8271/Technology, Robots, Magic, Demons... all we need is a gorilla for the Trifeca!

Technology, Robots, Magic, Demons... all we need is a gorilla for the Trifeca!
Date of Scene:	16 October 2021
Location:	The workshop of the Gotham Cable Company... largely taken up by a giant robot cat.
Synopsis:	A contest of strength and speed Catman vs. Mairin and the winner: Mairin
Cast of Characters:	Thomas Blake, Mairin Moran, Satana Hellstrom, Michael Hannigan
Tinyplot:	Theme_of_the_Crime

---

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake has not practiced his gadgetry skills in a while (shame!) He dd do final assembly of Fluffy and maintain it, years ago. No need to hire a big mouth tech to spill Fluffy's details and weaknesses to Batman. He wonders offhand where Mairin is today?

A workbench holds a very large capacitor and a small cylindrical device linked with cables. Thomas lowers his welding mask and activates the smaller device.

<Sazakazow!>

"Goddamit!" The insulated glove he wore is peeled, smoking, off his hand. He waves the smoke away and looks at the half-melted capacitor...and shoves it quickly into a pile of ruined capacitors. He glares at the small device, then at its larger twin sitting on a nearby table. "Satana! Where are you? Are you chasing the director again? I told you leave him alone. Stop making the crew have accidents. SATANA!" He lifts the visor and prepares to yell again... or maybe he should try summoning her? Nah. Last time he drew the circle with a Sharpie, couldn't erase it and wound up sleeping under the couch... when she hit him with it.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin walks into the lab still in her Columbia University lab coat. No sense in taking it off when she's just going from one job to her pet project, to her side job. Maybe when she heads to her night classes she'll actually have the time to think about what she's wearing. Just not enough hours in the day, but that's the price you pay for persuing your dreams. Whatever else she's wearing isn't much to note, except for a single new addition. A necklace with a little protection charm on it that she got from Nettie's shop. It's not a *real* protection circle... But it's a good reminder.

    "Mr. Blake," she calls out with an edge of dissaproval from just inside the door as she spies him. "*What* are you doing? You better not be messing with her power systems or by god I will--"

Satana Hellstrom has posed:
Speak of the demoness...

"I'm not touching anybody!" Satana says, blatantly lying, given that she's got one of the extras at her side, very obviously under her spell (well, obvious to those who know what she is). An extra that's looking a little ... shrunken. She must have been a mite peckish.

"Now what's all that racket about? Explosions and shouting. OK, both are really nice sounds, but when you start sweet-talking me..." God. Damn. It. "...I know something's up. Did your little toy hurt you again?"

Her eyes turn over to Mairin, giving her a thorough once-over. Then turn away dismissively. "I didn't think the plain mousy types were what you were into. Congratulations on expanding your tastes."

The face turns to Mairin again, smiling a smile so false they could be on the front of a Hollywood starlet's chest. "Hello there, I'm Satana Hellstrom. Star of this picture. Well, I will be once I get the director thinking my way a bit more."

That paired with a shake of the hips. Because she's subtle. Oh-so-subtle. Like a Mack Truck in a glassworks.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake takes off his visor and gives Satana a kiss and he herds the extra to the door and slips him a c-note. "Go take the day off." The man leaves and he not so subtly gives Satana the Star a knee in the behind.

"I... this is Dr (is she? Ehh) Mairin Moran. She is repairing and refitting Fluffy. And the only time the damned cat hurt me was when you were driving... hey do you think you could get that Ghost Rider guy to drive Fluffy for a couple pictures? That would be metal."

He turns to Mairin and his smile seems genuine. "Satana doesn't like people to be unsure who the alpha female is in the room. She'll warm up to you. She's really a dear... and no, I didn't hook these things up to Fluffy. I /acquired/ two micro reactors. I was hooking them up to some capacitors to see how much oomph they have... the answer so far is... too much. They keep melting shit." He catches Satana eying the extra as he stumbles out and immediately grabs her for a cuddle and some kisses.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin blinks, her defiant posture deflating just slightly as she takes in Satana, and the extra, and then back to Satana. But it returns with a vengence as she looks back to Thomas, attempting to ignore Satana completely. "Yes... Dr. Moran. And if you'd just left them for me I could have hooked them up to a properly calibrated power meter and *told* you how much they can produce."

