16833/Let's all go to the Mauler

Let's all go to the Mauler
Date of Scene:	08 January 2024
Location:	Lost Pond Mall
Synopsis:	The Maulers raid a Mall to get stuff for their headquarters to rebuild after Omni-Man left them out to dry. They're thwarted by a trio of heroes... and Flatline?
Cast of Characters:	Mark Grayson, Andi Benton, Cindy Moon, Flatline, Koriand'r

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Mark Grayson has posed:
Lost Pond Mall. While many malls across America have fallen into decline, becoming Dead Malls for urban explorers and the like and a sad statement on how the social-economical impact of the internet upon one of the formerly hallowed gathering places for youth, Lost Pond has flourished. Most of that may have to do with its placement so close to a certain school in Westchester County.

But it's a mid-day lunch, so the mall is not as busy as it would be on the weekends. There are people milling about, most at the food court, looking to get a quick bite to eat while on their lunch break and there is also the post-Christmas return crowd.

Workers in the mall are taking down the holiday decor, returning the mall to it's 'normal' operating state, Santa's workshop closed for the season. Over all, the mood seems to be relaxed, with that soft mall music that sounds supsiciously like an elevator version of some 80s classic playing lightly over the speakers.

Andi Benton has posed:
Ahh, Hot Topic. Good ol' Hot Topic. The best place for goths, punks, and wannabes of that nature.

What is Andi Benton? Truly either? Both? Or a poser, a faker? Would someone regret it if they made the accusation to her face?

No matter. She's in there, at the mall since that's where they only seem to be, dwindling in numbers, rummaging through a few racks and shelves for something that catches her eye. Internally, there are questions being asked.

<Mania> Why do you like this place so much, Andi?
<Andi> Why do you like chocolate so much?
<Mania> Because it is amazing!
<Andi> I rest my case.

Not much of an answer, but they don't always discuss deep subject matter. Sometimes it's just the basics. However, she hasn't found anything worth taking to the register just yet.

Cindy Moon has posed:
80's vibe or not, Cindy is cerainly enjoying the aesthetic. Well...not *Cindy*, per se, but Silk. Yes, someone forgot to bring along a set of extra civvies when she swung into the area, so it is Silk that is walking through the mall today. And, surprisingly, there isn't a lot of looks thrown her way. Oh sure, there are looks....but it seems that costumed peeps are a little more common than not around here.

'Oh look! It's a Spider Lady!'

'Who you supposed to be? Like, is this a cosplay or something?'

'If you are trying for some sort of gender-swapped Spiderman, you need blue, you know.'

There might be an eyeroll or two as Silk fields the comments while checking out the shops. "Yes, hi. No, it's real. Not tryin' to be Spiderman. I'm Silk. Yeah..was just in the neighborhood...."

Guess who is never forgetting her civilian clothes again? This gal...

Flatline has posed:
    In the mall, in the foodcourt, there's one ofthose pasty-face goth teens. She's wearing a dark blue sweatshirt with a heavy hood and a pair of animal ears on it, helping to hide her paler-than-pale face as she slunks in a corner, partaking in Mall Food Court Hibachi (with extra sauce), and a large cup of boba tea, and a tall glass bottle of whatever herbal study aid the soda companies are providing this year. She seems relaxed. She doesn't often get 'off' days, and this seems to be something of a change for her, which is why she is drumming her gloved fingers against the tabletop, Hot Topic bag with a bunch of clearance Ghost shirts and zombie items... and candy. It's also full of candy. No she didn't pay for the candy.

Mark Grayson has posed:
Just another normal post-holiday clearance shopping day at the mall.

Until it's not. At the local electronics store, there's a sudden explosion as a pair of figures come running out. They look alike except for one is wearing a lab coat and the other one is not. Standing at over seven foot tall each, the large, bald, blue-skinned men are muscular and one of them is armed with a particle rifle of some sort as he turns around and fires.

"We just got out of prison, clone, why are we doing this?!" one of them, the one without the lab coat, and carrying the gun is asking the other.

The other Mauler, the one with the lab coat and the large bag of stolen electronics grouses, "Because clone, when Omni-Man left us high and dry, we lost all of our experiments, including the formula for the pills he had us make for his kid! We have to start all over again!"

"What, you didn't remember the formula?"

"Of course I didn't!" he growls, swinging around on his clone. Or original. Who knows. "When that Spider-Man destroyed the console, he destroyed the formula!"

"Fine! I will take better notes next time, clone!"

