9603/Riot in Blackgate

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Riot in Blackgate
Date of Scene: 22 January 2022
Location: Blackgate Penitentiary
Synopsis: In the aftermath of the riot, Blackgate is broken, a bat has been beaten and some villains have escaped. But the heroes kept things from being much worse and kept the carnage to a comparative minimum, at least. The mayor survived. Whether that's good or bad probably depends on your point of view.
Cast of Characters: Bane, Stephanie Brown, Lincoln March, Carrie Kelley, Barbara Gordon, Slade Wilson, Dick Grayson




Bane has posed:
In the wee hours of the morning, a prison transport popped a tire. The guards inside did not live long afterwards, replaced by carefully chosen men, resembling them just enough to pass quick inspection. They would only be at Blackgate for moments, after all, signing a few documents and letting the guards of the prison take over from there.

Those guards find just what they expected: six men in shackles. That one of these men is massive isn't that shocking - lots of inmates get into working out. "Move your ass, Roid Monkey," one guard says, prodding the big one in the back with his nightstick.

Most go into regular population. The big man is sent to isolation, apparently a punishment for some infraction he did at county. Nothing strange. Nothing special.

Six hours after arriving, the man called Bane finishes ripping one of the concrete blocks out of the wall of his cell and removes the package inside. He slides his mask over his face again and breathes properly for the first time in hours. He takes the time to carefully insert the tubing and attach his Venom rig. The first rush of the drug hitting his system makes him almost want to cry out.

By the time the surveillance man notes anything strange happening, the door to Bane's cell is ripped out.

Systematically, Bane moves through the prison and finds his men, freeing each of them in turn. They are given vials of Venom to inject in chosen targets - chaos bringers, psychotics, violent men all.

Bane keeps one last extra vial of Venom as he arrives at another isolation cell, this one deep in the basement, almost forgotten. His deep voice rings in the shadows to the man crouched in the cell. Bane holds up the vial of Venom.

"Waylon Jones. I have a present for you."

Overhead, the sirens of Blackgate ring. The call goes out to the wide world. Blackgate has broken open. Fires have been let. Blood has been spilled.

The riot has begun.

Stephanie Brown has posed:
"So the key," Stephanie Brown says as she opens up the carry out bag and pulls out the contents, "Is to eat them while they are still piping hot. I mean they aren't bad cool or warmed up. But these sandwiches aren't like pizza where they just get better reheated," she tells Dick Grayson.

A pair of sandwiches go on plates, piled high with slices of prime rib, peppers, cheese, bacon and a special sauce. She opens up a bag containing French fries, the scent of cajun seasoning hitting the air and steam rising from them as she made sure to get a fresh batch and rushed back to the brownstone with them. A pair of glasses of juice are already at the table. "Ok, all set," Stephanie says, rubbing her hands together in anticipation as she grins over at Dick. "I haven't had one of these since... September. I can't wait!"

Which is when their alarms both buzz with that tone that lets them know it's a Bat-alert. "Oh god, please, no," she says with a sigh, pulling out her phone to check the details.

Two sandwiches, and some piping hot cajun fries, are left to cool on the plates as a pair of motorcycles are soon speeding through Gotham towards Blackgate.

Lincoln March has posed:
     Lincoln stands with confidence surrounded by his personal security. Each one has been extensively vetted to provide the highest level of professionalism that's demanded for a man in charge of one of the most dangerous cities in America.

     His meeting had been scheduled almost a full year in advance, this little rendezvous a perfect opportunity to show that he cares about the plight of the city and its law enforcement.

     He's in the midst of a discussion with the warden when the alarms go off. Looking up towards the ceiling he offers in a concerned voice. "That can't be good can it?" The warden going off to one side in order to look out across the situation in progress. "We're secure in this room though correct?" He offers as his security appear completely blindsided by this unfolding series of events each one drawing their sidearm and cordoning off the room.

     The door slams open to one side a musclebound thug kicking it open to one side. He's pelted with led from the security team dropping him to the ground in an instant a mushy pile that tumbles to one side before a wall of gunfire echoes out into the room pinning Mayor March, his security and the warden into position.

     Screams echo out as one of Mayor March's personal guards takes a round to the head downing him in a single shot that topples him to the ground. There's the start of a hostage situation in the works.