    She stalks over to the reactors to give them a look over, and to not have to look at the two people just snogging in the middle of the room. "Where did you get them?" The question is curt, still angry. Is she ever *not* angry around Thomas?

Satana Hellstrom has posed:
"He bought them," Satana says with an insincere expression. "I saw him."

She regards the large cat robot with a frown. "Is the problem that it won't move?" she asks, releasing (and forcing her release from, at need) Thomas and walking up toward Fluffy. Her hand strokes the metal of the machine as she looks at it ... with her eyes closed.

"I can have it moving, Thomas. Why didn't you ask me? I'll need a few ingredients if you want it moving a bit longer than a minute or so, mind."

She opens her eyes and flicks them between Thomas and Mairin. "Whose is this primitive thing anyway?"

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake turns on Satana. "I am sick of people trashing my robot! It is nine years old! I..." He stops and suddenly, passionately kisses the red haired temptress, molding himself to her. Perhaps giving a little soul energy, as she -was- hungry and a snack usually put her in a good mood.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin whirls around at Satana's words, her blue eyes positively alight. "Who the *hell* do you think you are?" She stalks over to Satana. "keep your hands *off* my cat!" She punctuates 'off' by slapping the woman's hand off of fluffy, like beaming a raquetball into the corner for a game point.

    "What are you even doing in here?" She turns to Thomas, "What *is* she doing here. This is a lab, not some--" And now they're kissing again.

    "*Mr.* Blake. Kindly take your girlfriend and leave so I can actually *work*."

Satana Hellstrom has posed:
Satana was relaxing, feeding a bit off of Thomas and letting that ecstasy flow through her with an obvious shudder.

Then Mairin touched her. Slapped her hand away.

Thomas feels the trouble brewing under him. The shudder turns to tension. The sigh turns into a choked off growl. Without any visible effort whatsoever, Satana lifts Thomas and places him away from her, turning then to face Mairin.

"The little mouse has spirit," she purrs.

What she's doing now is not smiling. It's baring teeth. Like a predator. Briefly Satana closes her eyes and sniffs Mairin's direction.

"The little one wants to tinker with technomancy, but doesn't know the first thing of how to do it." She places her finger over her lips and turns her head and eyes to the upper left. "Shall we teach her a lesson?" she wonders aloud.

Her eyes then focus on Mairin like they're laser cannons focusing on an invading fleet.

"Yes," she decides. "We shall."

Eyes close. Words in a foul-sounding tongue fall from her lips. Her arms raise, fingers flexing in tortuous positions, like mudras from Hell. (What a coincidence!) Then her arms drop ...

...and Fluffy moves. The robot cat's eyes glow a hideous red as the head turns to stare at Mairin. Mechanical sounds grind inside, like a cat's growl done by a construction site. A paw rises, ready to strike the good doctor where she stands, razor-sharp claws readied.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Anger drains from Mairin's eyes, to be replaced, for a moment, by terror. She knows this. This is magic. And for a split second all she can see is Nettie yelling at her for being stupid. Mairin the puppy. Mairin the kittin. Mairin the bunny. Too scared to do anything but run. But in that momnet as the cat's paw raises, she realises... What can she really do?

    Something. She can do something. Anything. And the terror flickers out, replaced by steel determination as she takes one stupid, rediculous step toward Satana...

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake says very simply, "Fuck!" Then he's grabbing Mairin. He leaps, workbench to Fluffy's paw then to an exposed beam which he grabs, holding Mairin very tight. possibly distractingly tight.

"Knock it off. You're both brilliant... and pretty, and the last time you tried a working like this, boo, I had to kill the waffle iron with a chair. Remember, boo? No waffles that day. We ate toast. Aaaaand I do not wish this robot damaged. It's kind of like your giraffe. Please. And as for you, roboticist-sweetie, /don't/ slap people's hands. It's rude. You should shake and make up." He emphasizes 'shake' by shaking Mairin a little. Twenty feet in the air.

Satana Hellstrom has posed:
There's a reason why Thomas is a good foe even to the likes of Batman. He's strong. He's fast. He's decisive.

And he just saved Mairin's life as the clawed paw slices through the space Mairin had only just barely vacated, claws scoring the floor deeply. Satana, still steaming, follows the progress of the pair, and the cat, too, turns its attention, it's mechanical butt wriggly-squatting in the way only a cat can, ready to leap up at its prey.

