7950/A Hot Rod in the Old Town Tonight

A Hot Rod in the Old Town Tonight
Date of Scene:	23 September 2021
Location:	The Narrows - Miagani Island
Synopsis:	June has a job to steal a car. A lot of things happen, but stealing a car is not one of them.
Cast of Characters:	June Connor, Tetsuya Wakao, Natasha Cranston, Otto Octavius, Lincoln March, Gwen Stacy

---

June Connor has posed:
    Why did it have to go and get cold? Okay, so it's just cool, the evening fifties are hardly freezing, but she doesn't have the most meat on her bones for insulation. She wears a black thermal underwear shirt under her black denim vest. And black jeans that are shredded along the pants. The Narrows isn't a place where a girl should walk alone, and someone who understands that and can handle herself isn't an exception. Which is why she's on the rooftops.

    "Shit, did someone seriously puke on the roof?" she grumbles, finding exactly that under her foot. "This place sucks." She moves to the edge of the roof, sitting on the ledge as she looks over.

    The Narrows is quiet, as it is when people don't want to get shot in them. The recent rain has the streets wet and reflecting the streetlights, and a couple of cars roll by. None are cops. Not here. Then, the moderate silence is broken.

    BUM BUMP BUM BUMP. The brightly colored street racer, a 1957 Bel Air. Flashy paint with fire and a racing fin on the back, the once classic piece of machinery has clearly been reworked to be a modern piece of art. A blare of the engine interrupts the people who live in the area, and it roars to the stop sign, sounds of laughter from within, and undercarriage lights glowing on the pavement for anyone who might not be sure where the source of the ruckus is originating from.

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
Someone obviously doesn't have much fear of the Narrows, as he's just walking. The off-white coat of Tetsuya's is pretty much telling of how strange it is to be there. He's not from Gotham at all. An outsider there for some reason or another.

In contrast, a black ball cap is on his head to help keep some of his features hidden, and he's not exactly doing much to stay out of the way. Just... walking, really.

The young man probably has whatever happens to him coming, or just asking for it, but there's no mistake that he is indeed just taking a small stroll in the Narrows it seems. That and checking a small piece of paper about an address on occasion, and his phone which looks outdated.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
        Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of Man?

    Normally, the Shadow doesn't concern herself with what happens to a two-bit ganger's toy car. But someone being hired to trash it is a bit more uncommon. It feels like someone - who isn't in a gang - wants a message sent.

     Moreover, it's not any of the 'known' players -- the Mob wouldn't outsource the destruction; they have in-house specialists for this kind of message delivery and they generally want you to know it was them. Likewise, the Vory, with the added caveat that they're less likely to trash a car and more likely to graphically kill the offender as well as several associates and relatives just to drive the point home.

    And the same goes for the majority of Gotham's colorful crop of costumed villains - they prefer their own goons and tend to send more stringent messages than a smashed car.

    It all points to a new player. Who? More information is needed. Interrogating the woman hired for the job may be helpful. And perhaps saving 'Quick' Joe's car will make him more amenable to answering a few questions as to whose wrath the Screaming Meanies have incurred recently that might warrant a demonstration like this.

    Of course, the Narrows are one of the few places in Gotham where even a taxi won't go, so Benny has to drop his boss off a bit further away than she normally prefers, but with the shadows lengthening in the setting sun there's plenty of shade to conceal The Shadow as she makes her way into the gang-ruled neighborhood.

    Fortunately, 'Quick' Joe is particularly predictable -- although in his defense there aren't many streets left intact enough to drive fast on, so his options are limited...

Otto Octavius has posed:
When you're just starting to setup hideouts after a year in a coma and want privacy from everyone, including the law, you want places where you're more likely to go unnoticed... and the Narrows was a perfect place for Otto to setup a small lab and storage area in an underground bunker on his own creation.

Down, below in the basement of one of the buildings, his tentacles continue construction of the new space even as his own hands work on constructing a new set of lab equipment. Doctor Octopus is setting up in Gotham already, and it hasn't even been a week since he woke up. He works fast.

