4547/Blinded By The Light

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Blinded By The Light
Date of Scene: 30 December 2020
Location: Ryker Heights - Founders Island
Synopsis: No description
Cast of Characters: Terry O'Neil, Ray Terrill




Terry O'Neil has posed:
Wednesday morning saw Terry O'Neil returning to unfamiliar territory- Gotham, the city that never sleeps because it is afraid someone will shank it the moment eyes are closed. Yesterday, it was to interview Impulse, and today it was for something not nearly as pleasant.

Terry was on the trace of something regarding Arkham Asylum... something he didn't quite know was a solid lid yet or not, so he wanted to make sure. He was here to meet a man who may or may not have something to offer him.

Doctor Hensik Haywood, disgraced therapist and overall kook by reputation- and yet there was something to the man's apparently unhinged ramblings online that made Terry... suspicious. He had set up a meeting and arrived half an hour early to grab something to eat.

Stepping out of the Arcade diner, he finishes off the last of his breakfast bagel and looks around. Ryker Heights is not too bad, as far as Gotha goes, but the red-headed cub reporter knows better than to let his guard down. Even if he can turn into a superhero by uttering four simple words, someone can stab you in the back faster than that.

He shakes his head. Clearly the thought that he's in Gotham is getting to him, he's used to much brighter, cheerful environs. "Maybe a walk will do me good. Still got half an hour," he mutters. Swinging his messenger bag to the front, he starts walking down the street, losing himself in thought as he nears the Third Gotham Bank and Trust, thinking that the street looks rather peaceful.

Inside the bank though, things are not as peaceful. Four armed men have tied up the guards and made hostages lie down on the floor while the work the tellers. The alarm hasn't been set off, yet, under threat of violence.

"Heh... maybe I am overreacting," Terry mutters to himself.

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Across the street is a diner. It's less grim and gritty like Gotham tends to be, being that this is more upscale. Ray's here exploring again -- each of the three cities are different in various aspects, and with school out for another few weeks, it's giving Ray ample opportunity to wander.

        Well, to be honest, he could explore anywhere he wanted. He's in the middle of eating something for lunch when the Bluetooth earphone he's taken to wearing at someone's advice starts pinging -- cops are being alerted. This is normal for the app he's been using, especially in Gotham, but what really gets his attention is the location

It's the bank literally out the window from where he sits. Standing up and dropping some money on the table, he heads out the door .... and cuts down an alley. Handy things, those. Moment or so later, a glowing nimbus is in the air above the bank....waiting. No reason to go in all guns blazing and stuff, right? So, he's looking for anything obvious -- other access points, people on lookout....anything like that.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
It might be stereotyping to say that all teenagers have a tendency to be glued to their phones. Just because it's a stereotype, though, it doesn't mean that it isn't sometimes true. As he approaches the bank, Terry is oblivious because he is in the process of letting Lois know the status of things.

<<Sent the draft to Impulse to check for details. As soon as I get it back I'll send it to publish on the site.>>

As the only public superhero who works at a media site (as of two weeks ago), Terry's main beat is covering 'cape affairs'- since he tends to be among the first to a scene thanks to his portaling powers. He also has taken it upon himself to find young heroes like him and give them a moment in the spotlight in a show of support. He'll conduct interviews and then let the interviewee scan the finished copy for details that may have escaped them that could put their identities in danger. All of this was before anyone at the Planet even saw the copy.

It's because of texting that Terry doesn't look up and notice the glowing man way up in the sky. Not that he'd normally look up in Gotham, because there's the danger of catching Batman's eye... and Batman does not tend to approve of other heroes in his space.

Things are about to change, however, as a shot rings out from the bank and causes the redhead to stop dead in his tracks.

