9162/Walking Through Hell's Kitchen

Walking Through Hell's Kitchen
Date of Scene:	18 December 2021
Location:	Hell's Kitchen
Synopsis:	Alexander and Morgan get some cocoa and kick some asses! Merry Christmas to all!
Cast of Characters:	Alexander Aaron, Morgan Finn

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Alexander Aaron has posed:
    For a time it had seemed like Christmas would be blissful and white and picturesque with the lovely tableau of a city with just a gentle dusting that might be reminiscent of all of those lovely movies and stories from ages past. The weather forecast had been good, and everyone was out and about on this last weekend before the big day.
    But then...
    The temperature warmed just enough so that the gentle snowfall became a mix of frozen rain and slurry that melted all the snow and coated some of the streets and the sidewalks with ice or slush. Not exactly as picturesque, and peoples' moods suffered for it, but still a good bit of cheer had been saved.
    Like when Alexander had tossed a text to Arthur mentioning he was going to do some last minute shopping and offered to let his cousin? Uncle? Morgan. To let his Morgan come along with. Which is likely how the two ended up here along the street walking past the shops. Alex had his big ole pea coat on with a blue ESU backpack over his shoulder. Hot cocoa had been secured and for now he was sipping it as he strolled.
    "So is Ms. Macintyre still at Happy Harbor?"

Morgan Finn has posed:
This is the neighborhood where Morgan spent the majority of his life. He's a Kitchen brat. Or maybe Kitchen rat. He grew up dirt poor and was shooed away from basically everywhere he went. But whatever. It didn't exactly scar him emotionally. The kid seems cheerful and happy to be out and about. He, too, has a hot cocoa but with mint added. Morgan likes mint.

He nods in response to Alexander's question. "Yeah. I haven't said two words to her, I don't think. Seen her around campus." He looks up at his older companion. "You ever miss bein' there at Crappy Harbor?" he asks, using the pejorative that some students use to refer to it.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    A slight laugh comes from Alexander, "Crappy Harbor, nice. That's new to me." His generation of oh a year or so ago apparently weren't as creatively gifted as Morgan's. Yet he strolls along with that steady gait. "When I was going there it was all new and weird. There was a vibe there were special folks running around, but also a lot of normal people."
    "Miss it though?" Alex chews on the inside of his cheek thoughtfully, then takes a sip of his cocoa while he walks. "I mean. Not really? I look back on some of those times and they were nice. Going to prom was fun, my date was... an Asgardian gal. Man what was her name?" His brow furrows in thought, as if the entire world had passed him by instead of just one year.
    Then he looks back, "One time I was dating a gal and she showed up at the school and that was crazy since some super villain guy trailed after her so there was a fight where we had to act all not super."

Morgan Finn has posed:
The young demigod quirks one corner of his mouth in a half-grin at Alexander's story. "An Asgardian girl? Shit, that must be hot. Dating a literal goddess." He shakes his head, dismissing the onslaught of hormonal thoughts. He replaces them with a nice drink of mint hot cocoa. Very wholesome.

"It's weird being there," Morgan continues. "By all accounts I should be pretty popular. I'm one of the best athletes in the school. I get along with everyone. I don't act like a dick to people. But there's this...distance. It's like, I'm not a superhero. I'm just a kid from the Kitchen. But now I'm Diana Prince's ward. Everyone knows /what/ I am. It's in the news sometimes. I ride home for breaks on the Invisible fucking Jet. And it's like that creates this artificial barrier." He shrugs. "I dunno. I'm rambling. Ignore me." He laughs a little nervously, like he's trying to dispel...whatever this is.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    Scritching his chin with thumb and forefinger, Alexander tilts his head sidelong towads Morgan as they walk, "You shouldn't let it bother you, the people who will be your friends eventually will come. Won't matter the circumstances around it." He stuffs his hand in his pocket as he strolls, gaze distancing.
    Another sip of cocoa as he steps around and to the side past some civilians wandering.
    "I know it sounds cliche, but be yourself. Though, of course. It helps if your self is awesome." His lip twists. Then out of nowhere he snaps his fingers, "Heidi, that was her name. I should call her and touch base."

Morgan Finn has posed:
Morgan is pretty wise for his age, but at the end of the day he /is/ fifteen. So he murmurs into his cocoa as he is about to take a drink, "You should call her and touch somethin'." It's a stupid, immature joke but Morgan looks up at Alexander pretty pleased with himself. He's never had a brother, and there can be no doubt he's starting to treat the older god like one.

The teen's gaze shifts to evaluate the people that he and Alexander has to maneuver around. Galatea has quite literally beaten situational awareness into him.

"I guess you're right. I worry about shit too much. I swear, sometimes I think I'm like 90 year old somehow."

