18475/The Man from Paradise

The Man from Paradise
Date of Scene:	01 July 2024
Location:	Location
Synopsis:	No description
Cast of Characters:	5429, Rien D'Arqueness, Carol Danvers, Lara Croft

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Steve Trevor (5429) has posed:
Twelve days ago, a string of irregularities began to appear, starting near Duren, Germany, which wasn't that far from the Belgian border. SHIELD's super computers compiled information from a wide variety of sources, and sometimes spat out theories, like that these irregularities were in some way connected.

Most of the time, it was a wild goose chase. But every now and then, the algorithm would find something worthwhile. From the data points, they were looking for an adult man, German accent, blond hair, blue eyes, six foot one inches tall, one hundred and ninety five pounds, who was eschewing regular identification methods. No Euro pass, no bank or credit cards, no mobile phone, no computer, but he was believed to have stolen multiple sets of clothes from a local clothing store, as well as deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrush, a backpack, shoes, as if the man needed everything.

He had somehow acquired cash and checked into a hotel, moving across the open border into Belgium, then the Netherlands, and had stowed away on a boat bound for England.

His image had been captured on a variety of surveillance systems, but he did not exist in any database that SHIELD was aware of, which in itself, was one serious red flag. His last known location was a little town called Maidstone, in Kent, England. He had been seen by an ATM at 4:03 PM, wearing a navy blue shirt, a new one he had acquired, which had an England soccer logo on it, a black leather jacket, taken from Germany, black pants, black shoes, and a backpack.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
As soon as Rien got wind of the mission, she volunteered to help track down the unknown man, having firsthand experience with being a person that doesn't exist on any systems. She waits until they get a hit on the hotel and makes sure it's held, no cleaning, until she can get there. A quick search will get her what she needs. A shirt left behind, some hair in a comb. She gets his scent, and his hair.

The one will let her track him up close. The other, well, that might just let them get close enough.

Of course, before she can do any sort of spells or rituals, they get the ping for Maidstone. Even better! She keeps the hair sample, just in case, but is happy to hop a Quinjet to England to see they can't find him before he runs into REAL trouble. Joining Lara and Carol, Rien offers a quick smile and murmurs, "If we can get to the ATM quickly enough, I might be able to track him down on foot. I have to pick up his scent, though, so we need to get there quickly. It's not London, but Maidstone is large enough the scent will fade soon and we'll be chasing pictures and rumors again."

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol's not even flying the Quinjet, but she _is_ inside it this time. Every so often, she got stuck on the outside flying escort for some particularly dangerous incursion, but these were allies.

No worries.

She's wearing that typical blue and red outfit of hers with the Hala Star in the middle, but she has an old, dark brown bomber jacket complete with her old wings patch stitched in, thrown over the top of it that kind of... dresses it down. Without the jacket, she _looks_ like a superhero that's there to blow holes in alien battleships, even if you don't know who she is. With it? She kinda looks like a laid back, off-duty pilot with the bottom half of her G-suit still on. Sort of.

They did the briefing on the way over, and they hadn't gotten any new updates since going 'feet dry' in the jet, so it's just a matter of manpower, at this point.

"Everyone make sure you're on comms. The channel was in the briefing. Remember the man we're looking for is actively evading law enforcement. Be discreet. Radio in anything you find. Eyes open. Use your heads and whatever unique talents you happen to have."

And that was it as far as initial guidance. A good leader takes advantage of the talents of her team and listens to them, and that's what she intended to do -- be there to support, guide, and provide backup where and if necessary.

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara had been at the Triskelion when the message had come to her that something was happening almost a stone's throw away from her home in Surrey. She'd investeigated the details, and joined up with the team. She was used to the flight between New York and London, at this point, taking it quite regularly, let alone flights to all other corners of the globe.

"The M20 and A20 motorways are both being patrolled by law enforcement. If he is headed to London, they should catch him quite easily," Lara is speaking in to her phone, as she sat within the Quinjet. Dressed in a black tank top, with dark grey pocketed trousers, and black leather boots, she had a jacket resting on her pack beside her. She listens to the response that she gets from the other end of the line, before she notes the pilot signifying their arrival. "We're coming in, so I better get off of here." She notes, her voice soft, but loud enough to carry through the plane's reverberating hull.

When she detaches herself from the phone, she stuffs it in to a pocket on her pack, before she prepares herself for their arrival.

"I have a number of contacts within Maidstone, if we need checkpoints, or places to stop in at." Lara offers to the others aboard the jet with her, as they make final approach.