June Connor has posed:
    Tetsuya's presence gains the attention of the guys in the car. "Hey yo yo," one of them calls out to Tetsuya as he rolls down the window, "You lost baby?" he laughs. Did he just call Tetsuya 'baby'? Yep. His joke earnes a laugh from his friends. Tetsuya is tresspassing, and while they may not look too intimidated by his presence, they do look like they are amused at his ignorance.

    "Poor shit," June shakes her head. "How do you NOT know that you don't do this kind of thing in the Narrows?" she asks herself, pulling her ski mask from her inside pocket. She pulls it over her face, and moves to the edge of the roof. It looks like she might have a good opening to make her move. And might even have help! She can play hero for the moment if it gets the job done. She slides down a drain pipe, which starts to break, and she vaults off it, landing from a slightly higher elevation than she really wanted to, but she lands solidly in the alley, and pulls two kunai from her hip, letting them twirl in her fingers as she waits for her moment.

    Of course, the thumping of the base of the car is still resonating through the street, and is surely even felt below in a basement. Because that's how Screaming Meanies roll.

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
Tetsuya turns to look at the car. Full body turns. And eyes it. Eyeing the individuals inside, the asian man's glare is a bit obvious. It's not Batman level intimidating, but it is one that speaks of perhaps they don't want to mess with him.

"Perhaps you can give me a hand? I am looking for an address here. A friend is expecting me, and honestly, it is a maze in this place." Tetsuya says.

The piece of paper is stuffed into a pocket. His other hand, meanwhile, seems to have something in it. Small, black... almost a marble in size. The man's not unarmed, but whatever it is can't be dangerous. Right?

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Unbeknownst to either of them, the Shadow shares at least part of June's assessment -- Tetsuya's appearance is almost laughably unsuited for this area. Meaning that the poor by is so far our of his depth that he can't even see the sun anymore... Or, and the sleight of hand to that object makes this more likely, there's much more to him than meets the eye. If the Meanies fail to spot it, that car may wind up totaled regardless of what June winds up trying to do.

    ... Speaking of, the failed kunochi should be nearby by now. From her own spot in the shadows, shielded from mortal perception, Natasha scans her surroundings, trying to determine where June is most likely to come from...

Otto Octavius has posed:
A hidden camera on the building exterior shows Otto what's happening outside, and it shows up on the monitors below. Recognizing Tetsuya, he suddenly hits the shotgun microphone toggle and starst to record the interaction, stopping his lab work... though his tentacles keep going with their work.

The sooner this concealed bunker is operational, the better for his plans... and he zooms the camera in for a better look at everyone involved.

Lincoln March has posed:
     Through the chaos of the moment a lone police car rolls into view guarding an ambulance with the lights off. They roll their way over to a nearby apartment complex pulling into a stop.

     The officer in charge steps out of the ambulance and surveys the area, his pistol at the ready and a full ballistics vest covering his midsection. He motions the paramedics out from the back of the ambulance, who come with a stretcher heading for the interior of the apartment complex with the officer in toe. They head out of view and out of mind for the time being leaving the police car and ambulance at the street.

June Connor has posed:
    June is about to make her play when the cop car comes into view. "A cop in the Narrows?" she pauses. Something it definitely suspect. She glances back to the scene with Tetsuya.

    The gang also seems to respond. They watch as the car and ambulance stop and people get out, as if not sure what to make of the odd sight. When the cop follows the stretcher in, though, they seem satisfied.

    "Yeah yeah," one of them says as they get out of the car. All four of them. "We're pretty good with directions. We know this place real well," he says. "For a price, we can help ya," he says, tilting his head cruelly, tilting his body to show that he's packing a rather large pistol.

