2824/The verdant's underbelly

The verdant's underbelly
Date of Scene:	07 August 2020
Location:	Verdant - Abandoned Warehouse
Synopsis:	Arsenal and Hopscotch go explore Verdant's underground and come across some mutants. Turns out they have been squatting there after Mutant Town got zapped.
Cast of Characters:	Oliver Queen, Roy Harper, AJ Strong

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Oliver Queen has posed:
It's deep night in Starling now. Summer weather, a sky clear of clouds that would be more inviting to a romantic walkabout than the actual spelunking that is to be done tonight. The mission is supposed to be simple, walk into the Verdant, the club that is being built up by Thea Queen, go to the doorway that leads to the system of tunnels underneath and then set to explore it. What's the worse that could happen anyway?

Oliver didn't come in this particular mission, serving as Oracle for this one, on the computers. But he was kind enough to give out communicator devices to both AJ and Roy, along with nightvision goggles if they so needed, or any other equipment from the Arrowcave. He is a giver, that Ollie..

<<Let me know when you guys get in. The entrance should be on the west side from the main door.>> Arrow's voice is heard through the comms. The entrance to the club looms in the distance, most of the windows having now been replaced after the autogun fire that pierced most of them along with some of the walls. But even from a distance there's still a lot to get done before the club is fully operational again.

Roy Harper has posed:
There are times for romantic walks in the moonlight, and there are times for creeping around in the dark beneath an abandoned warehouse. Tonight is the night for poking about in the dark to see what crawls out of it. He adjusts his communicator and taps it, knowing full well that's entirely unnecessary, grinning. <<Baby Bird to the Nest, Baby Bird to the Nest, can you hear me?>> He's totally fucking around a little bit. He adjusts his night vision goggles, enjoying the new toys.

He's dressed in his dark red suit with its black panels, his utility belt at his waist. Since they're going to be in tunnels, however, he doesn't have his bow strapped to his back. Instead, he has his sword as well as several knives -- throwing and otherwise. The bow is present, but it is collapsed and folded up, tucked away in the pack slung over his shoulder with a few other supplies.

When Ollie's voice comes over the comms, though, he sobers up a little and says, <<Alright, heading that way now.>> He glances over toward AJ to see how he's doing, and then begins to lead the way over toward the door, pausing to listen at it to see if there are any unexpected voices coming from within.

AJ Strong has posed:
The goggles are happily accepted, along with a collapsable staff that AJ seems to have taken a liking to. No one would call him a proficient user of the weapon, not yet, but as he sees it, the only way to get better is to bring it along. He's also broken out the suit for the mission, black with touches of silver, reinforced somewhat in areas deserving of a little extra armor, as well as on the striking surfaces of the gloves and boots.

However, being as he's the novice to actual missions that aren't just chasing down pick pockets and purse snatchers, he's only too content to let Roy take the lead and learn from the experience of the two more senior heroes. He surveys the club, looking it up and down through the goggles. He nods to Roy at the glance and follows after, though shifts direction to one of the windows where he might be able to get a peek inside of the building.

Oliver Queen has posed:
<< Yes, Baby Bird. Loud and clear. >> Is there an hint of amusement on Ollie's tone? Naaaah. He continues following through the mission with the usage of those advanced computers. State of the art! He's got money to spend afterall.., the screen showing a grid map with two dots being both AJ and Roy.

There are windows about, some of them still boarded up but a few that give a view of the inside. The place is clearly going through heavy remodeling as expected but both by hearing and looking through the windows there doesn't seem to be anyone present. The workaholic Thea appears to have left her own 'nest' for the night.

<<There's a key hidden on the top of the door support. Remember to lock it up when you leave and bring the key with you to the cave once it's done.>> He informs.

And true to form they will be able to find a key hidden up there that will give them access to the place. Ominous silence is what is there to receive him but on the west side as Ollie mentioned there's indeed another doorway that will lead down to their objective.

