219/Freedom Fighters

Freedom Fighters
Date of Scene:	01 March 2020
Location:	Little Italy
Synopsis:	Crush and Talon meet unexpectedly to kick the bejesus out of some human traffickers.
Cast of Characters:	Xiomara Rojas, Laura Kinney

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Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    At night the city of New York changes for the worse. Long has there been crime in this city of the worst sorts- and some people remember those days with a sense of nostalgia. One of the best lessons, however, any criminal can learn is to never look like they're committing crimes. To give people plausible reason to suspect nothing whatsoever.

    This is why no one bats an eye as a touring bus turns down one particular Little Italy street, carrying a whole busload of women dressed as nuns, and parks in front of a hotel.

    No one thinks to question why the 'nuns' are accompanied by men in suits who don't look particularly like priests or tour guides. No one would question why the Nuns went down the alley next to the hotel instead of in the front door. And no one could see the women's hands cuffed together inside the habits they were forced to wear- they couldn't see the shock collars fitted around their necks due to the way the clothing hid everything.

    In short, if someone wasn't aware that something like this was going down, they'd be none the wiser. This is a nice neighborhood, after all, that has mostly shed it's association with crime.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura, fortunately, isn't just anyone. She knows what a slight bulge in the armpit of a cheap suit means, and can practically smell the fear wafting off the victims. Crouched on a rooftop across the street, the black clad teen clenches her fists, every instinct wanting to just pop claws and engage, deal with them right then and there. But that would get noisy outside. Better to wait until they're inside, and she can do this nice and quietly.
     Once the street's clear again, she tosses a grappling hook over to the other rooftop, securing her end before going hand over hand across the street. Time to be what goes bump in the night... And set some people free.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    As it turned out, Laura isn't the only one who has personal issues with human traffickers. Crush- Xiomara Rojas- has also been waiting for this 'shipment' ever since she heard about it coming in at one of the fights she'd been participating in. Crush stands out- she always stands out- but she understands when discretion might be the better choice. She's got a ratty, oversized hoodie she likely grabbed out of some dumpster on. It covers her top. The hood covers most of her face- but her pink leather pants are still very clearly on display.

    Once the last of the 'Nuns' had been brought into that alley and disappeared into the dimly lit gloom of the alley next to the hotel she started to make her move.

    Her approach was perhaps less fantastic than Laura's, but just as effective. She keeps to the shadows, crossing the road near a conveniently sputtering streetlight to disappear into the alley next to the hotel- shedding her hoodie once she's off the street and no longer hiding- approaching the door with quiet- red eyes focused more on the door than anything else.

    Inside the alley-based warehouse the women were brought downstairs- kept in their costumes- before being led to large cells that would house them all. They were locked inside with little fuss- those who cause ruckus shocked to the ground quickly as the shock collars would be activated against them- and a bunch of random women simultaneously.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura's entrance is stealthy, the deadbolt on the roof door removed with a quick slice, and she's in an access stairwell. Downstairs should be the office overlooking the warehouse itself, connected to series of catwalks. A good way to scout out her opponents, let her get a count, and plan the takedown. Slow was annoying, but it was safer. Less chance the captives would be hurt. Suppressing the smoldering rage, she starts forming her plan...

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    All the while Laura was coming up with a plan and being stealthy-ninja gal, Crush was already ready to start raging at what she'd discovered- she'd been angry the whole day. The whole night- and now, it was time to let her rage out on an appropriate target: Scumbag human traffickers.

    The door at street level was guarded from within- still, she knocked and waited. A sliding security hatch opened, "What?" comes the voice from inside.

    "Delivery." Crush states before she punches the door- through the steel and grabs the guy inside to slam him against the door two or three times until he falls down. It isn't exactly the most stealthy way to do things- but given the weeping and calling downstairs a few loud thumps on a door wasn't that weird at all.

    Once she's suitably beaten the bejesus out of the man crush breaks the lock and steps inside. It wasn't very stealthy- and in the underground warehouse people are starting to look towards that main entrance with a certain amount of upset- particularly as another suited gentleman goes FLYING across the room.