And with that, the pair are running towards the Food Court, and the exits that are located there.

Koriand'r has posed:
Ever just have really bad luck? Certainly, there was more than a few villains who might claim to when their days were ruined by 'do-gooders' or the bank alarm goes off, or the getaway vehicle breaks down. Today however, it was a classic case of wrong place, wrong time.

Koriand'r of Tamaran, better known to many as Starfire, had only just arrived at the foodcourt from the other side, her break from her duties taken purely to retrieve a churro with mustard from one of the stands here who was used to the strange order.

A tall alien supermodel with practically flaming hair was hard to miss, and worst of all? She was coming in through one of the exits the Maulers were likely intending to escape through.

Andi Benton has posed:
Still in Hot Topic, Andi isn't immediately aware of any commotion going on. Both places in question are relatively close to the food court however, closer than a lot of other stores, so a few shouts make their way over before long. "What the hell? An explosion?" she blurts, first instinct being to duck for safety.

Of course she has some added protection of her own, but before she goes straight to that she creeps toward the front displays so she can get a look at whatever's going on out there. A glimpse of two big blue-tinted guys is the obvious thing that demands attention, their path bringing them closer to where all the food is.

And some chocolate, as Mania has already been bugging Andi about.

"Just a minute," she says under her breath, looking around for the best way to start dealing with this.

Cindy Moon has posed:
'If you're really real, then show us something cool! Come on!'

While most seem content to just comment and walk on, a trio of teenagers begin to follow Cindy about. And, with all the cockiness that 15 years or so can muster, they heckle the costumed hero. 'Yeah, bet you can't do jack, lady. You don't even look all that tough.' 'Come on....do something. Anything. Betcha can't. Such a loser.'

Just be calm, Cindy, just be calm. The mental mantra cycles through her head as she just keeps on walking. Sure, she could hang them from the ceiling and let them listen to the muzak version of Take On Me as it plays over and over again, but Cindy's better than that. She's got nothing to prove.

Then the explosion...and just before that? A sudden jolt of Silk-Sense as the danger sense triggers just before. Silk's head immediately snaps in the direction of the electronics store. "Really? A Radio Shack?! This really is some sort of time capsule..." And, before the taunting trio can get another word in, Silk leaps up into the air, left hand already sending a webline out to swing from.

But, not without a parting gift. The right hand, trailing back behind Silk, fires a web blast, nice and sticky, at the feet of the teenagers, anchoring them in place for at least the time being. "Stay there...don't want you getting hurt." Did Cindy enjoy sticking them in place?

Maybe just a little bit.

But hey, if there was any doubt that Silk wasn't the real deal, it is dispelled now. She swings on in, closing the distance between the two clones and herself, singing along to the music. "Take....on.....me. Take on me! Take meeeeeee oooooon!" Well...not her fault those 80's songs are so darn catchy.

Is it an invitation to the two blue twins? Bet your sweet Cinnabon it is!

Flatline has posed:
    Well. Maybe today won't be amature hour then.

    Flatline draws one eyebrow up as the Maulers come running towards the food court, causing the wiser patrons to scatter and probably the more foolish to whip out their cellphones.

    Flatline simply sips her boba as the Maulers start to make their way through, bringing one foot down to the floor, the other carefully placed beneath one of the chairs as she watches the Maulers approach.

    Starfire steps in, catching Flatline's attention -- that is *definitely* a notable superhero, and she should probably make herself scarce.

    Then Silk swings in on a thread, providing additional distraction.

    Flatline's black lips curl, and beneath the heavy blue hoodie she was wearing (it's definitely reminicent of a certain chaotic blue alien. She definitely bought it at Hot Topic).

    She stands up, and with a good amount of force she turns in place and uses the inertia to sling one of the cafe chairs directly to the treads of a retreating Mauler, looking to trip up the One with the Gun.

    Things just get so crazy in the food court, she decides as she sipes her boba tea off the table.

Mark Grayson has posed:
Flatline coming in with the chair would have worked has Koriand'r not suddenly been right there at the exits. Be it that she's an alien supermodel or not, the Mauler with the gun growls, "Dammit, what, is it super hero day at the mall or something?!" he snarls, and lowers the large cannon, pressing the trigger and a large blast of electromagnetically driven steel is railguned towards Kori as he fires.

*CHOOM!*

The other Mauler, lab coat Mauler grunts. "We're done with aliens!" he snaps out towards his clone, "They're nothing but trouble!" Pot, calling the kettle black? There's a glance towards Flatline as she just sits there with her boba and he hehs. "Good, you know your place."