    June decides that she doesn't have any time to wonder about the police presence. Her moment has come. With all of the crooks facing Tetsuya, she bursts across the street, quietly, in view of Tetsuya, but none of her intended oppoenents. They don't even know she's there as she slides into the driver's seat and throws it into gear.
    It's too bad she doesn't know how to drive stick. The gears scream out an alarm as the car lurches and stalls. "The fuck?" she looks at the dashboard, having no clue what just happens, and all the music stops. And all four of the gang spin from Tetsuya to look back at her.

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
Well, Tetsuya was ready to make this easy on them. And Tetsuya does spot the pistol, raising an eyebrow at that one. "Pistols. So--" Then he sees June. And blinks a few times. He looks at the car, then at the thugs, then at June.

And he looks to the thugs, "Friend of yours?"

Yep, he's being nice about it at least. He doesn't know this city, and that's the bad part. The other is that he needs to probably defuse this. Maybe. That someone is trying to apparently carjack a gang has him just staring.

Then he sighs. And glares at June. "Just what do you think you are doing, if you do not mind my asking? I was trying to have a conversation and find out which way to go."

Since he's not from around here, he doesn't seem to mind the police and ambulance at all. Literally. Nothing odd about that to him!

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Law enforcement and emergency services in the Narrows? Something definitely is not right there. Natasha shifts her attention from the impending brawl -- the young man seems entirely too unconcerned with the presence of firearms not to have some hidden capabilities of his own -- and moves closer to the 'Ambulance' to get a better view at its owners.

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Ghost Spider wouldn't be a normal sight out here in Gotham, specially at the Narrows, yet recent events have drawn her out here. Looking for a lead. A specific one to a certain shooting out in Queens where Captain Stacy. And now it's time to make sure whoever is responsible pays.

A lead has brought her over, a contact that should be right about---

Danger flares on her senses, not towards her but..., nearby. Something is afoot. And not something minor. So Gwen diverts from her path atop the buildings to land on a nearby one. The one June had been a few moments ago before deciding to steal a street racer. She lands without a sound, perching on the edge of the building and looking down upon the street, eyes narrowing under the pink-rimmed mask of her suit.

"Now this is a bad situation as I have ever seen one.." she murmurs to herself.

Otto Octavius has posed:
Constructing this bunker will have to wait. This could turn ugly, fast... and he needed to be able to react.

Otto starts to walk out of the basement with his legs, the tentacles first replacing the concealment debris, before they get retracted under his overcoat.

Now, Otto just looks like a man with a long coat on.

Walking up the stairwell to the rooftop, he comes up... and stops as he sees Ghost Spider, moving back into the doorframe of the building and watching the newcomer. "This is getting crowded..." Otto mutters.

Lincoln March has posed:
     The owners of the ambulance are a pair of men in standard issue EMS uniforms who look nervous to be out in this section of the city. Reasonably so. This wasn't part of town that any enforcement went to lightly but something has brought them here and kept them here be it their will or against.

     A second officer waits in the car deciding to take a see no evil approach to the carjacking happening just a few meters away from him. He keeps his eyes down on the computer muttering out something into his radio as he looks for something else to keep his attention away from the chaos.

     Out from the building rolls the police officer and the stretcher for the ambulance.

     There's a body on the stretcher with eyes closed and arms folded over his chest, a body that's wearing Screaming Meanies colors, but not just any colors, but the colors of the gang's leader. Ligatures on his neck show signs of strangulation via rope and his eyes have been pushed closed.

     CSI are already on scene judging by the presence of one of Gotham Cities CSI agents walking alongside the presiding officer.

June Connor has posed:
    "Um, fucking this up," June answers Tetsuya as four handguns are drawn on her. She dives behind the other side of the car. They don't fire. "Not the car, he'll kill us!" one of them declares, the safety of this precious machine more important than shooting this random girl who's bold enough to jack it right in front of them. Tetsuya's forgotten, and they seem to have no concept of Otto's presence on the roof, Gwen's perch, nor the Shadow lurking silently. After all, they have two people right there in front of them.