Carrie Kelley has posed:
Blackgate is having a riot? Sparrow's not really a fan of such news and less so that it's right as she was about to set up a time to see someone again. She's got a job to do though! "Time to get to work." she states as she tries to plan out just what is needed for the situation that they are about to go into. The young woman is armorered up in her new superheroing gear that she's been working on. It's a quick trip via motorcycle to get to Blackgate from where she is.

But she's sure that other members of the Batfamily and various organizations are also on their way. Going in alone would get her six feet under fairly quickly given she doesn't have any of the return from death or extra healing tricks that others out there might have and she didn't have a death wish.

She parks the motorcycle and starts getting her load out, tucking the bow and arrows that she'd learned to make from Oliver along with her. They would probably be needed.

Barbara Gordon has posed:
At the top of the prison, Barbara stands in full gear. She listens to some of the com traffic through her cowl, her cape flowing behind her in the wind.

<"Eyes in the sky."> Her voice comes across the Bat-family signal. <"This is bad. We need everyone we can to get in on this situation. We need support on all sides to stop and potential escapees from getting loose in the city, and we need to get inside as quick as possible to break things up before they become any further organized in there then they already have.">

A second later and her cape stiffens as she hits the sky and starts a sweeping circle around the prison that takes her to one of its courtyards.

Her shadow goes over some of the men running across the yard, causing them to pause and look up in to the sky, only to see nothing there.

When they turn back the way they were going, they are struck with a burst of pepper spray pelletes that send them all reeling backward, coughing and shouting.

It's then that Barbara descends from the prison architecture and begins to engage the men, moving quickly to use close quarters combat to disable them, one by one. Disoriented, the mostly out of shape prisoners are taken down, and Barbara starts to walk toward one of the Prison entrances now, a steady pace in her step.

<"I'm going in."> She says over team coms.

Slade Wilson has posed:
It pays to have friends.

Standard operation procedure. A favor for a favor. In the early hours of the morning, a well-timed bullet found the tire of a prison transport. Guards inside didn't even have time to scream when they saw what was coming. One of the select few men included one of the most dangerous men alive. As soon as they got into the prison? He immediately took up a position near surveillance. Keeping an eye on the targets. People to release, the chosen targets.

Slade Wilson is one such man.

One of the men tactically placed to get people out.

So, Slade moves for the secondary objective while the majority of the villainous forces at work are handling the primary mission. Just as the chaos is ensuing, Slade draws a long sword from his sleeve, along with a handgun in the other. He's done more with less.

But he's on the move.

A favor for a favor. "Looks like the heroes are here..."

Dick Grayson has posed:
    Watching Steph pull out the sandwiches, Dick opens the fridge, asking "Ok, what do you want to drink? Those smell like we should go with something a little nicer than soda." He takes a moment to go through the options, starting to pull out a couple bottles of his favorite IPA when the alert hits. "Damn, it never fails." He puts the bottles back in the fridge and heads out of the kitchen with Steph. Minutes later they are weaving through the streets towards Blackgate.

    When Barbara comes over the comms, he replies <"What have we got so far? We're a couple minutes out."> The pair continue to weave through the streets, taking the quickest route marked in the HUD in his mask. <"Batgirl, let's go up and give it an overview. Besides, I don't think we can go in the doors, we need some height to go over the walls.">

    Skidding to a stop next to the highest building near the prison, he uses the grappel line in his gauntlet to scale the building and is shortly looking over the prison, marking any people he can see on the display to share with any other Bats. <"Ok, we're ready to enter the prison, any details yet?">

Bane has posed:
"I expected no less. Batman keeps his fledgelings disciplined. They are always prompt." Bane says into the comms, earpieces in on the various members of the extraction team.

There is a vicious growl in the dark as he opens the cell door and then a scrabbling up the stairs, scale on concrete, the man-beast he's unleashed almost slithering on his belly as he rises up, letting out a strange roar as the Venom starts to bloat already hardened muscle.

"Dragon is released. He should keep them busy. I will unlock the exit and then go join in the fun for a bit. I am in the mood to break someone. Also, I understand the Mayor is here. An unexpected bonus. Deathstroke, why don't you go and put the fear of the Antichrist of Gotham into him, with my regards?"