Inside, a man has stood up in an attempt to wrestle one of the robbers for his gun. A desperate attempt, that ends with the man on the floor after the robber punches him in the stomach. Fortunately, the discharge happened during the struggle and the gun fired into the ceiling. The robber, a thin and wiry man with surprising strength, points the gun at the prone hostage and fires a single, solitary shot into the floor. The man screams and falls flat on the ground, the bullet having missed him by a hair- intentionally, perhaps.

"If anyone else wants to be a hero..." he says, waving his gun at the terrified hostages. "By all means. Next time, I won't miss."

Terry runs like the dickens, because he knows that a gunshot in Gotham means trouble. Coming out of a bank? Doubly so. He ducks into the alleyway next to the bank and raises his hand up to his face. "I knew it. I just knew it. Goddamnit, Gotham..." he hisses, and then he raises his pride bracelet to his eyes. Reversing the band reveals a metallic mirror in the underside- just tall and wide enough for the young man to be able to see his own eyes.

"We're All Mad Here!" he almost shouts, and he is enveloped by a small explosion of color and light that leaves behind no Terry and, in his stead, Vorpal the Cheshire Cat. To Ray, it may seem obvious why he had to run into the side of the building, as the light show is not... very subtle.

Admittedly, very few things about him are.

"Okay... bank heist..." he says to himself out loud, as he examines the side of the building, "What's the best way in?"

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Ray has yet to meet Batman. This is a Good Thing (tm). It also will not last, obviously. The gunshots, though, definitely get his attention -- almost distracting him from the other glowy lightshow going on in the alleyway -- especially since he was LOOKING for Things Going On. So, he almost immediately flies to the alley, light constructs already being formed to attempt to press Vorpal against the wall, "Robbing a bank, man? C'mon, seriously?"

No one tell Ray he got the wrong person, though.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
The last thing the Cheshire cat was expecting was for someone to press him against a wall right off the bat. The last time this had happened, it had been Lois when he messed up the proportions for that black battery acid she calls 'coffee' and it was accompanied by a threat that she would end his life, his existence, and his memory in every potential timeline if he ever, ever messed with the Mister Coffee settings ever again.

His first week at the Planet had been very memorable.

"Hey- dude, what's the big idea?" he squirms against the constructs pressing him against the wall, cursing himself for not paying attention. The rainbow bracelet falls from his hand and lands mirror-first on the ground, making a merry *tink* sound. "I'm /not/ robbing a bank- but it sure sounds like someone is in there!"

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Ray...listens. He pauses, cocking his head...then releases the light constructs. Sounding a bit embarrassed, he says, "Sorry, man. Yeah, cops are on the way. I was trying to see if they had a lookout or another way in -- gunshots though, we gotta move fast."

        He frowns, "I mean, I could just burn through the wall or roof but ... property damage, yannow?" He hovers a few feet off the ground and says again, "Sorry. Got any ideas?"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal chuckles, dusting himself off, "It's okay, these things happen. It's not the first time I've been smooshed against the wall. But it's the first time someone's used *light* to do it. Usually it's mechanical appendages, or nets or... you know." Supervillains were nothing if not diverse.

"Yeah, I get the property damage angle. There's a way we could get in... but it's risky..." he glances at the glowing man. "Actually, I have an idea. Is there a way you can... turn your light off for just a second? I can turn us both invisible and we could sneak in. If we position ourselves to take out the robbers in there before we go visible, we might be able to save people." He glances at the bank. "I'd go blasting in on all cylinders, but there's probably a chance that there's hostages..." his ear twitches, "You said the police are on their way so I assume you're dialed in... do we know if they've got hostages?"

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Ray listens, then nods, "Yeah. They've got a few. I didn't get an exact number. Three or four gunmen. And ... I can definitely tone down the light." He drops to the ground, and the light's gone. There's still a faint glow from his costume, but it's nothing worse than some LED lighting or something, "So you make us invisible, and ... then what?"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal nods, watching as the light diminishes. "Nice. By the way, I guess quick introductions- I'm Vorpal of the Titans, or Terry. What should I call you by?"