And that's when Cindy starts to swing in. "We got a spider!" he yells towards his clone.

"You know what to do with it! I'm busy with the alien girl!"

"Right!" Dropping the bag, he turns and lunges, taking a flying leap towards Cindy, reaching out to catch her in mid-air with a flying fist. "You're not the first bug we've squashed!"

Andi Benton has posed:
<Mania> We should do something.
<Andi> You think? I see we're not alone, at least.
<Mania> That looks like one of the other spiders.
<Andi> Yeah, we've met her a couple times.

With others distracted by the incident in progress, Andi looks around and finds a spot out of view of shoppers - and security cameras - before crouching to let the change take place. Gooey black tendrils whip out and around her suddenly, and Andi is seemingly no more. In her place? Mania.

Immediately, she runs out of the store and uses her own weblines to bring her closer to the action. "What's better than one spider? Two!" she says, flinging a sticky blob of webbing at the face of one of the Mauler clones. Her spider allegiance is proven by the white tarantula-like insignia at her front and back. She's the much more punky version of Venom, if anyone's not familiar.

Koriand'r has posed:
She'd truly just wanted a churro...suddenly there was panic and a railgun hitting Kori in the chest and sending her sprawling.

For several seconds anyway, then there was a hovering space princess with glowing green eyes and a generally unhappy expression.

The spiders were a welcome sight, but the Mauler with the gun would see her lift her hands, crackling starbolt energy dancing and swelling around her fingers.

"Allow me to return your greeting!" she calls, before the audible echo of a heavy starbolt rippling through the air towards her target fills the panic of the foodcourt.

Cindy Moon has posed:
A flying fist wouldn't really be a problem for Silk, normally. Spider senses and reflexes being what they are, it would be a simple duck and dodge, if it wasn't for two things. One, Cindy is already in the air, so dodging would be harder. Not impossible, but harder. She could fire a webline and just pull herself out of the way. However, there is the second reason. The big railgun triggers an alert...and effectively masks the smaller threat of a fist to the face. The end result is that Cindy is startled by the portable cannon and only is able to attempt to avoid contact due to the lab-coated Mauler announcing his attack. She is able to deflect herself enough to avoid the fist...but just barely. "Whoa, that's close."

Silk lands on her feet, just in time to catch sight of a web ball flying through the air towards one of the Blueberry twins. "Not fond of spiders, hmm? Betcha it was Spider-Man. He can have that effect on people." Eyes trace back the web trajectory towards the source, spying the punk rock symbiote as the source. "Oh..and looks like there two spiders here. Double the webbing, double the fun is what I say."

Still....Silk is worried about that weapon blast. She takes a moment to glance back towards the exits, in the direction of the almost literal flaming redhead...as Kori takes the shot directly in the chest and then just gets up like nothing.

"Oh...you shouldn't have done that! Now's she really mad!!" Yeah...don't think Cindy has to worry about Kori much at all.

Flatline has posed:
    On the last day of Christmas my true loves gave to me, two swinging spiders and an Alien nicknamed Kori.

    So we're missing a bunch of other gifts, that's a lot of birds and what would you even do with a bunch of drummers drumming? And the geese? THE GEESE?

    Flatline is not particularly heroic, but she does kinda blend in with everyone else who's running around -- which is why when the one in the labcoat with the gun aims at Kori, and the other attempts to send the small punky Venom (big fan, love the way he eats heads), Flatline dashes across and picks up the dufflebag on the first, looping it around her arm with her Hot Topic bag and dragging it to the side before she takes one last look at her lunch, gives a sigh, and then casts it into the fight.

    There is now a ground hazard for everyone on the floor: Saucy noodles, saucy chicken, and steamed vegetables all under Mauler foot!

    She keeps her boba for now. Choices had to be made.

    And once she's behind one of the inevitable support pillars and trash cans, she nosily nebs her way into the container.

Mark Grayson has posed:
*SPLURT*

Mania's right on target, splattering the lab coated Mauler in the face, covering his eyes and causing him to lose his place and his fist goes wide of Silk as she manages to pull her swing at the last possible second. "I told you we should have made something that dissolves webbing after the last time we ran across one of these Spider-People!"

"We did! Right pocket!" the other Mauler yells, steam rising from the rail gun as he chambers a fresh round from the magazine. "I think we can call that a success." he crows as the blast slams into Starfire, sending ther flying.

And that's when she gets back up. "Oh... shi."