The inmates are surging in almost every direction, with no order or reason. The extraction team is almost herding them deliberately, making sure to make a mess. A few molotov cocktails are quickly made, toilet-brewed vodka turned to accelerant. Another massive individual, the mind-addled Amygdala, has been injected with Venom, it seems. Now bloated and veined, one outsized arm bigger than the other, he's hurling men back and forth with haphazard mayhem in the middle of the prison yard, shrugging off a blow from behind by a man wielding a barbell as a bludgeon.

Somewhere in the scrum, Arthur Brown keeps his head down and tries not to get spotted, putting a tray over his head. No gimmicks to help him out here.

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Batgirl joins Nightwing on the roof of the nearby building. "Looks like a tussle in the courtyard," she says. "Inmates fighting inmates." And she spots where Barbara is raining down pepper spray on those heading for the fences and then engages them.

<< I will head for the courtyard and keep them from taking over the towers. >> She turns to Nightwing. "Take care of yourself," she tells him with a quick smile and then runs for the edge of the building, leaping off into the night. Her cape suddenly pops out, growing rigid in spots that turn it into a gliding shape as she dives down to land on top of one of the prison towers as a guard comes out with a shotgun armed with beanbags. He fires a few times, and starts as Batgirl drops onto the walkway beside him. "Cover me as best you can," she tells him, getting a nod from the worried man, and then she swirls a bat bolo and throws it, wrapping it about the legs of a man heading for the fence by the tower. She jumps off into the courtyard then, her bo staff extending as she fights a few lone men, making her way towards Amygdala.

The familiar face of Arthur Brown is so far unnoticed by her.

Lincoln March has posed:
     "Hey now, let's all calm this down." Mayor March offers standing up in spite of the gunfire. He holds his arms out to either side as he attempts to wave people down from shooting eachother. He calls out. "There's no reason for anyone else to die here." He shouts the gunfire slowing before stopping as the mayor steps out of cover much to the horror of his security team, and the Warden.

     "Are you mad? We can't just let them come in here March." The Warden offers from behind cover as they lower their pistol down to one side.

     "Warden I didn't make it as mayor of Gotham by blindly shooting my way through problems." Lincoln speaks with a calm collected demeanor as he holds his arms out to show that he's unarmed. "I made it where I am by taking calculated risks and understanding my audience."

     He takes a few steps forward. "Let's all calm this down, and we can just make sure everyone gets to go home safe and sound tonight." He motions towards the men in the doorway allowing them to come through and join the Warden and his security in the control room. "There's no reason this has to go any more violent than it already has."

Carrie Kelley has posed:
<"Welcome to the party everyone."> Sparrow states over the comms. <"I'm going to see about some crowd control with some arrows."> she tells the other team members. She decides that employing parkour will be the quickest way to get to where she needs to be, vaulting one of the barricades as she enters into one of the main halls that will lead her towards the final destination.

Her bow comes out and with a quick flick of her wrist it pops into its normal size, she knocks one of the trick arrows as she moves along the wall, trying to keep herself out of direct fire until the last minute.

Barbara Gordon has posed:
Inside the first hallway of the prison, two more inmates charge down one of the hallways. As they pass a dark room, a female voice shouts out in desperation. "Help! I need help!"

It causes the two men to stop running, peer in to the room, and then exchange looks before they both go inside to investigate....

Once inside the dark room, the sounds of commotion are heard, the men shouting as furniture is displaced, one of the men slamming back in to the door of the room before he's drug back in to the shadows by his feet.

And then silence...

<"The Mayor is here."> Barbara says over the comms as she comes out of that room, walking back in to the hallway, no sign of the men in her wake. <"We need to get him out of here before this becomes an even bigger screw up than it already is..."> She grimaces as she walks down the hallway, her cape fluttering in the wind behind her legs.

<"The whole place is broken open, we need GCPD on all streets around the facility, and some looking in to the sewers as well.">

Slade Wilson has posed:
Mission given.

"Copy that. I'll complete the secondary objective then I'll pay a visit to the Mayor. Any preference on living condition?" He questions, most likely a live, but...does he have to be in one piece? Though as Slade moves, he comes across the secondary objective, looking at men and women in their cells. "Call it a favor to your bosses." Slade proceeds to slice open the lock so they can go free.

"And, just to make things exciting..."

He hands them some vials of Venom. "Use responsibly." Then he's on the move, most likely for the mayor. As he walks, he starts shedding the uniform, revealing the orange and black ikon suit underneath his clothes, pulling out some deplyable armor pieces that take shape at a few pushes of a button. A helmet is placed over his head as opposed to a mask, and it completes the set.