<< I won't be able to follow you through the satellite link when you guys go downstairs so be careful. Comms should still work though. >>

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy Harper reaches up and grabs the key, letting them both in. He goes first, keeping ahead of AJ so that he can be the one in the line of fire in case anything happens. The suit will do a pretty good job of keeping him protected, and it will at least give AJ some time to react. Once they let themselves in, he tucks the key in a pocket and says <<Got the key. Heading toward the door now. No signs of anyone on this level.>>

He then makes his way toward the door to open it up and let him venture below. He grins over his shoulder at AJ and says, "What do you wanna bet we find a secret hideout and a stash of old and cool but ultimately worthless stuff and a whole lot of spider webs and rats?" Someone's in a good mood and excited to be out and about doing something, even if it's poking around in dusty tunnels. <<Heading in,>> he informs Ollie, so that he knows they'll likely be lost from the map.

AJ Strong has posed:
<<Looks clear to me.>> After his quick peek in the windows, AJ is scurrying back over to the door, still hunched over in his idea of stealthy. Yeah.. that definitely needs work, at least he is light on his feet. Slipping in through the door after Roy, he puts a hand on it to close it slowly, trying to keep it from slamming shut.

Following to the door to the lower levels, AJ just shakes his head at the comment, though his mouth twists into a grin. "Sound like the Subway to me. Smuggler tunnels.." He shakes his head again and follows Roy down into the tunnels, still peering through the goggles.

Oliver Queen has posed:
<<Lost visual on you.>> Ollie informs shortly after they are down in the tunnels. There's a stairwell that leads down, clearly man-made tunnels, cemented through, at least the first few bits that they can see through those goggles.

<<We had some blueprints of an underground cellar, but for some reason I feel this has been somewhat .., expanded.>> The arrow speaks up, now leaning back on his chair as it's only sound. Out of his hands now. But it's like Roy was jesting. About time to let the baby birds out of the nest.

It's dusty down there, some scattered footprints here and there at the beginning, most likely tentative explorations from either Ollie or Thea. The more they walk the less it seems to be active, or at least not for a little bit. It's been over a month since the place was wiped from the bad guys that had been using it.

And indeed there are spider webs about and .., the occasional rat scurrying past.

It stays like this for a few minutes, with side tunnels also needed to be explored but they do find another door. But this one seems peculiar enough. Barricaded from the other side? Weird.

Roy Harper has posed:
"You ever gone wandering through abandoned subway tunnels?" Roy asks AJ as they make their way through the door and then down the steps into the tunnels. Once they're at the bottom of the steps he starts poking around, first in the area where other people have clearly been, taking in whatever happens to be down there, making note of the general layout and where the tunnels extend from. Then, he nods toward AJ for them to continue onward. "You keep your eyes on the right, I'll keep my eyes on the left as we pass these side tunnels. Let me know if you see anything interesting," he tells AJ, splitting the work of noting anything they want to fall back and look into later between them.

When they reach the door though, he puts his shoulder into it to try to get it open and frowns when it seems stuck.. from the other side? <<We've got a door here. Seems like there's something blocking it on the other side. Going to give it another try to get it open,>> he says more directly into the comms. Not that he has them turned off at all. Ollie can hear what he's saying to AJ just as easily. He can also hear the grunt as Roy tries to force the door open again.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Once, found a tunnel and went exploring, it was only a few homeless people, kinda sad really. But this is not like the Subway, it smells better down here." AJ states rather flatly as they continue their exploration of the basement. His demeanor eases the more they don't come across anything of real note. Not that he lets his guard down, just that he seems easier and more comfortable with the situation as a whole. "Roger." He keeps his attention mostly to the paths on the right, at least until they come to their mysterious door.

AJ lets Roy get more physical with the door, arms across his chest as he looks at the edges around it with pursed lips. He tilts his head to the side then to the other side like a dog trying to figure out.. well.. how a door works. "I wonder if I could.. Never tried.. but it is.." He's mumbling to himself under his breath.

Oliver Queen has posed:
On some of the side tunnels that they explore there are clear signs that there's been stuff stored down here, crates. Most are gone and the ones that remain have been scavenged. Examination of the floor shows some remaining white powder near a few crates, a bullet case on another. Drugs and guns. It fits with what the ones that owned the place before dealt in. Besides the human trafficking..., but if there's any prisoner left down here none has been found, nor signs of life.. Yet there are marks of passage down here, more pronounced than on the tunnels closer to the Verdant's entrance.