Tension mounts for a short time as the cat prepares its leap.

Then Satana laughs. It's false, and so obviously false it's intended as a message, though who that message is for and what its actual contents are is not clear.

"Why so serious, Thomas?" she asks, grinning broadly, eyes boring holes in Mairin's. "I was just showing the witch wannabe how to do the job right. I had no intention of harming her."

Of course she didn't. She wanted the cat too. The scoring in the flooring gives mute testimony as the cat's eyes stop glowing and the robot stops moving.

"You can come down now. I'm so terribly sorry that my little jest panicked you so."

Not a lot of people can talk down a Hell Lord who's pissed. Thomas has magic of his own.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    "Let me down.." Mairin grumbles as she watches the 'life' leave fluffy's eyes. But there isn't a lot of conviction in it. Probably because twenty feet is a long way to drop. "If you want me to work on the cat, Mr. Blake. You will need to ensure that this lab is a conducive environment in which to work. And that includes a lack of...." she motions to Satana and seems about to insult her again, but bites her tongue.

    When she is, fnally placed back on the ground, she gathers what dignity she can and walks back to the workbench, her hands touching things without really knowing what they're doing for several moments. A keen eye would even see them shaking slightly.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake dusts his hands or and says, "You call me Mr. Blake one more time like that and you are going over my knee. I'm talking to /her/, Satana. Not you. Dr..., you want a shop conducive to work? Get the pole out of your butt. Satana and I are far better as friends than enemies. Relax. Have a few laughs. I won't dock you. Good grief... " He throws his hands up, or maybe was about to throttle a certain bunny-like person but relented. "I might even buy you lunch. Somewhere nice I mean."

Satana Hellstrom has posed:
The plus: Satana isn't trying to kill Mairin any longer. The minus: cat-like (there's a reason why Thomas can figure her where others get eaten), she's decided that she's not getting enough love and affection here so it's time to move on.

"You hired her?" she asks archly. "Well tell the help, next time, to show more respect, Thomas. Take it out to lunch. I'm going to get proper food."

That's ... not a good thing to hear. And interference ... seems unwise given Satana's current demeanour. Looks like the prop department will have another startlingly realistic dessicated corpse...

Satana, oozing offended dignity, passes one more appraising glance at Mairin, though this time more thoughtful than dismissive. Apparently Thomas holding Mairin in regard is giving her reason to think twice before erasing her. She then flounces out the door after a blown kiss to Thomas.

Radiating mad sexuality. Just to piss Mairin off, if she's judged the woman right.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin stands there at the workbench, her back to the others, until Satana leaves. Then leans forward, her hands braced against the table top as she stares down at the reactor, not seeing it at all.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake lets Mairin do her work, gives her space and plays with Fluffy. This involves him throwing a basket ball at the robot and the robot batting it back to him. Fluffy does a decent enough job, after Blake yells at him to retract the claws. You can break a lot of balls that way.

Fluffy bats one a little too high. Thomas jumps for it, sheer instinct and comes down on an empty work table next to Mairin. He rests his head on his chin, propped on an elbow and says, "How are you doing?" What? Fall? Who fell? He meant to do that obviously!

Mairin Moran has posed:
    It takes a while for Mairin to get her nerves under control. Coming inches from death will do that. But eventually, while Mr. Blake is playing with fluffy, she manages to pack all of that emotional trauma away for examination later, and starts to examine the reactor units Mr. Blake 'aquired'.

    So, by the time he drops down on the adjacent work table, she back in full, professional scientist mode. "I need to know exactly where you got these, what they were designed for, and where I can find the specs on them, Mr. Blake. I will not hook random hardware up to Fluffy simply because you feel 'More power good.'"