Deathstroke had arrived.

He draws forth his energy lance, extending it fully to a staff as he sheathes his katana and handgun. Time to go after Lincoln March, the Gotham City Mayor. He was on the move, swiftly emerging from the cell blocks and already towards the courtyard.

A grappleshot later and Slade is on elevated position. He's looking.

Dick Grayson has posed:
Right after Batgirl jumps off the building, Nightwing follows suit. Gliding wings pop out of the backpack of his armor, and he heads for the opposite side of the prison from Batgirl. As he glides silently over the courtyard, he notes an inmate coming up behind one of the guards. With a glance at the controls on his HUD, the wings retract and he flips in midair, leading with a kick to the side that knocks the man to the ground. Nightwing pulls the batons from where they ride over his shoulders and flicks a switch on them, dropping one down onto the thug as he tries to stand, tasing him. He looks to a nearby guard and says "Cuff him, will you? I'm going to be a little busy."

    He jumps up onto the catwalk fence and jumps, somersaulting down to the yard and starting to make his way through the assorted inmates. He yells loudly "Anyone who doesn't want to get put down take a seat! This won't go well for you!" Some of the inmates actually sit, but the majority are too fired up to think about consequences. Nightwing sighs and shakes his head, then starts in with both batons dropping rioters. He's badly outnumbered, but until he hits some of the major players, his skill and armor keep him moving through the crowd.

Bane has posed:
Bane says, "Today is not the Mayor's day to die. At least, not by our hands. Beyond that, he takes his chances like everyone else. Use your own discretion."

Bane finds another of his chosen few, ripping him free of the cell and giving him instructions on where to find the escape tunnel. The misdirection is intensive and purposeful, sending all the action towards fending off the intruding vigilantes. Of course, some of the others are making their escape, too. Sparrow's trick arrows do the trick in some places, knockout gas and stun grenades putting some of the rioters unconscious. Others have overwhelmed guard stations, trying to work the electronic locks to open the bulletproof glass that keeps them from the visitor's area and the way outside. This will quickly become a choke point as prisoners figure this is one of the fastest exits from Blackgate.

Amygdala sees the approaching Batgirl and lets out a wobbling yell, "Girl bat, bats bad, real bad!" he shouts, flinging one inmate off of a Venom-fatted arm to take a clumsy, superstrong swing at the young vigilante, even as her father watches the action from his hiding place under the table twenty feet away.

The only thing helping the inmates at all are sheer numbers, as they're obviously outclassed and outskilled by the incoming vigilantes. Barbara and Dick make easy work of those who come across their way, but a bullet ricochets off the concrete near Dick as one of Bane's team is clearly armed, raising up an assault rifle and starting to take aim at the lithe hero."

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Stephanie Brown moves forward, bo staff whirling about her in yellow blurs that land blows to the bodies of inmates that move to stop the caped crusader. Though they are just obstacles between her and her objective. "Aaron Helzinger!" Batgirl calls towards Amygdala. "You really want to risk your chances at parole like this?" she yells to him as he moves at her to take a swing.

She dodges back, ducking under the swing and then kicking though he seems to shrug off the kick to his stomach. "Got 20 to life! No parole! And didn't you used to be a redhead?" he shouts as he rips from the ground a metal bench whose supports were securely sank in the cement.

"Oh you have been away for awhile," Batgirl says as she moves forward. "Don't you know blonds have more fun?" Her staff blurs, swinging a trio of blows at the red-skinned metahuman. He takes one hit on his arm, and uses the bench to block the other two before swinging it and cracking her in the side with it, sending her flying a dozen feet until she rolls as she hits, getting up, an arm going to her injured side.

"Having more fun now!?" he asks with a laugh, stalking forward.

<< Amygdala seems stronger than the reports had him. >> She ignores the pain of her bruised or broken ribs, swinging her staff again and moving to meet the new attacks.

Lincoln March has posed:
     Lincoln keeps himself calm and steady as he begins the talk down process. He's professional and courteous as he begins to tear down the defenses of the three inmates that have entered the room. He's standing out in front of his security detail giving an impassioned speech to the men that comes from one of the great statesmen of the modern age using psychology, his time as DA, and his time as a lawyer to tear apart layer after layer of natural defenses from the three men before him.