    They burst to surround to the other side of the car, and June flies forward, the kunai hanging from her fingers are gripped, and she stabs the shoulder of the two to the rear of the car, taking their surprise to shove one away and deftly spin around to hold the other around the throat, disarming him and holding his own 9mm to his jaw. "Okay fuckers, back it up," she threatens, clearly out gunned and outnumbered. Or so she thinks. The only thing between her and a bullet is the gang's love for each other.

    "Uh, Marion," one of them says to another. "That's Joe's apartment," he notices. The gang divides their attention. June, the ambulance. June. The ambulance. A momentary indecision of two critical things happening in their lives.

Gwen Stacy has posed:
What was that?

Ghost Spider's head turns to look over her shoulder at the doorway yet she doesn't find anyone there. Not that she has a long time to scrutinize that doorway because her danger sense is popping up once more. Violence is about. Head whips back front to look at what is happening. Beef between gangs. An innocent in their midst. That's pretty much enough for her. And she certainly doesn't like these 4-on-1 odds. Specially guns. So lets take that out of the equation.

As the thugs are busy considering whether to shoot June, or move towards the ambulance, Gwen shoots a pair of webs out of her wrists, aimed towards those guns the two unstabbed gangsters are still holding up!

"Hey, do you guys have permits for those guns?" She calls out from above. Gwen knows they don't!

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
A frown is given by Tetsuya, "So... who's Joe and why do I get the feeling you people should be checking on him?" He seems to consider, then eyes June.

Tetsuya's gaze is drawn to the body being wheeled out and the investigation. His eyes narrow a little. "You know, I normally hate yakuza and the like, but in this case I would ask that you let them go. I believe their friend just died."

He at least tries to defuse the situation, then facepalms as an actual hero shows up. "So violent on this side of the world..." He starts to move away to get out of there, or at least towards the cops and ambulance. He's now curious in that regards.

Otto Octavius has posed:
Otto is a prideful man. Some would say an egotist... and they'd be right.

But he's also a tactician, and getting the attention of one of the Spiders is only asking to be distracted.

Instead, Otto starts back down the stairwell again, this time going to one floor down and bringing up a tentacle to 'peer' through it down to the ground floor, just out of Gwen's sight as he observes.

Of course, most of his attention is on June... a mercenary? He could use reliable thugs for his work. May as well start with that one.

Lincoln March has posed:
     The officer draws his pistol at the sight of chaos nearby making sure to put himself between it and the ambulance currently being loaded. He steadies himself with both hands on the pistol in a cup and saucer patern as he looks over the crimescene to ensure that nothing is going to break out wild from this.

     The other officer opens his door and lowers the window so that he can use the door for cover pointing towards the group of gangsters and the carjacker. This whole situation is about to heat up.

     The EMT and the CSI agent do their best to load up the body of the downed ganger and secure him into place.

June Connor has posed:
    June, hidden by the ski mask, shifts her attention as Gwen snaps the guns away from her enemies. That helps. Of course, she's the one in the classic criminal attire. All black and a ski mask, and holding a gun to a man's head. Think fast June! She takes the momentary confusing situation and shoves herself and the man she holds hostage into the car's driver seat, shutting it behind her and locking it. Now she's awkwardly on top of him. "Stay down!" she yells angrily, trying to work fast as she slides over him to the drivers seat. "Drive this fuckin' thing now!" Of course, he's covered in blood now, and from the tussle so is she. This is going just fantastically.

    Meanwhile, the other three have now way too many things to focus on. Gwen up above, has the injured gangster yell at her angrily, "The bitch is stealin' our car!" As if Gwen should be helping them. THe other two, now pre-occupied with the cop and ambulance start to approach, only to raise their hands. "Whoa whoa!" the one identified as Marion calls out. "That's our buddy! Is he okay? What's happening?" It's not the best day for the Screaming Meanies.

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
Stopping for a moment, Tetsuya sighs, muttering something in Japanese that doesn't sound nice before turning. And rushing to the car. That thing in his hand? Turns out that's a smoke bomb.