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake gives a yipe as he rolls near a soldering iron and jumps off nearly on Mairin. He hops off the table. That? A minor flub. He was getting off anyway. He steps closer to Mairin and drops his voice low. He speaks softly, "First of all, my name is Thomas. Using it does not guarantee I will sleep with you. You're very talented. You're very smart and I can tell you are very frightened, even before you pissed off Satana. Let me tell you about her... she forgot this already. treat her right and she'll be sweet as pie. Anyway. I'll deal with her. But you're... scared. Scared all the time. I can see it. Remember my awful view of predators and prey? I can tell one from the other. You are not a predator. You're trying to be, but have not a clue. Well, lose your fear. Relax. NOTHING is going to hurt you here, including me. I am taking a benevolent interest in you." He smiles warmly down at her, then grabs a stool so they are on eye level.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin pauses her work and turns to Thomas, her expression flat and level. "You're right Mr.--" She takes a deep breath. "Thomas. I am not a predator. I don't go hunting down othrs to exert my will on them simply because I'm hungry or because I can. I am a scientist. I have devoted my life to learning how to help people. How to protect them *from* the predators. Or to help them survive after they attack." She pauses, perhaps considering. "As for my fear, I wouldn't let it concern you. This world is *filled* with things to fear. Waking up in this city is a cause for fear. What matters isn't whether you're afraid. It's what you do with it. And right now, it is getting in the way of my work."

    She motions to the reactors. "So... What are they, where did you get them, and what do you know about them?"

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake says, "Thank you, Mairin. So... if I am hearing you right, everything scares you. That's sad. Also inaccurate. There's a difference between being scared and being a coward, you know? I've been scared. relatively recently, in fact." He fishes in his pocket and pulls out a thumb drive. "Here are the specs for the reactors. Try to get them from me." He closes his hand on the small device. Still smiling. Maybe he's baring his teeth. Hard to tell now. He did save her from imminent physical trauma. "As the where they're from you'd figure out soon enough. They're Latverian. They make good coffee too I hear."

Mairin Moran has posed:
    She sighs, pinching her nose as she stands up to walk over and grab a driver tool. "Thomas, I'm sure your antics are a hit with the ladies," She says, her voice equal parts bored and exasperated. "But I have work to do. You do understand work?" She gestures to Fluffy. "I told you I was going to make this better than ever. And these reactors would go a long way to that, yes. However, I'm not familiar enough with Latverian tech to just hook thm up. They could fry the entire power system and set us all the way to nearly square one."

    She walks back to the table, and sets the driver on top. "So either you give me the specs, Or a take them apart and try to figure them out."

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake frowns. "These aren't antics. I tell you what. I will give you the drive right now and that's it. You can be Dr. Moran and I will answer to Mr. Blake, or, Mairin, lovely brilliant, stick up your back, Mairin, you can get it from me. If you do, you go home with the smaller reactor. I'm sure you can use it for all manner of shenanigans." As he speaks he pads ever so softly up behind her, till she can sense the air he displaces, silently.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    There is a pause, heavy with those last words spoken from directly behind her. Mairin closes her eyes and one hand reaches up to clasp around the pendant hanging from her neck. She really needs that reactor. More than Thomas could possibly know. But she also knows there is no possible way she can get it from him. She's seen him move.

    She turns around, still holding the pendant, but looking in Thomas' eyes. "We both know I can't get it from you. You're stronger and faster. Any attempt is futile. What are you trying to prove? That I'm prey?"

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake looms over her fairly well. "Oh. Gee. I'm stronger and faster, and meaner (don't forget meaner). You give up. That simple." He pokes her on the collarbone, giving every indication yes, he could shove her back with one finger. "Even prey puts up a fight! You don't want to be a predator, fine. But... for unholy fuck's sake, try not to be eaten!"

He withdraws the finger. Now he weaves back and forth before her, almost like a lion pacing or stalking. "You're so brilliant. Figure something out. Or do you give up everything so easily when things are not tidy and civilized. You're supposed to be from Gotham... pfft!" All said very calmly. Then the hand holding the drive opens, holding it so close. "I'll put one hand behind my back. That good enough for you... squirt?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
And the area around the building seems to get busier and busier. Here on unrelated and yet distantly related business, a pony-tailed musician ends up making his way over to the workshop area that has been designated for the various tech work needed for the Theme of the Crime production. Nick Drago comes to the open doorway, glancing in to see cat robot, and Thomas apparently giving that kidnapping victim a pep talk of sorts? He lingers near the doorway, knocking on the frame to let them know they're not alone. "Hey guys."

Alas, there is no costume this time around. Just pretty nice, higher end street clothes.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin positively fumes. The anger in her eyes is almost palpable as he mocks her. "Fine," she spits out. She knows how this is going to end. But Gossamer is worth whatever humiliation he plans to put her through. Better to just get it over with.