    "Shit! Someone's at the door, everyone get ready- make sure to try and not damage the merch while you're at it!" one man- likely the boss- shouts to the others as everyone pulls their weapons and gets ready for a fight.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     The guard Laura had been watching was looking at his radio, and suddenly making for the stairs. Looks like she's not alone in the assault. Well, any distraction... Her claws slide out with a soft snikt, and the first hint the mook has of trouble is twin lines of fire running across the back of each thigh, legs going out from under him as he's hamstrung. Two chops and his arms are useless, collarbones too. She could kill them, but traffickers? They suffer. The mook's eyes widen as Talon pops a toe claw out through the tip of her boot and lines up for a kick...
     Crush's first hint that there was someone else here would be when the chattering of a submachine gun is interrupted with a metallic screech, the front half of the gun skipping across the floor. A shorter girl, dressed all in black, with startlingly green eyes and sliver claws protruding from her hands and feet emerges through the stairwell door, and starts /dismantling/ the scumbags.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush is not as agile as Laura by any stretch of the imagination- but it seems they're thinking along the same lines as she rushes into a group of men who seem all too happy to unload their weapons into her body- but it doesn't stop crush even as bullets drive through her shirt and into her bared stomach- flattening and falling to the ground uselessly with little tings. Those were full-metal-jacket rounds, too.. designed to penetrate body armor. Cop-Killers.

    And they're completely useless against the red-eyed young woman who punches her way through the group of men. Kicking. Head-butting. It's a visceral fighting style that's particularly up close and personal. The crush of bones is echoing through the room as everyone who faces Crush comes away with crippling injuries- the shouting and screams of their pain like music as the women in nun's habits all fall to quiet and watch as their saviors- two teenaged women- start to destroy the men who's harmed them.

    "Yo! Watch your six!" Crush shouts over towards Laura as more men begin to emerge from an office- they'd been in another room. They're all carrying heavier weapons than this group- shotguns and submachine guns.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Unlike Crush, The bullet impacts do leave their mark on Laura, Some punch out her back, some shattering bone and others not fully penetrating. But the teen barely slows down, wounds closing, bones reassembling with visceral grinding noises and crunches. She whips around at the warning, a spinning kick cleaving two weapons in half, before she's among them, too close to hit. Some try, but mostly end up hitting their friends. The ones hit by Talon, are disarmed. Rather literally.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush grabs one of those thug's shotguns as he fires it- the blast striking into crush as she tears the gun away from the man. She grins wickedly- pointed canines seeming to shine in the low light as she breaks the shotgun in two without any trouble at all and then drives both of the jagged-metal ends of the barrel into the man's shoulders. The crunch of breaking bones is obvious even as he's thrown away. He'll likely have trouble using those arms ever again.

    One by one the pair dismantle every single thug in this warehouse- some are undoubtedly dead, or pretty close to it. Most are just massively injured.

    Rage overtakes Crush- she's howling like a beast as she jumps towards one of the few remaining thugs- one of the bosses by the looks of his fine suit. She tackles him to the ground and just starts punching. "You think you can take women off the street and just... AAAGGH!" Her fists fall like the heavens- crushing everything they come in contact with. The man's chest. His arms. His face. All of it a bloody, but still living mess by the time she's done, pulling away and spitting on the man. "You're garbage." she growls as she looks around- letting that red mist fade as she tries to get control of herself before she goes completely off the deep-end.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura pauses for a moment when the berserker rage really kicks in on her unexpected ally, holding one of the previous gunmen at clawpoint against the wall. A few bullets push their way out of her and clatter to the floor, skin closing behind them until if not for the bloodstains and holes, the injury might have never happened. Talon gives Crush a nod, before turning back to the mook very much rethinking his life. Claws retract, and relief flashes across the man's face until a double chop to the shoulders and a kick to the knee that results in it bending BACKWARDS drops him to the floor again. "That was the last of them. Find how to release the restraints." She coughs, a dribble of blood running out of the half mask over her mouth and nose, and pops one claw again to pry a particularly stubborn bullet out of her torso that had gotten hung up on a rib. Task complete, she walks along the row of cells, smoothly severing hasps from padlocks.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush takes a few more moments to calm herself as she starts to search the man's body for keys or the like- finding a key, and one of those shock collar controllers. "Looks like they gotta be unlocked or somethin." Crush calls back to Laura as she turns the remote to dust in her hand with a quick close of the palm. "Got one of the keys here, I think." she says as she looks at all the women- perhaps fifty- all dressed as nuns. They'd never seem like nuns on close inspection, but from far it was all too easy to ignore their suffering.

    At least, for some people- not for people like Crush and Laura.