He quickly reaches into his vest and pulls out his burner phone, and opens the bank's entry on their local listing, which has pictures of the lobby.

"So..." he says, looking over at Ray, showing him the phone, "I can Rabbit Hole into anywhere I can see. I've got images of the lobby here, and a little bit beyond. I'm thinking... here..." he points to a spot behind the front counter, "We could come in behind the counter, close to the ground, assess the sitch and then spring. I can make a small rabbit hole..." he asses Ray's build and height, "big enough to crawl through but not enough to be immediately noticeable. That's what I'm thinking, but I'm also open to your plan. Got anything?"

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "Ray. I mean, it's 'The Ray', but Ray's fine. It's a whole thing, I know." It's not pretentious -at all-. He looks at the phone and mms, "No, not really. I can take out .... well, it depends on where they are based on the hostages. If they're not actually holding anyone, I can get them pretty easily. Maybe just the guns, but easier to just scoop them all up. No point in blasting in there -- especially not against some morons with guns."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal smiles. "The Ray. I like that. It's brilliant." Somebody please smack him. "Okay- real quick then, you can make things out of solid light /and/ blast? So we'll go in and I'll let you take point, and I'll be your backup for any guys that might not be in the lobby. Sounds good?"

He reaches over and puts a hand on Ray's shoulder, "I won't be able to see you when you're invisible, so let's keep in touch until we're out of the hole and into the lobby. We'll go on your count."

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Ray smirks faintly, "Blame the last guy." His dad, actually, but easier not to go that route. "Yeah, and fly. Maybe more, I dunno." He then nods ass you put your hand on his shoulder and says, "All right." A pause, "Keep your eyes closed when we go visible. I may start with a light show. Maybe disorient the guys?" He's spitballing here, really. "Whenever you're ready, Vorpal."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Ooh, good idea!" the cat nods, and then when Ray gives the signal, he begins to crouch, guiding Ray to do the same. "I'll open the Rabbit Hole and just move as soon as it opens. We can't tell who might be glancing in that directoin."

And there, with no big fanfare, they both turn invisible. For someone who hasn't done it, it's a little disorienting at first to not be able to see your own body as the magic touches it. "Squeeze my hand when you're ready to go visible and I'll make it happen and close my eyes," he says, squeezing Ray's shoulder to emphasize which hand, as his other hand is out of reach.

The Rabbit Hole opens- and it's not a flashy portal. It literally looks like a hole in reality that shows the area behind the counter, low to the ground.

When they make their way through and the Rabbit Hole closes behind them, the situation looks desperate. The three gunmen are still holding hostages, but the fourth man, the tall and wiry man, is arguing heatedly with the bank manager.

"The safe is timed, we can't open it until-"
"Cut the bullshit!" the robber says, pressing the muzzle of the gun to the man's temple, eliciting a gasp from the manager. "I /know/ you can open it. Don't play with me or it'll be the last thing you do!" he snarls.

Ray will hear the quiet intake of breath from the Cheshire cat behind him. All around them, there are civilians taking shelter.

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Ray might not be able to see himself -- but he can absolutely sense the -lack- of light surrounding the two of them. He follows Vorpal through the portal. He mutters, "Crap. If I blind them, they might fire in reflex." He frowns and says, "Man...gotta be a way out of this. If it wasn't for that guy, I could still blind them." He pauses, looking around, trying to get an idea here.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal moves closer to Ray, so that he can whisper into his ear. "I gotcha, buddy. Be ready for a distraction."

And what distraction is it? The door swings open and, into the lobby of the bank, the Clown Prince of Crime himself, the Joker, walks in in his full, nightmarish glory, all pale skin and green-and-purple grim garishness.

"Well, well, well well!" his reedy voice, like nails on chalkboard, echoes through the bank lobby, "SOMEONE is playing with my toys-" and then his voice turns shrill with barely coontrolled rage, "And without MY permission!"

