8656/Assault Interrupted

Assault Interrupted
Date of Scene:	11 November 2021
Location:	Brooklyn, New York
Synopsis:	An attempted mugging is interrupted by a trio of unrelated heroes.
Cast of Characters:	Leonardo, Roland Livingston, Natasha Cranston

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Leonardo has posed:
At eleven minutes before eleven post meridiem on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 2021, the still relatively busy streets of Brooklyn are being watched over by a sword-carrying terrapin wearing a blue bandana and minimal belts and padding.

Solo patrols having become the normal for Leonardo. He's tracking a pair of shifty seeming youths who, like the ninja turtel himself, are sticking to the shadows. These human predators have stationed themselves in an alley close to a bar where foot traffic will pass by but not be sufficient in quantity to provide those who head in their direction the protection of larger numbers of people.

When the likely muggers see a potential target, Leo sees the change in demeanor in the teens and silently shifts on his perch roughly above the deplorable delinquents as he prepares to drop down and stop the assault before they can actually engage in their planned action.

Roland Livingston has posed:
Not one for patrolling just for the sake of patrolling, Roland is currently enjoying his time on the rooftops practicing transitioning from building to building by making tremendous leaps. It's a good way to keep in shape and the practice moving about the city might be necessary to his ability to hunt his enemies efficiently, now that he lives in a city. He's wearing a dark gray sweat suit and matching sneakers as he traverses the rooftops, almost making it look easy, though he has started to work up a bit of a sweat.

"One must wonder if jumping from roof to roof constitutes trespassing, what with all the heroes doing it constantly," the young Englishman says out loud to himself in his upper class accent. He shrugs his shoulders and resumes his jumping, keeping his muscles from cooling down before he's done with his exercises.

As he crosses an alley he looks down to see what might be visible there and spots the pair with likely ill intent and frowns. Hitting the roof opposite he rolls smoothly and returns to his feet to walk back towards the edge of the building so he can get a better look. Little does the young man realize, but he happens to be quite close to the blue bandana wearing turtle. So he talks to himself again a little, at a whisper volume, "You two look like trouble." He rotates his head on his neck and his arms in their shoulder sockets to keep himself warm and loose, ready to intervene if he sees something untoward about to happen.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Her grandfather never had much use for patrols in his day; he much preferred to let his Network bring him the information he needed, or to investigate some specific target rather than run around rooftops looking for trouble. Natasha, on the other hand, has found some appreciation for the practice -- it's relatively rare that she actually catches someone in the act, although the reaction when it does occur is... Gratifying.

    Besides, the practice itself is exhilirating -- urban running usually is when you're moving at speed, especially when said speed exceeds professional athletes'. It's also good practice; there's quite a difference in the techniques of moving soundlessly slowly and those required to make as little sound as possible while -- take this random example -- pushing off a ledge to clear six meters in a running jump across an alley without breaking stride.

    The glittering in her eyes betray the manic grin hidden by her scarf, and right now, with no one to see she does not care, she just enjoys the wind blowing past her face.

    All things come to their end, sadly, and a glance down into the alley she just jumped across spots two people who are spectacularly blatantly up to no good. She slows her pace and returns to the ledge, checking the area for the most efficient way to return to street level without the two would-be muggers noticing her.

Leonardo has posed:
Perched on a ledge below the edge of the roof, Leonardo happens to be directly below Roland when he whispers to himself. Such a position makes it nigh-impossible for him to not notice the words to which he silently nods.

Then there's the odd shadow cast across his position, deepning those in which he is lurking: that of a figure with a hint of an outfit from another time (seriously, who wears hats anymore?!). There's nothing there when he looks directly at where the figure should be but... there's definately something up there.

Alright, so there's a potential audience but there's also a young woman about to be assaulted by the two hooligans... no, not two, there's another pair trailing behind her also. They're better organized than his first observations lead him to believe. Four on one... he can take them; but they may have others with them beyond that. Plus there's the two mystery observers but there's no protecting the young woman if no actions are taken so he pushes off his ledge and drops the sixteen feet to the ground landing in crouch with a soft thump that is apparently missed by the toughs as they chuckle at each other while drawing and popping out the blades of previously concealed switchblades.

The distinctive *schting* of his drawing one of his swords is /not/ missed by them however and, as they turn, he says, "Shouldn't you fellows be getting ready for bed?" in an intentionally gruff tone.

Roland Livingston has posed:
When someone drops down to the ground below him and draws a sword, Roland presses his lips together tightly and actually starts smiling. This is getting very interesting. The young adventurer takes note of the other two approaching the group from behind and moves to intercept them. He makes his way down the wall by first grabbing the bars on a window about halfway down, then dropping the rest of the way to land in a crouch. Getting up to his full height he says, "I'm afraid you fellows may need to rethink your line of work."

The Englishman starts walking towards the pair, looking quite ready to mix it up with them, "Should have brought my sword, but I imagine my fists will do the trick."

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Clever. Two beaters, to startle the prey and herd it into the trap; two 'hunters' to make the 'catch'.