He doesn't get to finish that as the blast slams into him, destroying the gun and causing it to overheat. "Augh, dammit!" he yells as it explodes in his face, ripping through his body as it tears off half of his face, and he falls to the ground near Flatline, who is currently rifling through a crate of PS5s, computer parts and other accessories.

Grabbing the spray from his pocket, the lab coat Mauler sprays it in his face, causing the webbing to dissolve. It seems that the two spiders will need a new tactic, as just webbing him is not going to work as he grabs a bench to swing towards Mania as she joins the fray, "What're you supposed to be, Venom's Daughter?!"

Andi Benton has posed:
Not enough time to get another blob of webbing over the pocket in question, as one of the pair deals with getting rid of what's on his face. That's annoying.

Mania spares Silk a brief wave, but that's about all there's time for with the main focus on the duo. Starfire is noted, one of the Titans, but Flatline isn't really one who stands out yet with higher priorities closer by, except for her going through some of the items they've taken. "We are Mania. Not Venom. Don't call us that again," she says, through a featureless face dominated by the solid white eyes that narrow upon hearing that, not to mention seeing the bench being wielded as a weapon.

She utilizes her quickness and ability to 'read' the attack coming in to duck under it and slide past one of the clones with her fingers out, claws primed to scratch at his legs like a cat.

Koriand'r has posed:
More brutal than she intended? Probably. Koriand'r had been raised as a warrior, but lethal force was a last resort here on earth and Starfire tended to keep to that rule. Still, he was still screaming and cursing, which meant that particular mauler was still breathing.

Eyes still aglow and moving forwards with a hover, she moves towards where the two spiders (or one and a venom-ess) were fighting, she looms over the battle with a clearing of her throat.

"You should surrender while you are still able to do so under your own power."

Flatline has posed:
    One of the Maulers is down.

    And Flatline gives a huff. She stretches her fingers, and then from her Hot Topic bag draws a sword that really shouldn't be in her possession -- mostly because it belongs to someone named Damian Wayne who probably wants it back, but it's the biggest, baddest blade she's got on her at the moment.

    The fact that it's covered with super cool runes belonging to the heir of the League of Assassins? Totally besides the point.

    She tucks her hot topic bag (and candy) in her backpack. Along with one of the gaming consoles that the Maurders were trying to steal (finder's fee). She stands, and hops a couple of times as she watches the melee and then calls out: "HEY! MANIA! I like your style!" with a bright grin beneath the darkness of the hoodie.

    And then she runs back into the fray, coming in low, skidding on slick sauce-covered cafeteria tiles, and she leaps up, bringing the blade to bare, and seeks to expertly puts the near-fatally injured Mauler out of everyone's misery. Including his own.

Cindy Moon has posed:
"Yeah! You probably want to listen to the super-strong flying person throwing green fireballs. I know I would..." There is an affirmative node from Silk as she catches the wave from Mania. She has definitely caught sight of the punk symbiote around before and doesn't seem all that surprised to see her. Then again, she's fighting a pair of giant evil Smurfs inside a mall that is almost lifted directly from Back to the Future, so her scale of weird stuff is pretty out of whack, for the time being.

Still...a spray that dissolves webbing? That's a touch unfair. "Oh...look. Big bad blueberry has a web solvent. Whoever said I wanted to web you up?" As Cindy speaks, her fingers start spinning. It is definitely a web...but a shape. Long. Cylindrical. And solid. "Not when I can beat you down?" Both hands now grip what is arguably a pretty hefty looking baseball bat, fashioned out of webbing. "And...you might be able to dissolve my webs. But...it's gonna hurt first...and I can always make more."

With that, Silk takes a swing with her web bat, aiming for the back of the left knee of Brainy Smurf (the Mauler with the lab coat.) One thing that the Mauler might deduce. This particular spider can control the substance of her webbing. And that bat, should it connect? It might as well be made of wood with how solid it is.

Mark Grayson has posed:
The Mauler that was on the ground was pretty badly hurt. He had planned to play possum until Koriand'r passed by and then try to ambush her. Because surely, the alien girl could take a punch or two, right? That is until the figure that is over him is not in fact, an orange skinned alien beauty, but instead a pasty faced... "What are you supposed to be?" he snorts at Flatline.

They would be his last words as he is run through by the blade of the League of Assassins. And Flatline... she gets to do her 'Highlander' impersonation.