As Roy begins to try and force the door he meets quite the resistance. Whatever is keeping them from going past is heavy. Not that it appears impossible but might require more of a team effort to take it down. Or just continued trying. As a side effect there's a lot of noise too...

On a bend further down the tunnel AJ will be able to detect a silhouette, peering through a corner. It's large though. Human? Maybe. But there's definitely someone there.

Roy Harper has posed:
"Yeah," Roy agrees, "It's rough. Gotta feel bad for anyone who has to take shelter in the subway just to stay off being exposed in the streets. At least it's some shelter, though," he considers as they survey the remnants of what had been stored below. "You know, there's a lot more activity down this end than the other. Which says to me there's another way out this way, since that's the way it seems folks must be coming from to not leave any footprints from the other direction."

He's still messing with the door and doesn't notice the silhouette. "Fuck, whatever's on the other side of this thing is heavy." He grunts. "Maybe someone pushed a big ass dresser or a sumo wrestler up against the door." He looks over at AJ then and asks, "Never tried what?"

AJ Strong has posed:
Whatever AJ is muttering about dies in his throat as he catches sight of that shadowed figure, even at Roy's prompting. He doesn't turn to it directly, just turns his head enough to keep his eyes on it. <<I think I see someone watching us.>> His voice comes across the comms in a breathy whisper, voice softened so as to not alert the watcher that he's spotted. <<Down the tunnel, around the corner.>>

He tries to motion Roy's attention with a shift of his own head, not knowing if it's friend, foe, or just curious bystander taking shelter in the tunnels full of white powder that is definitely not confectioner's sugar. <<What's the call?>>

Oliver Queen has posed:
<<Could be just debris that fell and closed down the exit through that door. But be careful>> This Oliver says before AJ announces there's someone watching them. Now he -really- wishes he had gone down with the gang. But he will need to learn to trust eventually so he will let the two of them run the show on their own. It's a good test too...

The corridor is still fully dark, only those sounds of the door being pushed being heard.. The figure that was hiding behind that corner steps out, trying to be quiet even if not that good at it. It's -big-, and the goggles show it's covered in some kind of .., quills? Perhaps a mutant. Or at the least it's someone powered. And whoever it may be doesn't seem to be the most patient of people. It begins to run straight ahead through the tunnel, letting out a roar (there goes the stealth!)

Behind the creature, on the bend another smaller figure appears, letting out a "Wait..." but too late. But at least they got a light, a flashlight that they point down the tunnel towards where the two of you are.

Whatever is in front of that door seems to have given somewhat, but it's anyone's guess if they'd be able to break that door in time before the quill-covered one arrives.

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy grunts as whatever is behind the door gives a little bit. But suddenly they have some more pressing problems, because as soon as AJ points out the figure, whatever it is comes barreling toward them. There's someone else there. He can see the smaller figure and hear the voice briefly, and then he is leaping back and away from the door, trying to move out of the way of the oncoming freight train that is the quilled(?) creature approaching them.

"Whoah there. Slow your roll, Sonic. We're just checking the place out? How about we have a little chat about this, huh? You, me, your friend, my friend, a little less shouting? No?" Well, can't say that he didn't try.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Stupid idea!" AJ practically shouts. No telling if he's talking about Quilly, Roy, or himself in the immediate, but he positions himself right in front of the door, reaching out to place a hand on Roy's shoulder. "Hold on.." He says in a slightly softer voice, hoping Roy catches his drift, then adds a louder. "C'mon then!" To taunt the gy barreling down the hallway, hopefully to pull his attention to him.

Thank that smaller figure giving him a good view of the hallway further down, because now it's playing chicken. He waits until the charger is bearing down on him, to bounce off the ground and teleport down the hallway a few feet behind the charging quill-man, and hopefully dragging Roy along with him if he didn't break away from AJ's grab for his shoulder. Doubley hopefully causing the quill-man to go barreling into the door they were trying to force open. At least he's honest his idea is a possibly bad one.

