20318/Paying The Piper

Paying The Piper
Date of Scene:	03 April 2025
Location:	Mount Sinai Hospital NY
Synopsis:	Someone picked the wrong hospital!
Cast of Characters:	Morrigan MacIntyre, Sam Wilson, Scott Lang

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Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Officer Liam McLoughlin had been shot on Saint Patrick's Day while he was on parade duty. And from there his situation had been investigated. Everything seemed fine with the man until one of his tests came back with weird markers in his blood and that left him in the hands of Doctor Morrigan Wilson as she was the head of pathology and their resident Hematologist.

It is Thursday (my dudes!) and Mount Sinai is business as usual, until it is not.

Around 4:30 in the afternoon a call goes into the NYPD about an active shooter, possibly more, at the hospital. This caused a bit of panic among the locals as well populated areas like the one surrounding Mount Sinai would be easy to lose people in, but the hospital had enacted its own protocols for if situations like this happened.

There is a breaking news story showing local news crews at the scene, but at a safe distance and keeping the public updated as more police arrive. This has been broadcast everywhere, so it is not surprising if Avengers or others hear about it.

Sam Wilson has posed:
Sam Wilson actually had plans to pick up his wife and take her out to dinner when she reached the end of her shift. That was supposed to be in thirty minutes. He was in traffic about to pull onto the George Washington Bridge, listening to Answer Your Phone by Leon Thomas when his phone chimes with the alert for the Avengers about the active shooter at the hospitial she was at.

He pulls the car off onto a side street, parking it in a lot and shifts to the back to open the trunk, sliding out the case for his EXO frame. It only takes a couple of minutes for him to suit up, having practiced it many times before.

Once he's assembled himself, Falcon takes off into the afternoon sky, engines flaring blue and gold in afterburn as he streaks across the bridge towards the hospital to arrive on the rooftop.

Scott Lang has posed:
Scott Lang actually keeps his eyes on the news (for once). And he knows about Liam McLoughlin. Everything about him being in the hospital. His eyes narrow when the later reports come out about an active shooter.

"Bet someone small can do a world of good," Scott starts to get ready. Slipping on the suit, he looks at himself in the mirror. "Things have changed, haven't they?" Going from criminal to the guy that saves police. It's a small moment, but it's one he'll be immensively proud of (if they keep the officer safe).

Chimming into the Avenger's Coms <Anyone hear about the hero cop? I'm heading out to the hospital to lend a helping hand. Anyone's welcome to join if you missed the news.>

Scott did miss his phone going off getting into the costume. And so Scott is off with a little help of a flying ant.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Some of the cops outside of the hospital were still thinking this was a drill, it is most certainly not. And there are a lot of people inside. "See if we can get eyes on any shooters and if anyone is making contact for demands? We don't know what the situation is as of yet." one of the LT's shout across to his men. "If we can put this to bed without casualties that is the best outcome." he adds.

Sam lands and some of the cops on the ground do notice. There's a few murmurs that go around. Scott's approaching on a flying ant, so he's probably not as easy to spot as Falcon was.

Inside there are two shooters. One is closer to the 8th floor, where Pathology is. The other is on the first floor, towards the center of the building doing crowd control as he herds people towards the exit doors. Apparently they were not keeping hostages.

On the 8th floor it is noticeable when the floor goes dark, but they can see figures moving low and to the ground in the shadows, probably trying to get people out.

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Redwing, deploy." Falcon orders as he lands on the roof. The drone spreads it's wings from his backpack and launches into the sky. Circling around at his command, the aerial drone makes it's way down to the outer windows of the darkened 8th floor, and using it's FLIR, starts to scan the floor to assess the situation.

It provides real-time feedback to Sam, the infrared greys and whites showing the inside of the floor as it searches, looking for the target to engage.

<<Hey pip-squeak.>> Falcon comments to Scott on the comms, <<I'm on the roof, trying to ping the badguys. Think you can get eyes on any other shooters?>>

Scott Lang has posed:
<<Pip-Squeak?! Alright, One-Wing. Nice to hear I'm not alone, even if it's -you-.>> Scott's clearly joking. He's happy Sam's here. It means the situation will have a point. Someone that will make sure the situational pressures are handled.

However, Scott doesn't have Red Wing to feed him intel. So, that's when Scott will fly toward the police presence. No warning, no anything, it's just a sound of wooshing energy followed by a "Pop!" like noise as Scott's there. "I know about the shooter on top. Any others?" After he gets the intel, "Thanks!" The same noises follow him and Scott's small again.

<<Heading to the first floor One Wing. Does your better half have any eyes on more shooters?>> Scott figures Redwing is probably doing better than NYPD's finest (no offense).

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Redwing feeds Sam real time information back. And one of the shooters was working his way up the stairs to the 8th floor. There are people getting out of the other side where the window fire escape is. There are two police guards that are stationed outside of Officer McLouglin's room and they'd tried to get people to evacuate when they heard of a shooter. These dudes do not get paid for this bullshit.

There are two shots that ring out in the darkness of the 8th floor. "We're just wounding, not killing." a staticy voice calls over personal comms, but the Avengers can /also/ hear it.