    Crush begins to help with the cages- although her method is less elegant- she just tears the doors free as effortlessly as Laura cuts through the locks. Ten cages- five women in each. "Alright, let's try this key on them collars, and then I'll call the cops to come and get you ladies." she offers to the prisoners as she starts to use the key to undo bindings.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura nods approvingly as Crush starts unlocking the restraints. ...Probably a lot less frightening than the teen's own claws. "You will all be safe now." Her voice is still somewhat oddly flat, just a definite statement. "They will not do this again." And indeed, Crush does get a bit more attention than the masked girl who is soaked in blood. She walks over to her ally, giving her an evaluating glance. "I am Talon."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    "Crush." The tall woman replies to Talon, "Nice fighting- but I think you killed a few of'em." she remarks, "Gunna mean we gotta go to ground- though, I don't think none of these ladies is gunna rat us out or nothin'." she continues as she unlocks chains and collars in short order- the women are eager to get out of their restraints- and they're all a little shell shocked from their recent experience.

    "Gotta be careful with that shit, killin' em. Quick way to get some people too interested in whatchyer doin'." she grumbles.

    "Still. Probably deserved it." Crush admits, despite her misgivings about potentially stabbing people to death with neato metal claws hidden inside one's body.

    It doesn't take long to get all the women out of their restraints. "Stay here or go somewhere else, don't matter none to me- I'll be callin' the cops!" Crush offers to the assembled women, "So if you wanna get on outta here, just go on and get."

    "You think one of these guy's got a workin' phone on'em?" she asks to Laura, scratching her head. "Not sure if we didn't bust everything up or not."

Laura Kinney has posed:
     "If I did not want them to suffer, I would have killed them all. Anyone who enslaves people deserves death." Again, a purely factual statement from Laura. "I am good at not being found." She walks over to one of the still moaning thugs, and collects a smartphone with a cracked screen and some smears of blood across it. "Here. You shuld also get a burner phone if you are going to do this regularly."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    "Naw. No interest in phones. Too easy to be followed." Crush states simply as she grabs the bloody, cracked phone and dials the cops. "Yo.. You know that hotel in Little Italy, the one with the red doors and the green sign? Yeah, Luigi's, that's the place. You oughta come down the alleyway to the left side and head on through the door. Heard a lotta shooting, and I think I saw some kinda vigilante go on in there or somethin'. My name? Ain't important. Just get here quick- and bring a few ambulances. People is hurt. Bad."

Crush then destroys the phone completely between her two hands. What remains is dust- plastic and glass and silicon all crushed into nothingness. IT be hard to grab a finger print from, that's for sure.

    "We should get outta here." Crush says over to Laura, "You wanna grab a beer or somethin?"

Laura Kinney has posed:
     "THat is the point of burner phones. Cheap, easy to remove the SIM card and battery frome. Beer does not work on me." Laura shrugs, gesturing towards one shoulder where her clothing bears evidence of a shotgun blast. She rummages through a desk and retrieves a couple of rolls of cash, tossing Crush one. "Here. They will not be needing it. We should be going, though."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush nods, grabbing the cash out of the air and stuffing it into her jacket pocket as she heads towards the door. "I can get us away from here quick." she offers as she heads up the stairs and to the same door she burst through on the way here, "Don't do much to me, neither, but I like the taste. How about somethin' to eat. I know this place that does curry that'll melt your face off. If yer into that kind of thing. It's Ethiopian curry, though."

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Talon follows Crush upstairs, not exactly going to turn down a ride. There's a definite posture change when spicy food is mentioned, body language seeming almost... eager? "I would like food very much. ...We should probably change, though. We would attract attention."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush looks down at herself. "What? It's only a little bloo.." Crush then looks up to Talon. "Yeah, maybe we should at least take a shower or somethin'. Where to?" she asks, offering an arm over to Talon. "I ain't able to fly- but I know my way with a good jump or two." she says with a bit of a grin. "It's a heck of a lot of fun."

Laura Kinney has posed:
     "I have a stash in a bus station locker." Laura's grip is surprisingly strong considering her size, and the directions are accurate.

     After a brief detour which has resulted in Laura having a copy of the same outfit, minus the mask and blood, and gaining a backpack, it's off to get food.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush nods, taking Laura close once the detour is over- the sound of the police approaching and then- HUP! They're up in the air, jumping together- first to a roof and then much further, towards the Bronx. It only took a few moments for them to get there with Crush's particular choice of transportation- superhuman leaping.