     They begin to waver in their stance hobbling slightly to one side as one of the fully grown men begins to burst open into tears at the speech. It's an almost superhuman endeavor as Lincoln takes a step forward doing what he does best as he keeps his arms outstretched into the open. This was his wheelhouse, his home ground even if Blackgate itself was under someone else's control.

     "-you know I've been where you are before." He continues with his heartfelt words reaching out a hand towards the inmate while his security and the Warden watch witch shocked expressions. "Hopeless, angry, scared, given your first glimmer of hope in a lifetime." He touches the inmates hand lightly who drops his gun and falls against Mayor March's shoulder sobbing openly. Whatever speech he just gave seems to be working. Of course it doesn't hurt that he had planted two of the four men inside of the group of inmates that were currently holding him hostage, but no one needed to know that, especially not the Warden who had been selected for this little show of 'skill'.

Carrie Kelley has posed:
Sparrow moves quickly to see if she can stave off the prisoners from breaking through the locked doors. Computers. There was something she definitely could help out with. She fires another knock out arrow, trying to clear the path towards the security station that she's approaching. She takes many hits from half gassed inmates and a cut to her chin as she tries to duck a shoddily made blade.

<Maybe they are drugged with something?> she offers after Batgirl's comment of them seeming more powerful.

Barbara Gordon has posed:
One of the security gates with the glass door is being pried at by a prisoner with a screw driver. He's trying to get the panel open to re-wire it, and is cursing while he works.

Something grabs his head from behind, causing him to try and turn to look... but he is unable to. His face is slammed in to the glass, leaving a splash of blood out of his nose puts her wrist computer up to the lock, and the door clicks open.

<"We need to be careful then. If something is giving these people extra strength, then we're dealing with a lot more danger than a regular ... prison break."> She says as she passes through the security gate.

Her mask HUD shows her the corridors ahead of her, and she turns down one.

<"I can hear the Mayor. He's being held hostage."> She says before going quiet.



She puts her back to the wall outside the door to the room the Mayor is in, before using her suit systems.

She goes to disable the power in the room Lincoln is inside with the prisoners...
before he crumples to the ground.

Barbara

Slade Wilson has posed:
Death was coming.

Back inside the compound, Deathstroke narrows his eye as he starts to approach. Some of the brawlers attempted to follow him, unaware of the plan, and in mere moments, they are on the ground. Some of them alive, others not. But Deathstroke moves like a shadow, as if flanking Barbara, or rather attempting to.

His steps are silent as the grave. "Mayor spotted."

He says through comms, softer than a mouse, then he's rushing forward. Energy Lance brandished, as he fires a shot straight down the hallway. He will either hit something. Or he'll hit nothing.

Dick Grayson has posed:
    The bullet tells Nightwing there are more important targets then the rioters in the yard. Looking up to one of the guard towers, he grapples himself up and out of the crowd, looking for the thug with the gun. He points his arm at the gun toting inmate and with a *Pfft* of compressed air fires a tranq dart at the man.

    Reaching the top of the guard tower, he scans the yard, looking for further armed targets. This early into the riot, there are not a ton of armed opponents visible, but any that are get marked on the HUD to share with all the Bats responding to the crisis. <"Ok, this is going to be a long night. Powered enemies first, armed ones next, and the rest when we can get to them. Keep as many guards safe as you can, they can at least take care of the regular prisoners.">>

    Spotting a guard being tossed off the catwalk by one of Bane's people, he swings down on his line, grabs the guard and carries him up, depositing him next to another guard so they can work together as the riot grows. "Stick together, try and collect more guards. You're too easily overrun when you go solo." The blue and black armored hero runs along the catwalk, tagging targets as he goes. The HUD is getting a little cluttered, but that's to be expected in a prison riot.

Bane has posed:
Barbara and Slade seem to be on a collision course, with the Mayor caught in the middle of the sandwich. Mixed metaphors aside, the power goes out as Barbara planned, not only in that room but cascading through that section of the prison, the outdated electrical grid suffering under the continuous shock of alarms and surges as doors are busted open.

Amygdala may be stronger, but he's still very limited, the injection of Venom hitting his oversized aggression button to make him mostly just flail at Steph, unable to take advantage of any openings she gives.

