see if he is truly needed.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Thunderbolt blocks the blow, barely, looking a bit surprised as, goofy mannerisms or not, Nefaria is pretty close to her own level of strength. "Pal, it ain't about how hard you hit, it's about how hard you get hit and keep moving forward." With that, she goes for a counterpunch, aiming for that dislocated jaw because that's how you do it in Philly.

Marie-Ange Colbert has posed:
Sometimes, involving herself directly is the best way to handle things. Other times? The best course of action might just be to... stack the deck.

So, moving over to a nearby bench where her physical form can be still, she pulls a card from the deck. Moments later...

A glow starts to appear in the sky behind Mary. Bright-- blindingly so, really, as it appears to be a small-scale replica (about twenty feet in radius) of the brightest star in Earth's sky, the Sun itself. Although lacking any of the /heat/ that normally accompanies the celestial body, fortunately for everyone involved! Thunderbolt, admittedly, has likely seen this particular trick before... and Marie's very purposely summoning it at the brunette's back to make it harder for Nefaria to see his would-be target!

Emma Frost has posed:
Batman has a good eye view (or periscope view) of the melee. The cruise liner is drifting.. Ever, ever so slowly drifting with the speed of the current.. Which is slowly pulling it out from the bay. Not that the ship was drift.. Mostly that it was so slow now that the sea was pushing outwards, it was being reeled away like a group of old people on walkers in a buffet line at a casino.

Thunderbolt fights with skill and as a veteran of schoolyard scraps and hving to defend herself. Waluigi.. We mean Nefaria fights like a fencer. A diletante. Of someone whom that had done it for posturing and show!

His fist would fly right through the 'image' of Thunderbolt. "You'a stay still!"

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Thunderbolt grins, "Stay still, so you can hit me? That seems like a rather bad idea!" She takes full advantage of the fact that the Sun is, quite literally, on her side. Besides, this makes her realize that her girlfriend is somewhere nearby, which makes her fight with renewed vigor.

And she keeps peppering Nefaria with quick jabs and dancing away, wearing him down and keeping him occupied... though she doesn't exactly notice where the cruise ship is going, which might be a problem. But Nefaria does tend to be someone that occupies attention in any case.

Bruce Wayne has posed:
Indeed, the Batman sees the drift of the vessel, and he maneuvers around to keep an eye on it. Just in case it comes into distress. He has a little bit of power in this Batmarine, maybe enough to redirect it back on course.

Marie-Ange Colbert has posed:
Marie, for her part, is more than willing to keep up the blinding distraction. She has plenty of faith in Mary that the brunette will be able to win the fight -- and even could /without/ her meddling -- but staying on the 'sideline' and keeping herself from becoming a target and therefore a distraction seems the best course of action.

Admittedly, she also doesn't notice the drifting ship... but thankfully, the Dark Knight most certainly does!

Emma Frost has posed:
Never let it be said that Count Nefaria is not distracted by shiny objects. Shiny over in the form of both the giant proection being made by the protective Tarot.. But more importantly over in the form of THunderbolt's powerful fists!

Count Nefaria goes to swing over at Thunderbolt, his attacks growing faster in a frenzy. "I weel-a not let-a you mocka-me!" He's very fast and strong, but completely unskilled.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Thunderbolt ducks and weaves, and then smiles, "I'm sorry, but your princess really IS on another level." With that, she winds her fist back and connects /solidly/ right on Nefaria's nose. And as a final point of mockery she makes the 'got a coin' chime as she does so.

Emma Frost has posed:
WHAMMO! That's the sound of Count Nefaria being spun around in midair over like a tilt a whirl as he would reel over like a top, teeth flying over from the impact! Then he's going to drop through the air hard! Falling back towards the sea!

Meanwhile, the Bat-Marine maintains viglilance over at the cruise liner.. And would probably make it go faster if it went up there and pushed.

Marie-Ange Colbert has posed:
Marie knew her faith was well-placed! As the nefarious Nefaria is toppled and goes a-spiralling, the French girl releases her mental grip on the summoned Sun, letting out a cheerful, "Tres bien, Thunderbolt!" from her place on the shore.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Thunderbolt flies down and snags Nefaria as he falls, soaring over to the shoreline, dropping Nefaria there like a sack of potatoes as she grins towards Marie-Ange, "Well, hey there." She grins, "Always nice to see a fan." With that, she winks at Marie, blowing her a kiss as she then takes off into the sky, leaving Nefaria to be picked up by the rapidly-approaching NYPD.

For some reason they're a lot faster on the response when a supervillain tries to rob the rich and famous. Go figure.