    They end up landing near the restaurant Crush knows about- and really, it doesn't look like somewhere most people would go. There's something that sounds very close to reggae playing inside the restaurant, and whatever's inside smells fantastic. Crush releases Laura from their quick jump and heads into the restaurant. "The curried beef is just amazing."

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura's nostrils flare a little as the smells of delicious food fill the air, and a slight smile forms on her lips. She selects a corner table, with good sightlines to the door. "...Is there a buffet, or...?" Laura has been banned from at least two buffets for eating too much. It was very tragic.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    "Addi!" Crush yells- an older man peeking out of the kitchen, "Ah! Customers! Crush, and ooh- you have a new girlfriend?" he asks with a wide, if teasing grin.

    "A friend." Crush replies, "Yeah, gimme the curried beef, you know how I like it." she begins, looking over towards Laura. "I wish, but then I'd put Addi out of business." she answers regarding the buffet. "But the portions are big, and it isn't too expensive. "And you get all these salads and extras cuz it's like part of the normal dinner. Rice, curried pickles- though they're lke made from some kinda yam, I Think- I dun know for sure. They're good though." she assures Laura.

    "Aye! Always got the curried beef on, I'll make it nice for you and your friend!" Addi assures his customer, still grinning. He's an older man, likely an immigrant if his accent is any indicator. He seems kind, though- happy.

    "Addi opened this place in like nineteen seventy or something, and now during the day his son and grandson run it- he just likes to be here at night to make sure tomorrows food is all ready." Crush says, "I like to come here after fights, because it always fills me up."

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura simply raises an eyebrow at the insinuation of a relationship, but Crush defuses it fast enough. The owner gets a fairly genuine friendly smile, although that quickly fades again once he leaves. "You may call me Laura, when we are being civilians. And I also eat after combat. My healing burns a lot of energy."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    "I just like to eat." Crush says, "They didn't do nothin' to me that I really needed to heal." suggesting she might also have some kind of regeneration. "Laura." she nods quietly, "I prefer Crush." she offers- perhaps a bit guarded.

    It doesn't take long at all for Addi to appear again with the meals- they come out on a rather large platter with an enormous piece of flat-bread that covers the entire platter. Rice, salads, dips- all of it is piled high along with two rather impressive servings of very curried beef in some sort of sauce. To top it all off, some pickled eggs. It smells amazing, that's for sure.

    A six pack of african beer is left on the table, with Addi giving a thumbs up and a grin. He's old and doesn't seem to care if underage drinkers are in this establishment this late at night. "Enjoy the food!" he offers before he disappears behind the counter and into the kitchen again to keep cooking food up for tomorrow.

    "Nice to meet you, though. Ain't a lot of people doing what we did." Crush notes as she begins to eat- tearing a bit of bread, using it to capture some rice and dip it into the beef. Just eating with her hands like some kind of barbarian.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura's eyes widen at the large amount of food, smile forming again. This is... wow. Time to dig in! Laura's no expert on cuisine and table ettiquette, so she just follows Crush's lead. "I was used for years of my life. Now I do what I do to help people. Because I want to." Depending on how much Crush pays attention to the news, there probably would be a recognizable pattern of various gang stash houses getting wiped out without any survivors along with the occasional human trafficking raids. "This... is very good food."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush reaches over and pops two beers open with a flick of her thumb- she places one near Laura and one near herself as she continues to eat. There are forks and knives available- but with all that bread who needs it!

    "So, you're supposed to mix all these things together, right?" Crush offers to Laura, showing her some of the combos. "Or you can just dump it all together and eat it all- it's all good." she says with a wide grin. "I'm glad you like it. Try it with the beer. Trust me, it works well."

    The stuff is potently spicy, albeit the curry sort of spice that builds as one goes- and while it's HEAVILY curried, and VERY spicy the spice doesn't overtake everything else- it's a married part of the platter.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura tries one sip of the beer along with the food. Her face contorts into a few... interesting expressions and the beer is slid back over to Crush. "My senses are stronger than most. Some tastes are not good." Despite this, she seems to be enjoying the spiced goodness, and has already made a decent dent in her side. "...I will have to come here more often. It is hard to convince some places that I actually want my food as spicy as I like it."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    "If you come at night, like I do, Addi will make however you want. I think he just likes to cook." Crush admits, as she drinks her beer and laughs as Laura makes all those faces. "That's a shame, beer is good!" she says with a wide grin, finishing her's quickly so she can just drink what Laura's left behind. Waste not, want not, after all.