Carrie finds her way to the computers, which have been left abandoned and logged into as the guards fled. Their cowardice at least saved her from having to hack the security system, giving her access to cameras, electronic locks, alarms, sprinklers and the like. She'll be the first to glimpse the figure of Bane stalking some of the back hallways. And will get a good chance to warn Nightwing as Killer Croc emerges in front of the first Robin out of the shadows, Venom-blasted and overgrown, tongue lolling out of his fanged mouth like a dragon as he starts to clamber up the side of the guard tower, claws breaking through the concrete as the bestial villain tries to climb his way out.

"Four out of six clear," Bane says into the comms. "Virk, Bronson, start planting the explosives for our exit strategy."

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Batgirl and Amygdala trade more blows. The young woman is much faster and stays just ahead of the metal bench, but takes a kick in the side, and a back fist that sends her tumbling back before rolling to her feet. On her part, staff blows have landed on the criminal's arms and chest and even head, though he seems to be shrugging them off.

She dodges another swing of the bench, thinking to herself, "Going to have to try something different." As he lunges for her she turns and runs at the outer wall. He chases behind and she reaches the wall, running up it and flipping overtop of him just as he slams the bench forward, having intended to impale her against the wall. The super-strong blow with the metal bench blasts through the wall, opening a hole in it. Batgirl meanwhile flips overtop of Amygdala, reaching down to slap a sticky-bomb onto the back of his head as she passes, and immediately triggering it.

Amygdala staggers forward and falls from the blast, down but not out. Batgirl lands heavily, coughing in the smoke from the minor explosion. She looks up to find a hand reaching down towards her in offering, and behind it, the face of... her father.

Blue eyes going wide, she reaches for the hand, which starts to pull her upwards. But only high enough to get her off the ground where Arthur Brown can then slam his knee forward into her head!

Batgirl falls back to the ground with a groan of pain, while Arthur "Cluemaster" Brown spits in her direction. "F'ing Bats" he says and then turns and runs through the hole in the wall, disappearing into the night.

Lincoln March has posed:
     As the power fails there's the briefest moment of almost a glint to Mayor March's eye. It's only there for the briefest of moments as he lets a light smirk cross his face for an instant. The lights go out, there's confusion something moves in the darkness. A flash of light in the darkness a deafening BANG rattles out illuminating the figures in the pitch blackness for the briefest moment. That glint in March's eye holds for just a moment longer than perhaps it should as the warden falls to the ground.

     March shouts out a loud billowing "No!" As the gunshot goes off he turns to face the Warden moving forward towards the panicked thug who had fired the shot in the confusion.

     The two men hold a bit of a scuffle as flashes of light echo off into the ceiling as more shots are fired. It's clear to anyone watching that Lincoln March is far from a trained combatant, instead sticking to slow moving weighty punches that are well telegraphed.

Carrie Kelley has posed:
Sparrow slides her way into the security station with the computers and gives a sigh. Her eyes flicking from one screen to the next. <I've got eyes on cameras and computers.> she states over the comms. Then she sees the huge form of Bane stalking through the back hallways like some horror movie legend, <We have a major problem. Bane is here, he's stalking some of the back halls as I speak.> she tells the team. <Nightwing, watch your front, Killer Croc is heading for you.> she tries to stay calm over the comm communications.

<I'll see if I can start locking some of these cells and blocks back down and give some breathing room for us to clean up easier.> she states as her fingers fly over the keys.

Barbara Gordon has posed:
Slade's arrival puts a bit of a wrench in Barbara's plans. He's an unknown to her. His shot whizzes down the corridor, and she fires a smoke grenade back in his direction before she has to make her entrance to where the Warden and Mayor are! The door is opened and another smoke grenade is sent in. Gunshots are going off.

It's pure madness.

Barbara appears in the smoke, her eyes covered by her cowl's mask, allowing her to see through the cover screen, allowing her to attack the enemies with the guns first!

electrical explosives are sent at the armed men, while Barbara herself attempts to take them out with brute force, the strength enhancers of her suit, helping her with tasks like this!

The Mayor will undoubtedly know that 'a Bat' has arrived, or at least the telltale signs of it.

She is all quiet on comms while this goes down though.

Slade Wilson has posed:
Slade doesn't stop.

Even as the smoke bomb goes off in front of him, Slade swings his energy lance horizontally, as if to dispel enough smoke so he has clear vision. Batman has tried multiple times to use this trick on him. No doubt he would be prepared in case one of his disciplines attempted the same thing. The lights go off, but Slade touches his gauntlet.