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    There's an exhaled snort as Alexander casually reaches out and /pushes/ Morgan's shoulder, not hard, more just to break his stride and at most stumble a little bit. But no court in the world would convict him of malfeasance as the kid deserves it!
    "Better to be aware and think about the possibilities than to be blithe and wander through life." He gestures with a nod of his head to take the next right around the corner into the side street and he starts walking that way once they get there. "For a few years when I was feeling my oats, and figured I was all that, well I would just go through life like a battering ram. Doing what I wanted, when I wanted, and if people got in my way..."
    He shrugs with one shoulder.

Morgan Finn has posed:
The teen looks about as pleased as can be when Alexander shoves him. This is exactly the kind of male camaraderie he yearns for. As he stumbles he snakes out one hand and punches Alexander's shoulder.

"You were born into really big shoes," Morgan responds as he steadies his gait. THERE he is, the too-wise-for-his-years, sensitive listener. Maybe /that/ is the real reason he has a difficult time making real friends at Crappy Harbor. "There's no instruction manual for that. I mean, I'm not even a god and I feel it sometimes too, like this entitled sense that I'm better than them and they're lucky to have access to me." He mimics Alexander's one-shoulder shrug. "I don't know where that shit comes from and it freaks me out. It must be a thousand times worse for you."

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    Another dull snort is heard from Alexander, but the reprisal does not earn a reprisal in turn. They just keep on strolling. Though Alex gives him a squinty side-eye that is oh so foreboding. And totally made not so when he takes a sip of cocoa.
    "Yeah, that's the thing. My dad talks about it like we /are/ half entitled to being viewed as something apart. But then..." He lifts his empty hand and uncurls it to the side, gesturing casually. "He leaves Olympus and tells everyone to go screw, then decides to try to live the life of a mortal. So I think..."
    He tilts his head back toward Morgan as they walk, "It's a thing that just comes from... the situation. Our thoughts and our psyches are traveling down this path that's been traveled down before by a lot of other entities. Hopefully we can talk to our elders and whatever and avoid those pitfalls."
    His nose crinkles, "Then again maybe easy for us to say? Since we haven't lived a century yet. Maybe our points of view will change after we've seen the people we love pass with age." It's clear that Alex... has given this some thought.

Morgan Finn has posed:
"What does it mean to even be a god?" Morgans asks The Question. "From a distance, humans can't tell the difference between you and me. But I'm probably more like them than I am like you." His facial expression might suggest he's uneasy about this question, like it's something he's wanted to know for a long time but was afraid to ask. Blame it on the sugar rush from the cocoa.

After Alexander responds to that, Morgan glances behind him casually. "Are those dudes following us?" he asks. They made the same turn as us four times now."

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    The young Son of War doesn't look as he says simply, quietly, in answer to Morgan's question. "Yup, they are." Yet he keeps on strolling, though he does tilt back his cocoa to finish the last of it, swallowing twice, then tossing the empty into a nearby trash bin as they walk on by a bus stop near their path.
    "There are a lot of schools of thought about that. It'd be rude of me to go over all of them and deprive you of that journey yourself." He now places both his hands into the pockets of that heavy coat as he walks. "I can tell you what I believe. And it's not popular amongst our family. But I think we're..."
    A breath is taken as his eyes lift, as if digging for the right words. Then he presents them to Morgan, "We are anthropomorphic representations manifested from the cultural zeitgeist of Humanity. We exist because enough people believed we existed and there's a power in the minds of all mankind."
    He shrugs.

Morgan Finn has posed:
"Imma be real with you right now. I didn't understand about half the words in what you just said," Morgan responds. It's clear he's starting to get a bit edgy at the confirmation that they're being followed. He's definitely not nervous or scared just...edgy. He licks dry lips in the cold winter air.

"Why are they following us, d'you think? Do you know them? I don't know them. What should we do? Should we call for help? Should we ask them what they want?"

Finally, the teen demigod just stops and wheels around immediately. "Dudes, what's up? Why are you following us?" He glances up slyly at Alexander, then back to the guys. "I'm not into dudes if that's what this is about." He jerks a thumb at Alex. "But my friend here was just saying how he wants to branch out his experiences." Even under pressure, kid's gotta break balls.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    The conversation put on hold for now, the three men move on up and close the distance, not put off by the confrontation but apparently not wanting to shout down he side street. Though, to be fair, there aren't a lot of people around on that road with the old brownstones lining one side and a laundromat and liquor store on the other.
    Alexander, for his part, turns around and takes a step to the side, giving a little bit of room to Morgan and looking at the severely featured men rolling on up. One squints sidelong at Alex, then affixes that squint on Morgan.
    "Hey man, I need twenty bucks. You got that?" No explanation is given, no attempt to offer a reason, just the demand.