Steve Trevor (5429) has posed:
The man in question wasn't just good at evading law enforcement, he had dressed for the occasion. He had been seen passing an ATM at 4:03 PM local time, and while he may not have been aware his photograph was being recorded by such an innocuous looking machine, he had dressed the part. Today was the day of a international football match, being played in Germany, between England and Slovakia, and the game had just begun.

He had passed several more camera opportunities, but with the people heading to the pubs, no direct image had been caught. He may have put on a cap as well to help hide his features, but that would be down to his sensitivity to law enforcement, rather than the cameras.

There was a partial hit on a camera, that was 43.9% certain it was the man they were looking for. Poor odds, but it did say partial. This one placed him at Drakes, a pub at 9 Fairmeadow, still in Maidstone.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
"We need fast transportation. The roads will be relatively clear, everyone's going to be watching the game. And we need police to not bother us while we search." Rien looks to Lara with a faint grin, "Preferably motorcycles, open air is best for catching scent. I want to start at the ATM where he was first spotted and start heading towards where the latest ping was caught. The faster I can move, the sooner I can pick up his scent."

Rien looks to Carol and grins, "Want to take the aerial view? You might see something we don't, and it would be really helpful to have eyes in the sky. You're a known quantity, police won't blink if you're seen flying around. If I have to take flight, we're going to get flagged."

The blonde speaks with a soft French accent, her SHIELD files state that she's a mutan with magical abilities, has a history of working with the BPRD, WAND, SWORD, and SHIELD leading all the way back to 1944.. when she appeared out of the blue attached to the Howling Commandos briefly. She looks between Lara and Carol, dressed in all black, leather jacket, tanktop, jeans, boots.

Carol Danvers has posed:
The Quinjet sets down at the airport, and when the alert of the partial hit comes in, Carol checks the update on the display on the back of her forearm.

"Sounds like Lara's got the locals already watching, so I'm not as worried about them as I am figuring out who this guy is before he slips away. It looks like we might have another place to start, so let's get down there and see if we can pin him down. You and I can fly, and I'll give Lara a lift. There's going to be a crowd, so we may have to put that nose to the test when we get there. If we find him and he runs, just be ready to track him as best you can. Latest intel looks like a pub. We'll fly in, about a block away, and hoof it the rest of the way."

She's already headed towards the ramp to do just that, glancing back over her shoulder.

"Lara, do you happen to have any contacts at or around Drake's? Maybe send 'em a message, tell them to let us know if they see the guy? Eyes only. Don't spook him until we get there. We're too close, at this point."

Lara Croft has posed:
With her own jacket slipped on, Lara flips her ponytail out of the back of it, as she listens to Rien's request. "Right, I know a person. Let me make another call." She states, her phone produced once more, while the Jet makes it final descent. She's holding on to a grab-bar with one hand, while her phone is worked by her other thumb across its screen. "A flight with Captain Marvel?" Lara asks, placing her phone to her ear, and showing Carol a half-smirk. "Sounds like an upgrade to the Quinjet."

She spends a minute or so talking to another person, making only a few pleasantries with them, including dodging what sounds like an invite to go get drinks, or have dinner since she's in town.

By the time she finishes the phone conversations, she is up on her feet, the jet has touched down, and Lara's pack is slung over her shoulder. "I do actually," she says with regard to Drake's. "We'll have a couple motorbikes waiting for us at the north eastern corner of the city block." She indicates, as she steps off the jet with the others. "Just in case we have to split up..." She says with a soft exhale. "I sent the photo of our target to the friends dropping the bikes off. They'll take a peak in the bar.... see what they can spy." She's so punny.

Lara offers an arm to Carol then, "I'm ready when you are, Captain." The British Duchess informs.

Steve Trevor (5429) has posed:
Slovakia had taken the lead, and the crowd were not happy, as England were playing badly, but worse than that, they were losing to Slovakia of all places. A few became a bit rowdy, but fellow members of the crowd sorted it out, leaving any on site security the freedom to do their job, which was more about making sure no one caused any fuss, rather than some kind of international terrorist or whatever was going on at the higher levels.

Another ping was detected, this one at a Shell gas station on London Road in Sevenoaks, where it caught sight of what looked to be a 63.7% match based on the limited available data. The camera had caught sight of someone through their motorcycle visor, with the eyes and bridge of the nose being visible. This man also matched the height and approximate weight, but he wore a white, red, and black, horizontally striped riding jacket, though the pants and shoes matched their existing description.