He can see.

He proceeds to leap into the madness of the Warden/Mayor's location, his staff swinging for the fences as loud thuds are heard, as is cracked glass like that of a TV monitor getting smashed into by some poor soul's skull. If Deathstroke can find Barbara, he'll try and smack her across the face with a beautiful-looking roundhouse kick, hard enough to send her to the ground if it manages to make contact.

But one should never underestimate a pupil of the Dark Knight.

Dick Grayson has posed:
    Killer Croc climbing the tower definitely catches Nightwing's attention. As the amped criminal approaches, Nightwing connects his batons to make a staff, giving him a better reach to stay away from the much larger man's arms. Spinning the staff around his body, he approaches Croc and opens with a flurry of blows, each zapping electricity into the man.

Unfortunately, this has little to no effect on the man while he's got the Venom in his system. In return, the man swings powerful blows at the smaller figure stinging him. Nightwing keeps at him, rolling, jumping and getting in the occasional strike while doing his best to avoid a return blow from the heavy hitter in front of him.

    Finally, Croc connects with one of his hits, sending Nightwing rolling along the catwalk. Glancing down where he got hit, he notes that his new armor was a good investment, as there's now a shredded area where only the innermost layer remains. Just to keep the big man busy, he raises his arm and fires a gas pellet at Croc's chest, enveloping him in a small gas cloud as the former Robin gets back to his feet.

    Looking around for something to even up the fight, he runs forward and dives past the huge figure, trying to loop the grappel's line around Croc's legs.

Bane has posed:
The gas pellet erupts against Croc's chest and wouldn't have much effect in his hyper-adrenalized state. Except it distracts him, making him cough and snap his teeth even as Nightwing's line wraps around the monster man's legs.

The result is predictable as Killer Croc loses his grip on the tower and tumbles, falling three stories and landing on his back in the courtyard below with a rattling thump. Remarkably, he's not entirely unconsciuos, but he's clearly still feeling the pain as he slowly tries to get up.

Batgirl has clearly put some fear into the other men by taking down Amygdala and, even after Arthur takes his cheap shot, they seem wary to engage her, mostly just trying to sneak past her and through that open hole left in the wake of the Cluemaster while Amygdala dreams of large women.

Sparrow will discover that there are emergency protocols that she can activate that will lock down various cellblocks and at least stem the tide of escapees. But the systems in the basement area have been clearly disabled. And while she's going through the feeds, she'll find that two cell blocks are currently being rigged to explode by a pair of men in prison orange but heavily armed and obviously trained - Bane's operatives.

Bane himself pauses and finds a particular guard he'd been hunting for. The files he'd been given showed him Roger Peterson, one of the chief guards and a noted sadist. He liked to make prisoners eat insects and compete in vomiting contests for his own amusement, in exchange for illicit goods and favors best left unspoken. Bane takes him by the throat and Sparrow will witness him chokeslame the man through the tiles of a shower room to tumble into the darkness blow, his body tangled in broken pipes and hot water.

Bane touches his ear: "Draw back into the basement. Once we're in position, we'll detonate. Let them pick through the rubble to see who is missing," he laughs.

Stephanie Brown has posed:
Batgirl and Amygdala both get to their feet a little more slowly than before. Though the rage is building within the convict. "Gonna tear you apart with my own hands and then beat you with your own arms!" he grows at her.

Amygdala rushes at the purple-clad heroine. Stephanie rolls backwards at the last second, feet going to his chest and launching him into the air until he comes crashing down on his back. She's on her feet already, and as he rises she throws a batarang. It plants in his shoulder and the air crackles with a bust of electricity that arcs all around him. His body convulses, the charge ending after a second or two. But before he can do anything, another electric batarang hits him. And then another. And another.

The night is lit by the blue-white zaps as they arc across his body. Finally they stop, smoke rising from his skin as he stands there for a moment and then slowly topples forward and faceplants.

<< Amygdala... is down in the yard. On my way to assist. Nightwing you need a hand with Croc? >>

Lincoln March has posed:
     As the swing hits into the darkness it makes impact with March hard across the back of his head with a sickening crack. He falls to the ground in the chaos holding the back of his head as the inmate he'd been wrestling with over control of the firearm manages to break free.