He grabs to yank the passenger door open, then chunks said smoke bomb in before diving forward and doing a roll to try to avoid possible injury. The smoke that comes out, however, has a brine-like smell to it. It's not normal smoke at all, and... blue?

Coming up afterwards, he turns to look to see what the carjacker and apparent hostage will do now. "I would drop the kunai." He says as he moves to in front of the car. "Trying to run me over would also be a very, very bad idea." He's at least leaving a good couple of feet between him and the car front.

Otto Octavius has posed:
As events heated up, Otto just kept a flat look. Just another bit of gang politics being interrupted by a Spider? Probably. He had more important things to do, especially since that meddler and a Spider was around. The camera would record what he missed.

The tentacle retracts as Otto starts heading to the ground floor opposite of the action.. Going through a window, the one tentacle that was out gets retracted again as he starts to walk away, hands in his overcoat.

Just another man in the narrows...

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Guns are out now. Good. The innocent bystander seems rather relaxed for what's going on but ..., as long as they move away that's fine with her as well. Ghost Spider is here to stop people from getting hurt. Most of them at least. Nothing she can do about the ones that already got stabbed!

But then June has to go and double down on trying to steal that car. "Really...?" a beat, "I was just giving you an out to scram and you go and get an hostage?" that means action. Gwen lets herself slide down the wall, feet skidding over the brick wall before she tosses herself through the air to go and land atop the car in a graceful manner. Just as the smoke bomb goes off inside the car. Ufff..

"How about we all put the guns down and go on our different ways, mmm? No harm no foul and all that?"

Lincoln March has posed:
     "Keep away from the ambulance." The officer says as he keeps his gun leveled in the direction of the chaos. "Looks like another suicide." He shakes his head from one side to the other slowly but surely. "You boys have been dropping like flies lately."

     The other officer isn't too keen on doing his job seemingly more preoccupied with keeping his own skin than any of the chaos at the car a further bit away.

     The CSI agent offers calmly. "While we can't rule out foul play the evidence points towards suicide." He shifts his eyes slightly back up towards the room on the third floor where they'd come from. "Mostly."

June Connor has posed:
    June isn't known for the best decisions. She could have just taken the out and tried again later. But she feels committed to the act now. Well, she did until smoke filled the car. "What the-She starts coughing, the hostage starts coughing. But though he's injured, he's a tough enough character to know when he has an opening. He grabs the gun while June's distracted, shoving it away from his face and slamming it to the dashboard.

    POP! POP POP!"

    Three rounds smash the windshield, spiderwebs of cracks spreading from the base where the three rounds went, flashes visible from the outside.

    Meanwhile, the two were just starting to listen, "No no, he wouldnta dun that!" Marion says. "This ain't a suicide! You hear me? You get your ass in there and look for clues, pig!" Probably not the best way to refer to a cop that you want help from. The other guy rushes the ambulance. "Joe! No no, we'll get'm Joe, we'll fuck'm up real god for you!" As if the dead man could hear him.

    The third, injured and still armed, takes his gun, and rushes the car. "Bitch!" he yells out, responding to the gunfire by firing through the back of the car himself. Time for protecting the ride is past now that shots are fired as he blams his way into the smoke.

Gwen Stacy has posed:
"Why does no one *ever* listen to reason..?" A dramatic little sigh escapes Ghost Spider as all hell breaks loose. Not too different from New York really... And did she expect differently? She's been around enough years to have lost faith in most thugs or henches. No common sense!

Gwen jumps and bends out of the way of the shots as they start cracking through the front windshield from within the car. And with the smoke intervening on that part would not go well. But she can still do something on the outside. Which she does when one of the men goes for the gun.

"Not on my watch, bud..." She whips one leg about for a kick towards the man's hand when he goes to point it towards the car to start blasting. "What did I tell you..." as the gun flies off the man's hand, "... about everyone going on their ways?" a punch for good measure on the man's nose to send him flying. Gotta love that enhanced spidey strength! (Not if you are a thug though)

She gestures towards the police officers, "You'd better go. I will leave you a nice bouquet after." a bouquet of thugs. Webbed...