Morgan Finn has posed:
Surprisingly, a pleased smile blooms over Morgan's face. "Wait, what? Is this a mugging?" He looks over to Alexander. "Bro, we're being mugged." He seems really happy about this.

"K...tell you what Imma do. Imma give you twenty bucks..." He tugs some cash halfway out of his tight jeans pocket -- Diana just gave him some money to do Christmas shopping -- and tugs a twenty out. And it looks like there's plenty more in there, but he shoves it back down into the pocket. "...and you guys get something to eat. Lessee...Mom's Kitchen over on 48th and 9th is baller. 42nd Street Pizza is good. Uuuuummmmmmmm....OH! Totto Ramen on West 51st is amazing." He holds the twenty out.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    "Uh huh," It's clear the taller of the three isn't listening to what Morgan has to say, instead he steps forwards to /snatch/ the money out of Morgan's hand, then he makes a grab for the young demi-god's collar. "Actually gonna need all your money, man."
    The other two move on up with one of them starting to move around behind Morgan, looking to try and get a hold of his arm as if to keep him from running away, while the third advances on Alexander and holds his hands up as he pulls a knife and murmurs, "Hold up, wait your fuckin' turn." Apparently they're gonna grab Morgan's money, then Alexander's.
    "Nice shoes," Says the one looking to hold Morgan's arm. "Take 'em off."

Morgan Finn has posed:
"Bro-dude you shoulda been happy with the money cuz nobody takes my Skechers," Morgan says with a grin still on his face! He's actually enjoying this whole situation. When he realizes he's starting to get flanked, his combat lessons come to mind. He's not a seasoned warrior but the kid is a hella good athlete. Suddenly he lashes forward and head butts the guy who snatched the $20 bill. And the blow lands perfectly! The guy howls and grabs his face and blood starts erupting.

This, right here, right now is the very first time Morgan has ever struck a human being in real combat. That wipes the smile right off his face as the guy goes down, clutching his badly bleeding nose. "Oh my god, no no no," Morgan blurts out as he immediately goes down on one knee and reaches out to grab the guy's head. He begins pulling the wound onto himself. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry," he starts to say as blood begins to free-flow out of his own nose.

That gives the attacker who was moving behind him a chance. He lifts his leg and stomps hard on the kneeling Morgan's head, sending the kid rolling forward and into a mailbox. He looks up with an expression that indicates that this shit is getting away from him in ways he didn't expect. Now he's bleeding from a cut in his forehead from the mailbox and from his nose from the wound he just healed.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    When Morgan's headbutt clocks the man clean in the face, Alexander's expression actually shifts a little with eyebrows rising in surprise. But then his lips purse in consternation when all of a sudden the younger Olympian feels /bad/ about it. He shakes his head and grimaces.
    And that's when the one strikes Morgan from behind with that kick to the back, sending him sprawling forward. And /clonk/ into that mailbox. Which does get Alexander to wince a little in sympathy.
    He does, however, only take action when the one with he knife rounds and starts to move in. Which causes Alexander to almost casually flash a hand out, catch the wrist of the man and grasp it, then relieve him of the knife. Which earns him a glower and a glare from the thug who takes a swing...
    Which is avoided by a step back, so at the least Morgan only has to worry about the two. And in his dazed state hopefully he'll hear Alexander's voice. "You got this, Morgan. You can handle this. Focus or you're fucked."

Morgan Finn has posed:
Even as Morgan stands up, his wounds are already stitching up. They're small, minor injuries so his body rapidly repairs them. The two attackers look at each other when they see this. A new uncertainty has been added to the battle. Are they dealing with a super here? Are they in over their heads?

Morgan has a bit of a problem now. He just healed the guy that he effectively took out of the fight. He's back to two-on-one. Now he is starting to feel foolish in front of Alexander. Plus word is going to get back to Diana for sure. "I'm sorry, my dudes, but I have people to answer to for this." The teen steps forward on the side of the original money-snatcher AWAY from his friend, effectively isolating him for the moment. Elbow out. Hits the broken-then-healed-and-now-re-broken nose. A howl and blood. He then kicks low to the side of the man's knee, wounding it severely. He can practically hear Gala's lessons in his head: 'If you're kicking above the knee, you're wasting your time, Morgan!'

Batman makes this shit look easy, so Morgan figures he can just spin on the second attacker and take him down too...but instead he gets a fist in the face, sending him backwards several steps. In a weird way it's almost comical how his eye instantly puffs up from the punch, swelling tightly shut, but then just as quickly reduces back down to normal.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    Through all the blur and wildness of a chaotic fight, Morgan might well hear Alexander's voice from off to the side a bit. Just a few quick words of support, "Nice, man. You got this!"
    Though the man trying to take a few swings at Alexander snarls angrily, "You got your own shit, asshole!" As he hunkers down behind the guard of his fists and starts throwing hands in Alexander's direction. But Alex has enough training to avoid getting hit for the most part when he doesn't want to. Though he makes it look somewhat casual as he has his hands up and is lightly slapping each punch to the side.
    But then Morgan gets /clocked/ by that punch to the face and he reels, goes all puffy-faced, then back down and that causes the God of Fear to comment, "Guard up man, guard up all the time. Even when you're winning."