The effect his appearance has on the robbers is telling. Most of them actually /cower/, moving to the sides of the bank and away from the hostages. But the leader?

The man turns around and, with narrowed beady eyes, raises his gun and points it at the Joker. The gun fires.

"Now!" Vorpal whispers, squeezing Ray's shoulder.

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "Idiot," Ray mutters. He stands up, and suddenly -flares-, filling the bank with ... well, it's not as bright as the sun, but it's brighter than staring into a light bulb. Definitely enough to cause anyone looking to be disoriented. While the three guys on the sides are cowering, he shoots a hand forth, a grasping claw of light moving to wrap around the guy with the gun to push him up against the wall, so that the gun can't really be used anymore. He looks to see if he needs to take care of the other three, even going so far as to aim his other hand at them with a simple, "Don't be stupid. Cops are already on the way."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
And after that flare of light, the Joker isn't there- he never had been. The benefits of magical illusions! Ray's very capable taking point leaves Vorpal free to provide backup, if needed. It isn't needed, at all. With their leader incapacitated by Ray, the other robbers are a mess. First they were visited by the ghost of Jokers past, and then they're being menaced by a gloriously glowing presence- was this a Christmas Carol in reverse? They might be coming to that conclusion as the colorful, red-and-teal clad Cheshire cat becomes visible, lounging across the front counter with a Flamingo mallet slung over his shoulder (where the hell did he get that?)

"I'd listen to my glowing buddy here if I were you. He can give you a sunburn in the /nastiest/ areas. He can literally give you a bikini tan." He is grinning, but the tight grip on his mallet and the narrowed eyes say 'Go ahead, make my day.' He then produces four pairs of handcuffs from a Rabbit Hole. "Okay, line up and get your Christmas presents. Santa gave us his naughty list."

And just outside, the police sirens can be heard, screaming their approach. The cuffing and binding of crooks doesn't take that long, since their spirit is broken by this point, and after they've been cuffed to immoveable furniture (and the keys left with the bank manager), Vorpal opens a Rabbit Hole.

"Rooftop debrief?" he grins and steps through the Rabbit Hole, gesturing for Ray. It lead to a rooftop several blocks away.

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "Yeah. Don't want to give the cops any more than they've already got." And he follows to the rooftop, glowing back to 'minimal' settings at this point, "That ... went better than I hoped." He pauses, "Thanks, again. I wasn't sure how I was going to pull that off."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal laughs and leans back against a ventilation unit, arms crossed over his chest, "You flatter me, but it looked like you had things handled back there. All you needed was a distraction, and everybody tells me that's pretty much what I am."

He leans forward and pats Ray's shoulder, "Really, that was very good going, The Ray. You're a natural for teamwork, which isn't as common as you'd think. I have stories, and I've only been doing this for about eight months!"

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "I couldn't have gotten in easily by myself, though. So yeah, it took both of us." He shrugs a bit awkwardly and says, "I don't exactly have a lot of experience working with people, or doing this either." He pauses, "Half the time I end up here, it's because I got lost on the way to New York City." He says, "But, we got the job done, and the cops have it in hand."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal grins, "I'm a native Nya'ker myself, but I work in Metropolis now... I work for the Planet. You might have heard of the guy who came out as a cape while working there... well, that's me." He thumbs at himself. " I'm also a part of the Titans... you're doing this all by your lonesome?" the cat looks around, the bank is a ways off and the police cars are just tiny, blue and red twinkles in the distance.

"I usually don't come to Gotham often, but that might be changing in the near future"

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "I've been in New York for only a few months. I'm from Philly." He pauses and shakes his head, "I didn't know, actually. That .... takes a lot of guts, man. I don't think I could do that. Too much publicity." Again.