    Natasha spots the other two muggers almost at the same time as she notices Leonardo making his entrance. Both those events serve to make her decision easier -- and then Roland's entrance comment gives her the perfect cue.

    A leap, a shimmy, a twist of will -- and the sound of the fire escape rattling in the breeze gradually morphs into sinister laughter as shadows appear to flow along the wall, out of the alley, rising up off the surface behind the two beaters, shifting, twisting from two dimensions into three in a way that would make Maurits Cornelis Escher attempt to swallow his own eyeballs... And a tall figure in hat and greatcoat looms behind the would-be hunters.

    "Fortunately, blades will not be necessary," the Shadow responds in a voice that doesn't sound like it should be coming from a human throat.

Leonardo has posed:
First they see the mutant turtle. Then the Brit is there. Then... there's a true WTF expression on their faces as The Shadow's presence becomes known. None of which causes even a flicker of reaction on the visible features of the armed ninja turtle glaring at the pair.

As if deciding at once the two dash off in different directions: one heads away from their former target and their compatriats while the other runs off in another more roughly towards the target and allies than not.

That second one waves to the other pair and yells, "Run!" as he swipes his switchblade at the arm of the erstwhile target cutting the young woman's coat for sure... her arm? Maybe, she sure screams loudly enough that she might have been injured.

"Damn!" Leo curses under his breath while taking a moment to consider what direction to go. There's more thugs in one direction and so that's the turn he takes as he calls out, "Are you actually hurt miss," towards the assaulted woman who responds by screeching in terror at the appearance of young, freakishly humanoid, sword-wielding reptile.

Roland Livingston has posed:
The guy that tried to cut his victim starts to flee, but Roland doesn't let him get very far. When he moves his reactions are quite fast and his ability to outpace the villain is uncanny. He'll unleash a powerful punch at the base of his prey's skull in an attempt to drop him all at once, the sound of the fist connecting is quite loud, "You made a mistake, bandit." His accent is definitely upper class English.

When he gets hit the mugger drops to the ground, looking quite unconscious. While the others flee Roland studies them, making sure that none appear ready to engage the heroes or the person they're protecting. He also takes note of the other two adventurers. One is a turtle. One is a Shadow. A terrifying Shadow, at that. Hell of a workout he'd engaged in. "Shadow Person. Samurai Turtle," the young man greets his new acquaintances. Then he turns towards the frightened woman, "Don't be afraid. Do you need me to take a look at your wound?"

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    These muggers weren't the only ones who knew how to plan a hunt; Natasha chose her own entry position so that three of the four possible avenues of escape passed through her reach, and the Shadow is a great deal quicker than something human of that size has any right to be.

    One ganger finds himself grabbed by the collar just as he thought he'd gotten past the figure, and the Shadow yanks him off his feet in the same spinning low leg sweep that knocks down one of the others, sending them colliding together on the pavement before standing back up to look Roland over with uncannily blazing blue eyes that seem to look right through him, weighing his soul and judging the balance in an instant before inclining their head.

    "... Merely 'Shadow' will suffice," they reply, then nods at Leo. "The young lady has had enough shocks this evening; perhaps the one of us who looks the most human is best suited to seeing her to safety."

Leonardo has posed:
Having had a similar thought himself, Leo dashes past the clubber he glances at her arm. Seeing no visible blood he continues on after one of the beaters, angling towards his intended target.

With a jump and a waved blade Leo guides the kid into a position that allows him to easily sweep the thug's feet out from beneath him. As the hoodlum falls backwards and hits the ground his breath is knocked out of him and Leonardo holds him in place with the blade of his sword meer inches from the other teen's neck.

Roland Livingston has posed:
"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Shadow," the young human says before touching himself on the chest. "Roland Livingston, at your service. I must say that you're quite terrifying. I'm very glad you're on my side."

Then he's studying the woman's arm, checking to make sure she's actually unharmed. "That villain ruined your sleeve, but you appear to be otherwise unharmed, Miz. Why don't you go back inside and call the police? I'll try to keep any more of the aggressors from escaping before the constabulary can apprehend them."

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    "She might feel more at ease with an escort to safety," the Shadow points out. "I believe we can keep these," a sweep of a gloved hand indicates the unconscious, groaning, and pinned bodies on the ground "From going anywhere until law enforcement arrives."

    A glance at the young woman. "Safe travels, Miss - but do mind your surroundings a tad more next time."

Leonardo has posed:
At Roland's suggestion, the young woman runs back into the club. Based on the sounds of approaching sirens shortly there after she must have called the police.

Between the Shadow and Roland, the other two thugs are also apprehended before the boys in blue arrive. Once the black and whites pull up Leonardo and Natasha both are gone: him with a egg shell smoke bomb obscuring line of sight for a moment and her... well, she apparently capitalized on the same and is gone faster than possible as the officers turn their vehicles' searchlights on the scene.

This leaves Roland and the victim to be talked to by the police who eventually let them both go while taking the apprehended young men off to face justice in the less than perfect legal system of the city of New York.