The second Mauler swings around the bench, missing Mania, as her claws cut into his legs and he drops to his knees. "Why you little freak, when I get my hands on you, I'm gonna peel that symbiote off of you!" he snarls, just as Cindy comes in with that bat. His hand raises up, the bat slamming into the palm of it and he grunts. "You swing pretty hard, little girl. But I'm harder."

And then he sees the death of his clone. And with the arrival of Starfire, he realizes the issue. One of them has to live. There can't be two, if there are none. Releasing the bat, he raises his hands. "Heh. You got me, ladies. Be gentle." he snorts with a laugh.

Because now he's the original.

Andi Benton has posed:
"Uh, thanks," Mania starts out with by responding to Flatline, trying to avoid distraction with Starfire at work, Silk as well, and that big sword the one with the hoodie is wielding. She spins back around after passing the one she's just clawed, leaving her to glare at him - and it's obvious with those eyes as expressive as they are. "Better than you have tried. You want some more?" Those fingers start to lengthen by a few inches, turning bladelike in a way that might make Freddy Krueger think she was trying to impress him.

Except before she can act further, she's witness to something else. Flatline using that sword. "What are you doing..?! No, stop!" Mania splits some of her attention that way, trying to force Flatline back with a hand, the arm elongating in the process. Seems to be too late, though.

<Mania> She just killed him.
<Andi> I know!
<Mania> See how easy it was to do?
<Andi> You think I don't know that?

Even as the other Mauler gets up and seems to play nice with the effort to surrender, Mania takes a couple steps back from this. Eyes betray doubt and concern, like she's struggling with what to do next. She did not expect to see one of them just dead on the spot. "This is wrong!"

Cindy Moon has posed:
Oh, crap. Brainy Mauler catches Silk's web bat like it was nothing. "Oh...oh that's not good."

But then...he just drops it, raising his hands and surrendering? Why would he do that? Silk turns to regard where her adversary was looking and...yeah. That was *not* expected. "What in the holy hell just happened?" Still, it doesn't take much to suss things out, what with the walking hoodie holding the sword. And...wait. This other one just stopped...as if the death of his twin was no big deal...and is laughing it off?

For once, the smart-mouthed spider is at a loss for words.

Flatline has posed:
    Andi was too late to stop the girl from murdering the Mauler, but her blow knocks her off the body. The figure in the blue hoodie goes sliding back, her eyes closing as she holds her breath, and slides across the gross miasma of Fake Hibachi, sauce and Mauler innards.

    The hood falls back, showing her pale face -- though without its trademark skull make up. She narrows her pink eyes at Mania, breathes out and then flips herself to a crouch.

    "You know, doing you all a /favor/ since heroes can't kill the bad guys." she grits her teeth.

    "Their plan was to recover information based on what some guy named Omni-Man gave them. Some sort of pill. And of course rebuild their lab, but they needed processing power... a lot of processing power... soooo they stole a shitload of PS5's." she winces.

    "UGH NERD THOUGHTS HURT SO MUCH."

Mark Grayson has posed:
The Mauler twin stares at Flatline for a moment and then cracks a grin at her. "Post-Mordem memory retention? Oh, you'll be a fun one to disect!" he says with amusement as he looks at the pale young woman. "I will have to remmeber that the next time I... I mean we... see you."

But he is not fighting. Peaceful surrender.

Andi Benton has posed:
Mania probably didn't mean to be that forceful, but these things happen sometimes. Symbiotes are strong, not weak. It doesn't really help to see what Flatline is sliding across, though a good look at the woman's face is made out, even if it's sans makeup.

"We could have captured him," is what she says in response, fingers returning to normal with just small claws tipping each digit. "He wasn't that much of a threat." Which she seems to believe, through bravado or not.

The explanation over what they were making off with from the electronics store, the name Omni-Man, the lab...it at least gets noted, but she goes about making sure that web-dissolving spray can't be used again before using an ample amount of webbing - don't ask where it comes from, aside from the wrists - to ensure his arms and legs are bound up properly while authorities converge on the scene. "That'll only last a few minutes, but we aren't staying to talk to the cops." Mall or otherwise.

Flatline has posed:
    "I'll just have to kill you before you can clone yourself and start arguing over which one's the clone again." Flatline states flatly to the remaining Mauler, and she gives a salute to Mania.

    "Quicker to just end them with me for the information needed. But blhrrrrrrrgh -- here comes the mall cops on the segways, and Flatline pulls her hood back over her white hair, and gives a little thumbs up to Mania.

    "See ya!" she chipperly states, and then makes an exit out the doors.