Oliver Queen has posed:
SONIC?! That seems to enrage Quilly even further, but also become more reckless, some of those quills brushing through the wall and leaving a dent there. Ouch, strong fella this one is. Yet he doesn't seem intent on stopping. His deep voice is heard. "GET OUT OF OUR TUNNELS!"

Roy's quipping appears to have worked in having the mutant intent on smashing them, almost like a freight train where those breaks were removed. To be honest, he has probably been called Sonic a few times in the past, and most likely not in a nice way...

Still, that gambit appears to work. He is almost atop the two heroes when they 'hop' forward and past Quilly, who promptly crashes against that door, barreling through and whatever was behind it, tripping and rolling down on the ground afterwards.., confused..

The one on the bend drops his jaw when that happens, hands instinctively going up, blazing hot with fire and shoots a stream towards the duo, almost like a flamethrower. "Shit. They must be mercs. Go and warn the others!" he shouts to Quilly. Behind the broken door it's noticeable that the tunnel has opened up considerably, larger than these smaller ones.

Roy Harper has posed:
Whoahshit is about the only thing that goes through Roy's brain as the quill-dude comes flying at them and it's only his total trust in AJ that keeps him from breaking his grasp. When they hop forward his heart stops for a moment, but on the other side, once he realizes he's still in one piece, he tucks and rolls and pops up next to fire-hands. "Whoah!" he says again, hands coming up. "How about we /talk/ first? We're not /mercs/ and WHOSE tunnels?"

He moves fast, easily avoiding the gout of flame in his direction and popping up next to the smaller figure. He pops up and quickly aims a blow to the back of his knee to try and bring him down to the ground.

AJ Strong has posed:
It's a hectic few seconds coming out of the hop, a fraction of a second to gloat over his not-so-stupid idea, a moment to realize there is suddenly something very bright and very hot coming his way, and another moment to change direction by kicking off the floor and leaping backwards, just keeping out of range of those flames. When he lands he whips out the extendable staff, snapping it open and standing sideways in the hall where he can keep his eyes in both directions, but with Roy handling Zippo he can keep most of his attention on Sonic.

He doesn't go for an attack, instead bobbing his head in agreement with Roy's statements. "We're not mercs, just exploring."

Oliver Queen has posed:
It's clear that whoever these two are they do not have that much experience in fighting. Sonic is still scrambling on the debris as he tries to regain his footing, even if slowly he does so, beginning to turn... As for the smaller one, the strike on his knee makes him drop down, shouting in pain and he lifts his hands up (without fire on them this time!).

"Do you mean you aren't with the mobsters that were up there?" Now that they are closer they can note his face. Gaunt, sunken eyes, probably not having had much sleep as of late. "They were using this place as a stash. We had to barricade ourselves.."

The quilled one begins to rumble past back towards AJ but then the smaller one speaks. "Wait, don't attack them. Let's talk!" he calls out. The giant pauses, grumbling and keeping an eye on them, violence clear in his eyes.

"A few of us have been living here ever since ..., Mutant town." the small one says. "Who are you?"

Roy Harper has posed:
"No," Roy says, immediately backing off when the smaller one's hands come up but aren't shooting flames this time. He puts his own hands up and takes a step back. Then he holds out a hand to the smaller one, offering to help him up. "We're not. They've been cleared out of here. We're friends of the warehouse's new owners, checking the place out to find out if there were any mobsters still down here, or any of their stuff. We were gonna clear anything left out."

He glances over at AJ to make sure that he's okay and that Sonic isn't giving him any trouble further down the hall. When Zippo mentions that they've been hiding out down here since Mutant Town, he winces a bit and says, "Okay so.. just squatting?" He nods toward the formerly barricaded door. "Through there? How many of you?"

AJ Strong has posed:
AJ may not be bristling violence, but he's not letting his guard down quite yet, at least as long as Sonic is giving him and Roy the stink eye. At least he keeps his posture defensive and non-threatening, holding his staff across his chest rather then pointing it like a spear. With Roy having the gist of it, he bobs his head up and down in agreement.