Redwing registers a familiar image on the scan as Morrigan is crouched low and checking the vitals on one of the cops that were shot.

Scott's shooter is down on the first floor, still herding a few stragglers towards the door and making sure that the cops aren't rushing in. The firearms are military grade, as is the armor...so this isn't some random happening. Not with the amount of money it takes to buy this stuff.

Sam Wilson has posed:
As he's fed the information, Falcon feels his heart catch for a moment when he sees Morrigan in the thick of it. But he pushes down the emotion for the moment. He has work to do. <<Shooter on Eight. Going to crash the party. Yell if you need me.>>

Stretching his wings, Falcon lifts from the roof and dives off the side. Getting some distance away from the hospital, he turns back and heads towards Redwing's location. His jets flare as he closes in on the building, gathering momentum. Closing in on the window, Sam cuts the engines and swings both wings in front of him, balling up behind them.

His reflection is noticable in the window for a moment before he smashes through, sending glass flying as he tumbles, landing between the shooter and the police. His wings remain in front of him, a makeshift shield to protect him from what he'll expect to be incoming fire.

Scott Lang has posed:
Thankfully, the considerate shooter on the first floor not only helps people, but gives Scott an opportunity to let himself in. The stagglers on the first floor rush out and that's when Tiny Scott flies in. <<Let me know if you want to coordinate any strike, or you wanna green light me to go when I get a chance.>> Thankfully the communicator works when Scott is in this form. His voice may be a little strange. That's a logistical problem for later. Pause. Falcon gives his answer, <<Guess we're both crashing the party then.>>

Once Scott's shooter gets clear of any potential target Scott waits. The plan is to hit the person right after a turn. To just shoot out like a bullet while swinging a fist. Let the motion of everything collide into this person's face like a bullet.

Hopefully this is a quick way to disarm someone. Although, he's perfectly ready to shrink again to go on defense.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan's level of pissed off has reached critical mass and the shooter is getting cussed out in Irish when the glass smashes and Falcon comes tumbling in like some metal winged angel. And Sam is smart, because when there is something that comes between the shooter and the room he was trying to get to he does open fire. Shots tinking off the wings and bouncing off.

While Sam is dealing with the hail of gunfire she starts to drag the downed officers into the room and she closes the door once she's back out in the hallway where Sam and the shooter are. She uses the darkness to perform magic while bullets fly everywhere.

One moment Morrigan is behind Sam and the next she is dropping from the ceiling to crash into the shooter, who was not expecting that at all and he lets go of the gun and it clatters to the ground as he grabs onto Morrigan, "Wha...lady! Just give us Liam and you can go home!" he shouts.

Down on the ground floor the shooter isn't expecting the Ant-Inquisition and he has a glassjaw, so when Scott flies out unseen and punches him it is very much a one and done kind of match. At least that is one person down.

The cops that are on the ground are watching both areas now that there is action going on and a group moves towards the front.

Sam Wilson has posed:
His wife has a temper. And Falcon is getting to see it on full display. As the bullets ping off the composite wings, he waits for Morrigan to get behind him. He was just about to say for her to stay put and he'll handle it - when she goes on the attack. Yes, he's seen her in action before, but still, it's a sight to behold and for a moment, he's gob-smacked.

That is until the shooter turns and grabs a hold of Morrigan. He can't flare his wings out in the hallway, but he does twist them enough to fire a pair on pinon missiles at the back of the shooter's knees. "Mo, incoming!" he calls out, so she has the heads up.

Scott Lang has posed:
Scott did not expect everything to be short lived for him. <<Party's crashed on my end.>> Grabbing the gun, ID, or anything else that looks useful or dangerous as he checks in. Pause. Afterward, Scott tries to find something, anything, to help restrain this guy.

A second later, he shrinks down then tries to fly off. Just rushing to get up toward the eighth floor. <<What's the situation, Falcon?>>

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan crashes her head against the shooters, the scent of coppery blood hanging in the air now as she doesn't realize the strengths she's willed into her form. And she can taste her own, so she gives a grimace. Sam's voice cuts through though and she manages to roll away when the man's knees are taken out from under him. "I'm alright!" she calls to her husband as she uses the sleeve of her lab coat to try to stop the blood.

"How many others?" she asks. Sam or the man on the ground in pain, she wasn't sure who would answer. "Just one more...and a driver, but I'm guessing he's already gone." he shouts at her.

Downstairs with Scott the man does have zipties on him, so easy to restrain. The cops that are incoming are HELLA confused when they find this guy wrapped up though. "Looks like we've got help or this one just didn't want to fight." one of the officers muse.

Sam Wilson has posed:
When the shooter goes down, Sam was about to respond further when it seems that Morrigan has it well under control. A quick smile to reassure her - and himself is sent, before his attention is grabbed by his earpiece. As Falcon's radio buzzes, he responds, <<One down up here. Says there was only one with him and a driver!>> A quick glance to Morrigan to do one last check on her.