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
"If you're certain," Rien gives a nod to Carol, not bothering with any supplies. She has everything she needs. The ping comes in as she's heading down the ramp in preparation of heading out. "Well, shit. Looking like we've got an update. Possible match in Sevenoaks. Larger percentage than Drake's. Looks like he picked up a bike from Drake's and took off. Add hotwiring to his skills." Pursing up her lips, she murmurs, "New jacket too. Someone's going to be pissed."

She looks to Carol and Lara, "If we can't pick him up in the next ten minutes, I have a trick up my sleeve... but it takes a lot out of me, so I'd just as soon save it for a last ditch effort." Rien flashes a quick grin, "Gonna head straight to the Shell station, see if I can't pick up his scent. You guys want a 'port over? We'll have better luck if we start where the trail is freshest." If they agree, she'll nod, smile, and teleport all three of them to the Shell station, around the back near the employee smoking area. Otherwise, it's time to fly!

Carol Danvers has posed:
Carol lets out a soft sigh, shaking her head as she checks the same update Rien was seeing. "There's three of us. Short of someone calling in a tip or him turning himself in, we're going to be chasing these for a while."

There's a glance up to Lara, a little smirk of a smile tugging at one corner of her lips. "Sorry to get your hopes up early. Maybe we'll catch that flight later, but good work on the bar. Saves us from having to make one stop ourselves."

Back to Rien, then, she nods. "Let's go take a look."

Lara Croft has posed:
"Teleportation," Lara spoke, her offered arm falling back to her side. "Another fancy ability, I yet need to learn the ins and outs of. As it might save me on medical bills some day." She adds, her brown eyes going from one of the women to the other, a brief look of mirth touching her visage. She nods to Rien, and prepares.

When did and done, Lara draws in a deep breath, calming her nerves through the transportation of magical energies. She's done it many times since joining the WAND division of SHIELD, but every single time it feels different, as every practitioner of magical teleportation abilities seems to have a different way of seeing it through, which subsequently results in different feelings inside her mind and body.

The man smoking a cigarette outside of the employee door, gets a sudden appearance of three lovely ladies, and with it, Lara offers him a small wave. She steps toward him, in fact, and already has her phone out to offer him a picture of their would-be-target.

Within seconds, Lara is questioning the bewildered petrol station worker.

Steve Trevor (5429) has posed:
The Shell Station looked like most others. It had that large roof, with a mustard yellow side. Below, signs saying Shell V-Power, and eight total pumps. There was a walk in area, with a separate sign reading "Little Waltrose and Partners". On the far right, there was an ATM accessible, which had a camera that caught the traffic going by the road. The actual footage in question had the man, pull into the parking lot, standing over his motorcycle, look to open a mobile phone, or some similar device, put it back into the pocket, pull the visor back up, and head further down the road.

After calming down a bit, he was more helpful, "afraid I don't know 'im, luv," the employee on his smoke break said, "but yer welcome to see our surveillance footage if you want," since he had accepted her ID when prompted. "'course, you might want to check the Barclay's ATM outside too. They have their own feed, don't know where it's sent to," a gesture to the air, "cloud would be my guess."

Rien D'Arqueness has posed:
With Rien, there's a liminal blue glow that will surround the three of them, a rush of air, a pop in the ears like a change in altitude might provoke, and then they're standing next to the Shell Station with a very surprised-looking employee!

While Lara questions the employee, Rien heads towards the spot where the motorcycle pulled into the lot, snorting a few times to clear her olfactory senses of the scents from the tarmac, then inhaling deeply. Seeking the scent attached to the shirt found at the hotel.

Frowning, she looks to Carol and shakes her head, "Wasn't him. Two options. We go back to Drake's... or I can try summoning him to us. Probably going to be highly disorienting for him, and we'd likely want to go back to the plane for it so he can't try to run away as soon as he's pulled."

Lara Croft has posed:
After questioning the employee, and thanking him with a smile, Lara ended up having to catch up with Carol and Rien. When she did so, she caught the tail end of what Rien was explaining. With her eyes looking out toward the road, and watching a few vehicles coming and going, she breathes out a small exhale in the cool night air.

"Doubly disorienting if he's taking a break on the loo." Lara notes, showing the other two a small smirk. She exhales softly, shakes her head a single time from side to side, before looking to Rien alone.

"You have that ability, though? And it won't physically harm him, save for extreme circumstances... such as if he were already... say, falling from a great height, or in the middle of a car accident."

She shot a glance toward Carol, then back to Rien. "I think it'd certainly solve our situation much faster, but yeah... I don't know what risks might implicitly be involved in such a measure of solving the chase."