4029/A 'neutral' meeting

A 'neutral' meeting
Date of Scene:	04 November 2020
Location:	New York, in and around central park.
Synopsis:	The Punisher 'meets' Cecily in his own way.
Cast of Characters:	Cecily Winters, Frank Castle

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Cecily Winters has posed:
    It's not uncommon to find Cecily in one of the city's many parks. Be it there on a mission for a purpose, or simply wandering and looking for a purpose. Today it's hard to tell which one it is, as she always seems to have a bookbag slung over one shoulder, and a holster tucked away in the other. Professional, clad in a white blouse and black vest over a skirt, stockings and flats. Not the most combat-ready attire but she seems fine enough.

    Striking, though, are the trio of white fox tails waving behind her, dipped in black, with matching vulpine ears atop her head that seem to be doing a better job of observing her surroundings than her bespectacled gaze can.

    Her footfalls carry her along one of the Central Park pathways, winding along the south side, pausing to watch the crews getting ready to set up the ice skating rink for the colder months. She leans over a railing, smiling to herself, but also glancing around, knowing she's awaiting contact from someone.

Frank Castle has posed:
The Punisher is a man who tends to consider all the angles. Especially for relative newcomers to his 'circle' who offered to actually help him in the field. Normally, most people who help him are mainly interested in giving intel without a direct connection...

So, to say the Punisher was highly suspicious of the offer was a fair guess.

It's around the time the time she's near the skating rink that she gets a call on the number she gave Frank.

Cecily Winters has posed:
    Cecily hears her phone going off and straightens a bit, sliding a hand into a small inner pocket of her vest. She glances at the screen of her StarkPhone and purses her lips, head tilting to the side some before accepting the call. It routes directly into a small earpiece, considering that phones aren't generally made to work well with someone of her particular physiology.

    "Hello~? Winters security consulting?" she answers, kind and professional, as she turns her back to the rink to lean on the railing, scanning the park just to take in the people wandering by this afternoon.

Frank Castle has posed:
"Stay right where you are." Comes the voice of the Punisher over the link. "Move, try to run, or otherwise get twitchy, and I put a 7.62 round through a leg. Confirm you understand."

Cecily Winters has posed:
    There's no tension. There's no gasp. In fact, Cecily laughs. The only thing twitchy are her ears and tails, and if Frank is looking through the scope, she can be seen smiling. "Ah, the graveyrad gunman. Well at least I'm in a comfortable place," she says, leaning more weight on the railing behind her, spreading her arms some to show him that her hand holds only her phone, and isn't going for her sidearm.

    "Cautious, I can respect that. What are you sighting down? You seem like a classic gentleman. M14 variant? Or something bolt-action?" she asks, casual and unconcerned.

Frank Castle has posed:
He doesn't answer her for a solid two minutes. No doubt doing checks of his own.

"M24 with some customization. I save the bigger guns for when I really need them. Plenty of metahumans that would just laugh off a fifty cal." The Punisher notes. "No tails, no extra signals. This time." There's a pause, "Most who associate with vigilantes don't much care for my methods. Do you know who I am?"

Cecily Winters has posed:
    Cecily waits, idly using one hand to slowly twirl her phone in her fingers. "You'd be surprised at what I can take..." she admits, shaking her head. "Still, good choice. No easy tear down though, yes? Puts you somewhere more secluded. Rooftop perhaps. You should look into the CSR, really. Another Remington offering... It's my go-to when I need to assemble and break quickly..."

    The fox is still smiling as she speaks, and then she nods, since she knows he's able to see her do so. "Of course, Mister Castle. I -used- to be a cop, I'm sure you know. Before all of... this..." she uses her free hand, gesturing to her ears and tails vaguely.

    "And I'm sure both of us can at least agree on a distinct distaste for the layers of corruption and inaction of many members of the force," she sighs. "Bright eyed rookies looking to make a difference brought to heel, or bent and broken by veterans on the take..." she grimaces.

    "But that's not why you're calling me, or making sure I know your identity, is it. This is our scheduled meeting, after all. So yes, I'm well aware of who you are, and your methods."

Frank Castle has posed:
"Plenty of wannabes who think that because I operate alone means I'm desperate for assistance." Punisher replies. "I did my homework on you. I don't think you're that sort, but I never discount undercovers who see me working and try their luck. Would still be a lot of luck to go freelancer before you met me without one hell of an intelligence network to ping me at the funeral."

"As for the CSR... I'm not in any hurry." There's a pause, "I've got the all clear for potential tails. What exactly were you hoping to accomplish giving me your number?"