Morgan Finn has posed:
There's all kinds of dried blood all over Morgan, but not a single wound to be found. He frowns at this last attacker. "You know how many laps around the arena Galatea is gonna make me run for letting you get a punch in?" Morgan says to him. The thug just looks confused and, of course, has no idea what the kid saying.

"You coulda just taken the twenty bucks and be having dim sum by now," Morgan says and he leaps forward, extending his elbow, which drives into the dude's throat. The would-be mugger chokes as he struggles to bring in air, going down to his knees. Before he has time to recover his breath, Morgan snaps a roundhouse kick to the side of his head, sending him to the ground. He was kneeling so it technically wasn't 'above the knee.'

Morgan turns to his friend. "Bro, that guy's tryin' to punch you," he offers helpfully to Alexander.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    "Yeah,"
    Alexander's answer is calmly delivered as Morgan handles the second attacker and handles it well. Though the third member of that small cadre of gangsters doesn't see it, too focused on trying to just... get /one/ damn hit in.
    "Stand still!" He growls, even as his punches become more and more wild. Then there's a brief instant where to Morgan all he'll see is an abrupt /flash/ of light from Alexander's features, his hazel eyes suddenly glowing with a silvery flame as his face twists into a scowl.
    Yet the man that is looking straight into Alexander's eyes? The world twists, contorting in on itself as the features of his opponent melt and burn and slither together in a rush of suddenly decayed and rotten flesh. A skull-like visage appearing with that same silvery light in its eyes, black wings snapping out from the monstrosities shoulders as the very sky behind him seems to darken to blackness leaving him entirely alone in a world where there is nothing but terror and decay and horror.
    It's enough to freeze Alexander's attacker in place, his body abruptly trembling and shaking, his hands held up almost pathetically as his pants darken along one leg from an abrupt evacuation of bowels.
    Then, Morgan will hear the grim and wicked voice now, resonating with something horrible in its depths akin to a graveyard whisper as it says two words to the attacker.
    "Fuck off."
    The man flees.

Morgan Finn has posed:
The two that Morgan handled likewise flee, though one is limping badly from his injured knee. The teen seems to be completely uninterested in giving chase. Fuck 'em , let 'em go. But he does yell "I want my twenty bucks back!" as he they go.

He moves closer to Alexander. "That was some shit you just did," the demigod says to him, more than a little awed. "You just walk around with that in your pocket for whenever you feel like you need it, huh?"

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    "Ehn, it sucks," Alexander says sidelong as the men run, "Feels like cheating." Then he looks back at Morgan and the /copious/ amount of blood on the kid. A half-smile touches his lips as he shakes his head, "But look at you. You actually know some stuff."
    He leans forward and gives Morgan a /thump/ on the shoulder. "Not bad, man. I was figuring I might have to tell Diana that you fell down some stairs or something, but nope. You handled that pretty well."
    A deep breath is taken, then he looks around at the aftermath before looking back to his cousin. "Next time don't give em the bucks, success breeds more attempts down the line I imagine." But he gives a shrug as if to say that's just his opinion.

Morgan Finn has posed:
Praise from Alexander? That's enough to put a stupid grin on Morgan's face. "Diana has me training every morning now. And she's...stepping things up like she's preparing for something. I dunno. I mean, I like doing it but..." He shoulder shrugs a little and glances away and suddenly seems a bit embarrassed. "...I don't like to hurt people." His gaze returns to Alexander. "Pretty stupid for our family, I know. But I can't help but to be what I am."

All in all? Kid looks kinda rugged. He's got dried blood on him. His cheeks are flushed from a combination of the cold and the exertion from the fight. His eyes glitter, so full of life. It's easy to see how the legends of demigods survived the millennia. They are the true children of the gods, closer to the wellsprings of life than humans. No wonder he battles the feelings of self-importance. It's in his blood! Some of which happens to be all over his chin and neck and shirt and jacket.

Alexander Aaron has posed:
    "You don't have to like it, bud. But you also have to be able to." That said he stuffs his hands in his pockets again and sets foot back on the sidewalk, starting to stroll once again. Sidelong he murmurs, "We should get you cleaned up before heading back or Diana'll bite my head off."
    Though his lip twists up, "But feel free to tell her what went down, she'll be proud of you."
    Oh she'll be proud of Morgan. With Alex? Well she might be a bit grumpy.