        He nods in response to the question and says, "Yeah. I've only been doing this for ... well, less than a year, really." He shrugs and half-smiles, then asks, "Why? I mean, I'm not saying anything bad about the place. I've only been here a few times, just being curious." Finally, he adds, "Oh, and I've heard of the Titans." Not as much as, say, the Avengers, Justice League, or SUPERMAN, of course.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"It... took a bit of deciding, but I talked it over with my fam... I only have a cousin and my mom, and they're both already in trouble. My cousin's April O'Neil over at channel six, and she's already pretty much knee-deep in stuff anyways, and my mother works as a PI and has put a few criminals away herself. In the end, we decided me coming out wasn't going to add /that/ much risk to my life. And the Planet bullpen is already pretty much Supervillain Station, what with anyone who tries to get to Superman often tries to do so through Lois. The office windows have been replaced... so many times." he chuckles.

"Oh, Gotham is... special. Also kind of dangerous, but Bats doesn't like to share. But on the Titans front..." the Titans had recently gained a large amount of publicity for their role in helping defeat the warworld invasion... and also for four of the Titans having declared missing, presumed dead for about three months after being supposedly swallowed by a wormhole, only to make a very visible return to earth a few weeks ago. Crashing into the side of the tower. Vorpal had been one of them.

"Well, if you're interested, you could come over and check out the gang. They're a good bunch and they're always eager to welcome good guys to the fold and, as a young and inexperienced hero myself, let me tell you that the training and camraderie really helps. Sometimes it's good to know that you're not alone." He smiles. "We're sort of like a second family. I mean, technically speaking you're already half-way there by threatening to throttle me- everybody does that at one point or another," he jokes.

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "Crap, I forgot he was in Gotham." He looks around, as if expecting to see the man any moment. Settling down a bit he says, "Um, sure." At the mention of throttling, he coughs and looks embarrassed again, "Sorry about that again. I'm just glad I didn't do anything more than just a light shield." He rubs at the back of his helmet and says, "But yeah, sure. That'd be great." A pause, "That's in... Metropolis, right? I think I saw it on the news."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal laughs, "Aw, I'm sorry, I'm just teasin' you. Restraining me with the light shield was the right call, especially since you didn't know if they had a lookout. That shows you've got good thinking- and since I am clearly not an ordinary human, if you had just come up and gone 'hey, 'Sup!' and I had blasted you with something?" He leans back against the ventilation unit, "Mind you, you did take a risk when you let me go because I could have been lying through my teeth to get you to lower your guard. But, you've got to take risks sometimes or else you become paranoid and batty like certain bat-people. And, c'mon, who could be suspicious of my adorable self?" he grins, not capable of delivering that with a straight face.

"Yeah, in St. Martin's island... let me show you." He has to focus for a moment and then opens a Rabbit Hole. The cool breeze from the bay comes through the hole, and there is a beautiful view of the island with the Tower. "See there... this is how you get to it. Since you can fly, I'll show you the shortest route..."

The Rabbit Hole ascends and pulls back, gowing and higher and higher until a good chunk of Metropolis can be seen from a bird's eye view. "Neat, eh? If I jumped through it, I could sky dive back to the tower. Of course, I forgot my parachute pants, so..."

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Ray says simply, "And if you had been a bad guy, and blasted me, then it would have been game on, y'know." He grins, "We play rough in Philly." He then looks through the Hole and says, "I....should be able to find it, if I slow down in time." A pause, "I can sometimes overshoot." He pauses and says, "But yeah, it's a real short trip from .... well, anywhere, really. But definitely from New York. I'm just waiting for classes to start back up right now anyway."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Well, come over and say hi to the gang. We're always on the lookout for new Titans, and you don't need to be in Metropolis- Robin is from Gotham, and Ghost Spider is from Ny'awk. And with my Rabbit Holes, anyone can be anywhere, they just need to holler at me."