Cecily Winters has posed:
    "Right place right time," Cecily responds, "Lot of old friends buried there. Though I do seem to have a knack for getting in trouble. Fox's luck, I suppose?" she offers with an almost playful tone to her voice.

    "No need, no rush," she nods, crossing her legs at her ankles, sighing. "Just wanted to extend my offer of services. An extra gun hand since we both have a certain taste for firearms and distaste for certain criminal elements. We may not line up completely in methods and modes but surely from your perch you can see the merits of having someone on overwatch now and again. And I'm certainly not the sort to hesitate when it comes to pulling the trigger."

Frank Castle has posed:
"The second you get associated with me, you realize that your career is over, right? I have most of the global underworld after me. I've dedicated my entire life to the war at this point and setup my lifestyle accordingly... but you don't have that in place. They'll find you and try to take you out of the war. If you try to help me and get caught, your life as you know it is over." The Punisher grunts, "I have nothing left to lose, so I can afford to do this."

"Trust me, you don't want to end up like me."

Cecily Winters has posed:
    There's a soft tsk over the line, "And who, exactly, is going to know? You make your mark by being as bright and loud as possible. I do my best work operating from the sidelines, or across a building. And if you don't leave any witnesses alive in an instance where you need closer support... wouldn't all responsibility for your deeds fall squarely on you?"

    Her free hand idly combs through her hair as she leans, slowly turning around to bend against the railing some, watching the workers in the rink do their jobs.

    "Besides, I can take a fair few bullets of my own, and the global underworld could stand to be taken down a few extra pegs. I won't stand here and beg you to let me help you out, not by a long shot, but you're not the only name on a few hitlists either, Mister Castle," she says dryly.

Frank Castle has posed:
"Frank Castle is dead, he died with his family in a park a little more than a decade ago. Call me the Punisher." The Punisher states with more than a hint of finality. "I'm a dead man walking waging a global war against people who do evil onto others. I go where the rapists, the killers, the psychos are. My war against these people can be loud or stealthy; the results are what matters, not the method. I've done horrific things in the war, and I will again."

There's a few moments pause as he audibly breathes. Cecily, if she's experienced with that sort of thing, can easily tell the patterns of a sniper on standby; he's still looking through that sniper rifle at her, at least. "I'm not like the Bat. I need those who I look in the eye to /know/ who killed them. I need them to know that someone isn't afraid of doing what's necessary to take out the trash. The idealists in the 'superhero' community like to pretend they can just jail problems away, but all they do is band aid the problem. I'm the antibiotics in the body."

Then, he breathes heavily, a sigh easily heard over the microphone, "We should meet in person."

Cecily Winters has posed:
    "As you wish, Punisher," Cecily replies simply. There's no teasing in her voice. No flippancy. Just simple, professional respect. Her ear flicks, the sound of people walking behind her but not quite close enough to be a concern. She listens to the breathing, taking note, letting him say his piece. "I jail, and I execute. It's a fine line to walk, but it suits my needs because I do have to keep appearances up," she explains, then straightens up.

    "Name the time and the place. If I'm followed we can deal with them together," she shrugs, turning her back to the ice rink workers again to gaze over the park.

Frank Castle has posed:
"I don't deal with jailing. I'm the one who cleans up the trash the justice system misses. If I'm going after them, there's a reason. I don't kill innocents." Punisher grunts then. "How are you with going underground?"

Cecily Winters has posed:
    "That's understandable. I can defer to your judgement, easily," Cecily states softly. "You would have to define 'underground', but I have no issues with it. Again, just name the time and the place."

Frank Castle has posed:
"Take the subway two stops north. Get out and move into the west tunnels. Find the first maintenance door you can see and open it." Punisher states simply. "One hour."

Cecily Winters has posed:
    Cecily nods, tails waving slowly behind her. "Easy enough," she states. "Want me to bring you lunch?" she adds. If he's still looking through the scope, he'll see she's got a bit of a smirk tugging at the edges of her mouth. Amused expression aside, her question does sound sincere.

Frank Castle has posed:
Her answer is simply silence... then, the other end of the line cuts off.

Seems the Punisher isn't interested in humor today.

Cecily Winters has posed:
    Cecily tsks when the line goes dead. "Well, his loss. I do have some time to kill once I check the subway schedule," she muses to herself, pocketing her phone and shrugging her shoulders. After having been standing in one place for so long, she stretches her arms and legs then makes for her favorite Central Park taco cart.