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
Tetsuya just blinks a few times at that, then actually peers over the car, and comments, "Uh-huh..."

He shakes his head, looking for June specifically in the car. He drops down to avoid the gun shots once they start going through that windshield as well, moving forward to grab the passenger's door, pull it open, and try to yank whoever he can get out of there.

He's holding his breath slightly to avoid the smoke, or is just used to it somehow. Still, he's planning on trying to get one of the combatants out of the car completely. And if he has to fight them once they are out, he plans on it. Since Ghost Spider's pretty much ignoring him, he's just going to take that at face value and continue to do what he does in this case.

Lincoln March has posed:
     The EMTs load the body secure into the back of the ambulance before shutting the doors. They tap on the front of the ambulance before the driver lets out a low whistle to snag the attention of the cops, starting to back up slowly but surely.

     The officers move back into the car at the behest of the vigilante keeping their eyes on the prize of the ambulance. They shut the doors tightly before starting to pull forward and hock a u-turn around in the place to make sure that they can get out of their and back to more friendly pastures.

June Connor has posed:
    The third gangster, "What the-" he is surprised to find his gun taken, and even more surprised when he takes a spider punch to the face, cold cocking him into dreamland. He flies up against the rear panel of the car and slides down it. The other two start cussing the cops as they get in their car, screaming at them to do their jobs. After all, they don't have guns now, and for once, they really ARE the victims. Not something they are used to.

    From inside the car, June pulls free, her hand disappearing into the smoke and a yelp can be heard. It sounds like one of those rounds hit her. The gun suddenly exits the smoke at Tetsuya's face, a point blank projectile as it is thrown in his direction, only to be immediately followed by her head as a second head strike if the first misses. Or if it hits, for that matter. She bursts from the car. This is completely sideways, blood comes from the back of her shoulder. She needs to just get out of here now.

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
A gun coming at the face out of the smoke at least hits, and the head strike is enough to have him backing up from the car. It probably speaks of experience that he's not gone down from those, too! Instead, with her from the car now, Tetsuya turns to look carefully as he takes up what looks like some sort of boxer's stance.

"Ow... seriously, who throws loaded guns!?" He comments more to himself than anything else.

Then he throws down another smoke bomb and starts to back away. He calls up to Ghost Spider, "One still in the car, driver side. Injured and unarmed now." Then he moves to get out of there, namely by going for the rooftops in a single leap nearly, only pausing to grab a fire escape about half way and take off another.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Unfortunately, escape is not going to be June's fate tonight as a gloved hand appears out of nowhere and clamps down on her upper arm with surprising strength. "I'm afraid you won't be leaving just yet," the Shadow informs her, almost courteously before looking the gunshot wound over with a professional air. "You possess information I require. I offer a trade: Safe passage out of here and to a medic who will ask no questions, in exchange for answering a few of mine."

    A pointed glance to the webbed-up gangers and the general commotion. "I recommend you consider the offer carefully -- and above all, quickly..."

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Now where the heck did the Shadow come from? That makes a brow quirk up from under Ghost Spider's mask when she catches sight of one of the hoodlums being caught by Natasha. "What's this? We even need to be afraid of our own shadow out here in Gotham?" she comments. But it's mostly a quip as it seems that she knows the Shadow by saying. "Good to see you."

As Tetsuya starts moving off and calls out about the remaining gang member inside the car she slides in towards the car, "Come out. We got a smoke-free seat for you out here, sir." one hand reaches to grab at the man inside the car and she starts to pull him out if she catches one part of him. She needs him for her bouquet.

"Who are you anyway?" She calls out to the fleeing Tetsuya.

June Connor has posed:
    "I could've shot you, if you prefer," June answers Tetsuya, as if that was the alternative. Not really, she's a terrible shot. As he pops a second smoke bomb, she instinctively recoils. Well, that works for her. She pivots to flee.