He reaches into his suit, and then stops. "Forgot I'm not in my jeans. I swear, whomever invents clothes for gymnasts with pockets that don't make it look like you've got a tumor in your leg is going to get ALL of my money" He reaches to the side into a Rabbit Hole and rummages through a desk, and brings back a card. "This is my name, email and cell phone. Hit me up when you stop by the tower and I'll be there if I can, but I'll also leave your codename and description. When you get there, just tell them Vorpal says you're there for Frabjous day, that'll be my passcode," he grins.

"Also... consider doing me the honor of interviewing you if you feel like you're ready for some public attention. I'll take you out for lunch, ask some questions, maybe take video of you in flight and doing your light show, and you'll be up on the Planet's website. It sort of helps when people know who is looking out for them so that in the middle of a crisis, they know how to differentiate the people they need to be running towards and the ones they need to be running away from, if you catch my drift." He tilts his head, "I also make sure my subject reads the stuff before I even hand it to the staff at the Planet. Just to make sure no accidental details slip by and whatnot."

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "Sure. I mean, I'll probably wait for a few days, so I don't freak them out or anything. Or get attacked." He half-grins and takes the card, "I don't know about the interviewing, but thanks. It's not anything to do with you, I"m just ... really kinda enjoying privacy. It's been a while." He puts the card in the inner pocket of his jacket, though. "Frabjous day, right? What's that mean?"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
The Cheshire raises an eyebrow. "Well... I guess now is better than later. I'm basically /the/ Cheshire cat. From the books? That's me. So 'frabjous' is a Wonderland word that roughly translates to 'delightful, joyful, gay'... it can also mean 'the third tuesday of the month when two Mondays come together and the moon has flown backwards.' Language is /very/ flexible in Wonderland..." he spreads his hands, "We basically give passcodes and phrases so that nobody impersonates our guests. They usually want something only each one of us would say, as an extra precaution. But it's usually not needed... Troia, Wonder Woman's sister, can detect lies when they're spoken. So anyone who tried to impersonate you would get punched out of the tower faster than they could blink," he grins.

Ray Terrill has posed:
        "Well, that's good. A system is always good. I haven't run into any impersonators, so I"ll take your word for a lot of that stuff. I'm easy. Just ask me to like any New York team. Because I won't." He grins a bit.

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal grins, "I'll file that away if I ever need to verify your ID. If you ever suspect I'm an impostor, offer me spearmint and if I don't look like you've insulted my mother's family honor, conk me out 'cause it's not me." He then sighs, stretches, and nods towards the lights in the distance.

"I'm having fun but I'm afraid I should go back and do my duty as a public cape and provide a statement. Since you want to stay out of the stream of publicity, I can say you were this glowy dude I teamed up with, and you flew away before I could know your name. Or I can say you're Starfire trying on a new look... but they won't believe me," he chuckles. "I also need to recover my bracelet. I just realized I left it in the alleyway so... I have to go back anyways."

Ray Terrill has posed:
        Ray nods and says, "You can say that it was me, that's fine. I just ..." He shrugs, "Too much press can be a thing, y'know." He grins and nods, "No worries, man. I"ll probably head back towards New York and relax a bit. "Nice meeting you though, Vorpal."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"I know exactly what you mean. Balance in all things. Nice meeting you as well, Ray. Take it easy and hopefully I'll see you again soon." He gives his colleage hero a smile, and then he snaps his fingers. A Rabbit Hole leading to the outside of the bank opens up. "Tuurn aroooound briiiight eeeeyes- don't kill me!"

With that, the cat leaps through the portal, which closes after him, leaving Ray alone on the rooftop.

Vorpal will eventually get back home to the Tower soon enough. Or, actually, about four hours later after filing forms, giving statements, corroborating statements, and writing a quick new blurb on his phone about the robbery, to send to the Planet.

Ray Terrill has posed:
        And then Ray takes to the sky, a visible corona surrounding him before he ... well, pretty much winks out of distance. It's a moment later that the rumbling of sound -- not thunder -- is heard in the area.