    She lunges for the hand holding the thumb drive like she would lunge for a speeding raquetball. She's stronger and faster than she looks, years of sports will do that. But it's nothing compared to Thomas and she knows it going in.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake gives Nick a warning glare. That is his mistake. Mairin is fast. He is faster but sometimes even he screws up. The warning glare takes but a moment and Mairin is fast. He sees her slim fingers close on the device, feels her trimmed and so practical nails scratch his hard palm. He grabs the device.

He, however, has her tiny hand entirely in his very large hand.

"Hmmm. Well what we have here is a gray area. You seem to have the device, but it is still in my hand and I seem to have you. Pardon me..." He takes his other hand from behind his back and puts it around Marin, picking her up with no apparent effort and walks over to Mike.

"We need an impartial judge here. She was trying to take a device from my hand. He has the device in her hand but I have her hand in mine. I have her in fact. Dr. Mairin, If you try biting, I bite back. I advise you to enjoy the ride." He lifts till she's about a foot over him and she sits in the crook of his arm.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Nick blinks as he watches Thomas scoop up Mairin and carry her over towards him. Stepping through the doorway, he moves a few feet from it so it's not quite as visible what the other two are doing to anyone walking by outside.

He looks between Thomas and then to Mairin. "Impartial?" Nick repeats, looking between the two. "...Did I walk in on a competition?"

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin struggles as much as she possibly can, for a good ten seconds. But it quickly becomes apparent that there's no use and she's only making herself look rediculous. So she stops. Instead, she closes her eyes, finds her center, brings her Will from her mind, into her heart and focuses on it.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake explains, "We had a wager... stop I'm talking. We had a wager. To win she had to take a thumb drive from my hand. She grabbed the device but I grabbed her hand so technically it is still... it is still in my hand. Mairin are you all right?" He abruptly lets go of her hand to touch her cheek very gently. "Mairin... please don't have a stroke..." Concern tinges his voice.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Nick watches Mairin dangling off the ground before looking over to Thomas as he provides the explanation. When Mairin grows still and Thomas reacts, Nick frowns. The musician looks over to Mairin, and upon determining her to play possum, he chuckles.

"Well you made judging easy. You let go. She's still holding on to it. So, she won."

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Her eyes blink open as Thomas touches her cheek. "Being held by you isn't enough to get me *that* excited," she says flatly. It's not the exact quote... but she doesn't figure Leia would mind her altering it slightly. "Now I believe you have something that belongs to me." She holds up her clenched fist, thumb drive barely visible.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake murmurs in her ear, "Not the way I'd hold you to get you excited. He does set her down, butt first on the work table. "Here you go, next to the other cryogenically cooled devices. Fair's fair.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Nick looks between the two, uncertain if this wa just some type of competition or if he interrupted some odd flirting between the two. Although he had figured the girl was-

He shakes his head, looking over to Thomas, "Okay, well, was just over here doing some voice over work and they mentioned you were over here so thought I'd stop by to say hey. I'll just let you two get back to...whaver you two were doing together."

Mairin Moran has posed:
    Mairin hops off the table and spends a moment straightening her clothes. "Hello again," she says cheerily to Nick. "I'm sorry you had to get dragged into this. But please... Stay." It's sincere, but not in that, 'I need protection' kind of way.

    Then she turns on her heels and walks over to a computer to plug the drive in and take a look. She does, however, spare a look back to Thomas, and it actually isn't filled with hate.

    As the computer comes up and the files load, she swivels back to look at him "What *were* we doing?" she asks, one eyebrow raised. "What was your point, Thomas?"

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake shrugs. "If you have to ask, I obviously didn't make my point. Congrats. I'm going to the cafeteria to get a beer. You guys want anything?" The cafeteria doesn't sell beer some might say. They do not know Catman.

Mairin Moran has posed:
    She frowns, then calls out to his back. "Thomas!" And her voice, for the first time is not only civil, but warm. "Thank you for the reactor. And for encouraging me to stick up for myself."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Nick looks between the two. Between Marin's request to stay and Thomas's declaration that he was heading to the cafeteria, he's apparently got a decision to make and without the proper information in hand, he figures whatever decision he makes will be the wrong one.

Being one is already his friend, he gives a nod to Mairin before turning to follow after Thomas, "Hey, Thomas. Wait up..."