Instructions are sent to Redwing to start a search as Sam grabs a pair of zipties from one of the downed cops and makes his way over to the shooter. "Go check on the officers." he suggests to his wife as he yanks the shooters arms behind his back and drops a knee into the small of his back to pin him down and secure his wrists. "Vehicle make, model and color, now." he snarls at the shooter, a rough yank on his arms to force his shoulder joints into a position they shouldn't be in.

Scott Lang has posed:
Scott eventually grows back to normal once he sees the situation is under control. Seeing how Sam handles the situation, Scott smirks and looks down at the assailant. "I'd do it. I mean right now, you might be able to work out a deal with the cops. Talk nice and do what they say, trust me, they'll want to deal." Pause and he looks at Sam. "Just need to tell what my friend wants first, because he's the harder sale between NYPD's finest and Avengers. I'm just your friend telling you like it is," Scott has been walking for a moment during this time. When Scott kneels down, he's a little ways away.

  "You know I've seen this Man...," a gesture goes to Falcon, "drop people off of buildings. And he wasn't even mad back then! Right now," Scott makes a point to lean and look. "Yeah, he's pretty mad. If you don't tell him everything, you might find out how high up those wings can go." Scott chuckles and shakes his head.

"I fought him once. Trust me, they go pretty far!" Scott continues and smiles. "But your choice. I'm just speaking to you ex-con to future con. That's how I know the cops work, been there," he looks around at the carnage. "Not for this, but trust me. There's always a bigger fish in the eyes of Johnny Law. Think about it, but you really need to consider my friend. K? K!" Yes, Scott is going with the good cop, bad cop routine. Hopefully it works. Maybe it'll put the fear of Sam Wilson into this restrained man.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
"Sorry that dinner plans got ruined." Morrigan tells her husband with a soft smile in return. The guy on the ground was batting 1000 today. Failed killing mission and got to get kicked by the Avengers. "I'll go do that, you be careful." she tells Sam. "And you too." she points to Lang before she disappears back down the hall and into Officer Liam's room.

The shooter on the ground grunts out in pain as his shoulder is bent like it shouldn't be, "Black Crown Vic!" the man tells them.

"He's not going to drop me off a building." he quips to Scott. "Look, we've got the same radios the police do. If you don't move now he'll be gone." he tells them.

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Yeah, maybe you do." Falcon responds to the shooter. They may very well have police radios. But they don't have Avenger frequencies. Releasing the man to let his arms fall, Falcon glances over to Scott. "Watch him for a moment. Something I need to do."

With that, he starts sending instructions to Redwing. The drone, which had been in a holding pattern over the hospital is set to start to scan for a Black Crown Vic that will be near one of the hospital entrances or pulling away.

He instructs the drone not to attack the car, but to follow it for a short distance, before firing a tracking device to attach to the getaway vehicle so that it can be located at it's destination.

Scott Lang has posed:
"Got it." Scott reaches into his pocket. Yes, the suit manages to have some. He pulls out a Donald Duck Pez dispenser that's more than half full. "Can't let Falcon have all the fun. Besides, we need someone to tell us a few more things," as he talks, Scott's just deftly moving the other hand to pull out a pym particle disc. The silvery object has a blue center.

Carefully, Scott will place the pez dispenser on the shooter's back going across width wise. He even takes a little moment to put it here, or there. Just small adjustments before being happy with it.

A second later he casually drops the disc onto said Donald Duck. What was once small is now giant-sized. It's probably a good fifty weight on the guy. "Falcon said to watch you and I'm sure he has more questions. Plus, if I can tilt his head up we can share some candy. Small victories," Scott smiles and he will castually lean against the wall.

<What's the situation? Our party man isn't going anywhere.> Scott knows this is entirely in Sam's wheel house, but he'll still -try- to help.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The driver was already moving, but Redwing has flight on his side. And Sam is able to deploy a tracking tag without it being noticed. Some tactical team this is! For now, the car drives along like it is not doing anything illegal, but comes to a stop in a large warehouse near the docks.

"Do you talk all the time?" the ziptied man asks Scott, "We aren't friends. Just get me off the ground and outta here before that crazy bitch comes back and takes my head off." he comments about Morrigan.

Sam Wilson has posed:
<<Got a location, recalling Redwing. Not sure what we're facing there - but we can plan an op for another time. Soon.>> Falcon replies as he finally returns. A few moments later, Redwing returns and latches back to the backpack. There's a glance at the giant Pez dispenser and a lift of a brow. "I guess that's one way to keep the man down." he comments dryly.

"Cops should be on scene soon, we'll turn these two over to them. I'm gonna be sticking around until Mo's ready to go home." A glance up to where she's currently at work behind closed doors. "Thanks for the assist. I appreciate it."

Scott Lang has posed:
"I mean, I can keep going," Scott says honestly. "You should hear me after a couple cups of coffee," and Scott will leave it at that. Simultaneously giving the indiivudal what they wished for while just leaving the man hang there metaphorically speaking.

"Well, you make do with what you have," SScott smiles and then he'll just pull out a red pym disc. "Alright. Let me know when you want help going after the rest of them," Scott will offer Sam a hand. Yes, there is definitely respect between them.