"Just making sure there were no baddies lurking around that might come popping into the place upstairs unexpectedly." Though their story does seem to ease him a little, especially after he was just talking about squatters in the subway tunnels.

Oliver Queen has posed:
A dubious look from Zippo is given at that offer of a hand. But he takes that 'leap of faith' and accepts it, getting up to his feet and reaching down to pick up his flashlight. "They have been cleared..?" that brings a sign of relief from the man as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. "Good ..., we don't really have anywhere to go now that mutant town is gone." it does seem like someone didn't get the memo that mutant town is back.

Sonic appears to relax somewhat as well when they say the mobsters were cleaned out. He points to himself. "I am Brian." certainly not a cool name as Sonic, then he points to the other man. "Jimmy." then he grunts. "You are like us, aren't you? Mutants?" or at least he did see someone teleport!

As for Jimmy, he answers that last question. "There's twenty of us. Further down the tunnel. There were abandoned subway tunnels here." he explains.

Roy Harper has posed:
"Mutant Town is back," Roy says. "Which is a recent development, so I figure it makes sense that you guys hadn't heard about it yet if you've been hiding out down here." He nods in the direction of AJ and he starts heading back toward him. "Arsenal," he introduces himself, since he's masked with nightvision goggles on and in uniform. He shakes his head though and says, "Not exactly, but we keep an eye on the area," when Brian asks if they're like them.

When he approaches Brian he offers a hand, "Sorry for the Sonic thing. Just the first thing that popped into my head when it looked like you were gonna steamroll us flat." He smiles a little crookedly. "So, I know the owner of the place upstairs. Pretty sure if we let'm know that you've been just hiding out since Mutant Town, we can let you guys chill until you can get back to your homes in Mutant Town... if you want to go back. If you don't, well, then maybe they can talk to you about the situation and figure it out." He glances over at AJ, as though checking to see what he thinks. Has he entirely forgotten that Ollie's listening to this on comms? Perhaps. He's a little caught up in the moment.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Hopscotch." No not the game, just AJs rather lightly chosen codename. Who needs a scary name like Arsenal anyway? He shakes his head at the question of being a mutant. "No, not like you." He doesn't see a reason to not be honest. "I'm more of an accident." Well, not too honest, no need giving his life story away. He lowers his guard finally, snapping the staff back to it's shorter length and tucking it back into his belt.

He looks over at Roy and nods. "I don't see that they'd have a problem with it. I mean, if anything it keeps the tunnels safe from the unsavories while you guys are hanging out here. But yeah, Mutant Town is back. We could probably even help you guys get back up that way if you wanted to go." Maybe that's more of an offer than he should be making, but his mouth is ahead of his brain on this one.

Oliver Queen has posed:
At the introductions the duo offer a nod. And while at first the big guy looks with a frown at Arsenal's approach he eventually wraps his hand around the smaller man's when Hopscotch lowers the staff. He doesn't squeeze (too much), but there's strength there. More than a normal human at least! "You were lucky..." Brian says about Arsenal not getting steamrolled..

The news that mutant town is back makes the duo smile. Now that's good news! "If you can help us.." Jimmy then says, hopeful tone, focusing on AJ. "We will have to tell the others but.., yes. Come visit us soon." he gestures to the broken doorway.

As for Oliver, he has been keeping himself rather quiet now! Everything is a test for that man!

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy looks over at AJ when he offers to help them get back to their former home, and he nods his head in silent agreement. He'll help. He offers AJ a grin. He seems to be willing to lend a hand. He lets AJ do the talking though, instead just giving a Brian a nod, acknowledging that they were in fact lucky that AJ was able to get them out of the way before that had ended badly.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Sorry about the door." AJ says after a moment, chewing his lower lip. "But yeah, I wouldn't mind come visiting you guys, but for now we gotta report in to our folks, and I'm sure you're eager to tell your guys you can head home." He hooks his thumbs through his suit's belt. "Well, good meeting you guys. And if you need help.. I guess slip a note under the door upstairs?" He looks to Roy, tilting his head, then shrugs and nods as if that's a good a plan as any.