    "Ow! Fuck!" June cusses as her injured shoulder is snagged with no light pressure. She was almost free, too! "Get off m-" She suddenly realizes the voice that's speaking to her. "Uh..." She wasn't expecting this. "Okay," she says quickly. "OK, help me thrash that car?" she says, looking at the spooky figure. "I'll tell you anything you wanna know." An odd request, perhaps. But she has a job to do, and she wants to get paid.

    Meanwhile the other gangster is exiting the other side of the car. He was intent on chasing June when he finds himself caught by Ghost Spider. "Hey hey!" he holds his hands up. "We were just defending ourselves! That chicka over there, she attacked us!" His bleeding shoulder still has a kunai stabbed into it, reducing his movement, and he has a solid trail of blood staining his shirt.

Tetsuya Wakao has posed:
Tetsuya continues going away. He glances over his shoulder, holding his head where the gun smacked more than the headbutt. He's taken those before, but seriously. That gun hurt!

He does pause slightly at the question as to who he is. Honestly, that's a loaded question. It takes him a full ten seconds to weigh all of the options nearly before he answers.

"A friend today." Well, it's an honest one. Then he disappears as he shimmers seemingly in the air, continuing to walk off it seems. There's still a slight ripple in the air, but he's definitely... gone?

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    "Do you sincerely believe yourself in a position to haggle?" the Shadow asks pointedly. "The counteroffer would be to leave to you the tender mercies of the 'Meanies' who are already more than a little upset with the loss of their leader."

    Gwen gets a brief glance and a nod - and a slight tightening of the eyes that probably suggests a brief smile underneath that scarf. "Likewise," comes the reply. "No coincidence, I assure you -- I was pursuing a lead that led me here. It would appear to have paid off."

    Another moment's consideration, then they look back at June. "Perhaps another offer. You surrender to the Spider instead, and answer her questions about why you were here and who paid you, and she'll see you safe to wherever you wish to be--" At this point, the Shadow's gaze turns on those Meanies still conscious. "And I will investigate Joe's death, if you likewise agree to hold your peace for now."

    Blazing blue eyes narrow. "Do not mistake this for a Bat's justice or a Spider's compassion; what you scum do to each other matters little to me. But from what I saw of the body, your leader wasn't shot, stabbed, or even beaten to death with some blunt instrument, but strangled -- and that degree of assassination is not your style. Which means someone else is sending a message, and I intend to find out who."

    A gloved hand indicates the street the cops drove away in. "It's still more justice than you deserve -- and the best offer you're likely to get."

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Taking note of the state of the various 'Meanies', two stabbed, the others upset with their boss's death. Their car on the verge of getting stolen... Gwen lets out a brief sigh and points towards the street, "You are lucky to not get a beat up today. Well, not more than you did. So take your car and *go*, and you can take the Shadow's word in which they will investigate this." she tells them. Nope, she isn't about to stand about to watch June blow up some car, no matter if it belongs to a gang!

"And I am not asking twice." See? Ghost Spider can be mean too. She even folds her arms together as if expecting them to do as they are told. The alternative is the 'gang-bouquet' though ... and they know it.

The Shadow's talk with the masked June gets her attention and she tilts her head to the side, "You know that one?"

June Connor has posed:
    June gets a rather drunk looking grin on her face. One play left. "Oh, come on, Shadow," she says. "You think I don't know who you are under there?" She glances over at the Meanies, and at Ghost Spider. "I do my digging as well, about a certain plane crash," she says. "We might not be on different sides, you know."

    "Come on, just a car? And we can talk?" Yes, the answer is she does think she's in position to haggle, and despite her normal demeanor, she doesn't lack her childish appearance with the question. Clearly something that's gotten her out of more than one situation in the past.