    "Mine are strong, too. I getchya." Crush offers as she continues to speak between bites of food. At least she's not talking with her mouth full- she's not completely without manners. "Probably because you look like a white girl. They look and they make an assumption." The albino-pale girl says, "Happens all the time with me." she continues.

    "Sounds like me, though. Made a choice. Good choice." she says to Laura, "You define who you is now, not other people or the past." She finally offers, lifting her beer.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     This time... Laura's slight smile is fully genuine, and does actually reach her eyes. A small amount of tension has left her posture as well. "That is a very good philosophy. And yes, People tend to underestimate me. It is both a blessing and a curse." One one hand, people don't think the just over five foot tall skinny white girl could break them in half. On the other, sometimes people get in her way due to it. "I will add some money to the tip."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    Crush grins back- she's friendly and all. "Hell, that's how they go sometimes. Good for you to use it against'em, though. Teach'em what it means to be too stupid to see that size don't matter much." said the particularly tall fifteen year old.

    "Sure, I mean, it's only gunna be 20 for the food, and 20 for the beers, so I was just gunna leave fifty and call it a night." Crush explains, "You can leave a bit more for Addi. He'll just spend it on hash." she says, as ADdi peeks out of the kitchen, "Aaah! Don't tell my son about that, Crush!" he pipes in, "Took forever to convince my grandson not to tell his father!" the older man just grins, clearly he's a bit of a scamp despite his age. All the wrinkles on his face fall right into line as he smiles.

    Crush laughs, shaking her head, "You know me, Addi. I don't tell nobody nothin' they don't needta know from me." she assures the elderly cook.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura pulls a 20 from her pocket and places it on her table. She's again unable to hide her enjoyment as the two friends banter. "My lips are sealed. ...Except for food. I am hungry." Mmmmm. More deliciousness disappears into her mouth. Discussion about future teamups should probably also wait. Don't need to feed Addy's idea that there was any dating going on.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    The food disappears quickly between the two bottomless teen super-stomachs. The beers disappear just as quickly as Crush drinks them quickly to moderate the different flavors and just enjoy the evening with a new friend. The money is put down.

    "That was good." Crush says with a wide grin and she stands up, putting the final bottle of beer down on the table. "I should get back to.. I dunno. Wherever." she says with a shrug, "Ain't like I got anywhere special to go, but.. I do wanna just sorta lay down and digest."

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Laura gives a slow nod as Crush discusses where to go. Pulling a notepad out of the backpack, she writes an address and a phone number, then towards the bottom another phone number. Standing, the note is proffered to the taller girl, along with Laura's share of the looted cash. "Here. You need it more than I do. The address and top number is a building where I lived until recently. The landlord takes rent in cash and does not ask questions. The bottom number will let you get in contact with me."

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    "Naw. I got another fight coming up. I get at least a grand per fight." Crush offers, still smiling to Laura as she takes just the paper. "Thanks, could always use a new squat though." she says, as she folds it and slides it into her pocket. "Anyways, I got me a bunch of places to sleep, don't need to worry none about me." she assures Laura, "But thanks." When it comes from another girl her age- she can trust it's an honest offer.

    "I'll see you around, Laura." Crush says as she walks towards the door.

Laura Kinney has posed:
     Fighting... Logan used to do that. And Crush does seem to enjoy it. Laura shrugs, pocketing the cash again and heading towards the door as well. "It is also nice to have hot showers. Although I think you have less problems with blood stains than me. Or need for new clothes." It's true. Laura buys in bulk when it comes to certain clothes that are going to get damaged.

Xiomara Rojas has posed:
    "Eh. I know how to take care of myself. I've been on my own a while, and I'm used to movin' around and takin' care of myself." Crush assures Laura, "And yeah- easy to clean up bullet holes. If I wanna." she turns, walking backwards- holes in her t-shirt that just shows off more of her milk-white flesh. "I think I like the look I got goin' here. Didn't ruin my jacket, neither!" she says with another toothy grin.

    She then turns and launches herself into the air, disappearing quickly into the distance as she jumps what appears to be several miles in a single leap.