    The Meanies aren't waiting for the discussion to finish, but instead are loading up in the car. June nervously watches them load up, hoping to get an assist before they are gone.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    "She was part of a band of second-rate ninjas that ambushed a smuggling operation I was investigating" the Shadow replies to Gwen. "She was the only one sensible enough to start running when I showed up."

tAnd then June plays what... might not have been the wisest bluff. "Tell me," the Shadow replies, those eyes suddenly blazing into June's, seeming to drill their way straight past her skin and into her soul, laying bare every sin, every petty thought. "Can you imagine what I might do to protect my secrets? What I might already have done?"

    A moment to let that sink in, memories of a man in a cell screaming himself hoarse and trying to hide from everything springing to the forefront of her mind unbidden. "You've heard my offer. Take it, or try to leave on your own -- as far as you'll get with this gunshot wound."

Gwen Stacy has posed:
As the Meanies start loading up on the car they receive a brief nod of approval from Ghost Spider. Off you go! She steps further away from them, padding closer to where the Shadow and June are, hands trailing to rest on her hips. "Second-rate ninja eh? Ugh .." but then June goes with the bomb drop about implying she knows who the Shadow is. It makes Gwen wince under that mask.

"Are you really sure it's worth it? For a car?" She points out. "It's even manual stick. Whoever drives manual these days? Geeez.." See? Gwen understands June's plight. Manual shift sucks!

And while she might not go and leave someone to bleed out on the street she chooses to stay silent and let the Shadow handle that part of the talk with June. She isn't going to meddle in case the girl actually knows the shadow's identity!

June Connor has posed:
    "I accomplished my mission," June corrects. "And yeah, you killed like, how many of those guys?" she asks. "I got no questions on what you'll do." She glances over to Gwen. "At least, if there wasn't White Spider over there watchin," she says. Is she trying to play them against each other? "They are getting-"

    BOOOOOOOM!

    The car, half a block down the street, turns suddenly into a billowing fireball, causing June to wrench free and fall to the ground on her rear, eyes wide. She could've been in that thing when it went off! Behind the ski mask, her green eyes are wide with terror. Clearly, this isn't what she thought was going to happen. "Holy...shiiiit," she mutters slowly. You know, that first option is sounding pretty good right now, as scraps of the metal roof start raining down on the street.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    "It would seem as if your employer didn't intend for you to live to collect your pay," the Shadow comments almost neutrally even as burning shrapnel starts raining down. "Last chance, would-be onmitsu. My mercy, her mercy-" a nod towards Gwen, "Or theirs. Choose."

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Gwen is already moving way before the car explodes. Darn danger sense! She twists her body and gestures. "DOWN!", she jumping to the side as the car explodes, hands on the floor, legs apart, almost like a spider. Eyes are wide under the mask and then she looks over to the other two. A frown on her features. "What the hell..." a glance over to the Shadow, then to June, "If you know what's best for you you'd better answer what the Shadow wants. And then disappear." she says.

"Like they said, this was meant to catch you." Seems like there won't be a chance of putting Gwen against the Shadow tonight! Explosions tend to unite people or something.

As another piece of shrapnel lands nearby she gets back up to her full height. "So how is it going to be?"

June Connor has posed:
    "Yeah, I'll go with you. Both?" she suggests, pointing her fingers at each of them, then crossing. "I gotta talk to you anyway, Shadow." She says it as if this was a side factor. She gets to her feet, wincing at her shoulder. "Damn that hurts," she grunts. "When I get ahold of that asshole, I swear I'm gonna shove my foot so far up his ass he'll taste my toejam."

Natasha Cranston has posed:
"A wise choice," the Shadow comments, then beckons Gwen with a twist of the head before turning and walking away, one arm still around June's bicep. After a few steps, June and Gwen feel a vague sense of something pass over them, a slight feeling as if just a bit of color has been leeched out of the world, noises becoming just a bit duller... And behind them, sudden exclamations of confusion and not a little fear from the remaining gangers, who seem to have lost all track of where they are.

    The Shadow leads both companions - both the willing one and the reluctant one - to the end of the block, where a battered looking taxi cab is just pulling up to the curb, passenger door already open...