     Lincoln on the ground looks up towards the inmate with the gun with a pleading look in his eyes locking eyes with the inmate in the darkness. "You don't have to do this." He pauses for a moment reaching up a bloodied hand. "I know deep down you aren't that kind of man anymore." Even as blood seeps through his hands at the back of his head from the force of the impact which had been meant for a bat. "This is your chance to prove it." He offers a friendly smile woozy from the force of the impact. There's a passion behind each of his words as he reaches that hand up to try and grab hold of the inmates free hand.

    For the briefest of moments he closes his right eye, and gunfire echoes out from one of Lincolns security guards who takes the moment to put the inmate down with a clear cut round right through the shoulder dropping the inmate completely.

Carrie Kelley has posed:
Sparrow finds the commands for the emergency lock down and starts it. Hoping that it will help them out as well as the rest of the folks that are involved in this. <Security protocols in the basement have been disable and I can't get them back online.> she tells the team. Trying to keep up communication. <We have a major problem. Bane's men look to be rigging two cells with explosives , I can see if I can get to them, but it looks like they are planning on blowing this place, quite literally.> the young woman states in a concerned tone.

She watches Bane take out the guard that he'd been hunting for in rapt horror. She drags her eyes away from the screen and focuses on the doors and the now trickling line of inmates, "You gotta get back in there." she tells herself.

Barbara Gordon has posed:
Barbara's primary goal here was to take out the gunmennment first. She was well aware of whomever she'd fired that other smoke round at in the hallway, was only being delayed by it for a matter of seconds, if even that.

She works as quick as she can, but Slade's arrival comes just as she was moving in on the man aiming the gun at the Mayor!

Babs spins just in time to raise her right gauntlet up to deflect the impressively quick, and accurate, kick! She pauses for a split second to stare at Slade in the smoky dark, before she turns away from him just long enough to throw a electrical charge explosive at the back of the man aiming the weapon at Lincoln!

She knows its going to make it harder to stop any of Slade's next attacks though, taking time away from her, but as she spins back around she tries to engage with Slade to stop him!

<"There's gunmennment. Attacking. The Mayor!"> Barbara adds over the comms, her voice clearly distracted by all that is going on around them tonight!

Slade Wilson has posed:
The fight is on!

Deathstroke's attention is ever forward, ever leering. "Hnnh." Deathstroke tells Barbara. "Your block was barely timed. Be better." He says with a grumble, even as he starts to charge towards Barbara! Even as the electrical charge is thrown behind her, Slade is going to try and brutalize Barbara.

It's clear in his very movement.

He moves forward with a jab with his energy lance, just hoping to jab her in the ribs, maybe knock the wind out of her. A right hook aimed for the cheek, a kick aimed for the abdomen. A spinning backfist for the temple. Deathstroke was fast, he's intending to try and end this as quick as possible.

But Barbara Gordon was ap roper fighter in her own right. She could avoid this fight entirely. Or she could mount a counterattack. Her attention is split.

Dick Grayson has posed:
    Watching Croc's swan dive gives Nightwing a little hope that the fight is over, but then the big man starts trying to get up, though slowly. With a firm hold on the line, he dives off the catwalk, trying to use his weight to get Croc hung up by his ankles. With the momentum from the drop, he actually gets to the point where only Croc's shoulders and head are on the ground, then loops the line around some bars and ties it off. Hopefully that will do the job, but Croc may still be able to free himself to continue the fight.

    <"I think I got him, but no promises with this guy. Sparrow, what's Bane up to? Should have known a normal riot couldn't be this bad without outside help.>

    He moves over to Croc and tries to secure him with further cable lines, dodging the man's half conscious blows. Still, having to get close means he can only dodge so much, and Croc gets a hit in on his leg, tearing away more armor and bringing Nightwing down on one knee for a moment before he gets up and continues tying the man up, though now with a bit of a limp.

Bane has posed:
Bane will split Deathstroke's attention with a very clear demand. "Time to withdraw. Out through the underground tunnels. Deathstroke, you may stay if you wish or leave with us, but you will be on your own once we depart. I suspect even you wouldn't enjoy the attention of all the little bat spawn fluttering their leathers and scrabbling you with their claws."

He's a bit disappointed that he didn't get the Batman himself, but comforts himself with a half smile. Perhaps merely the rumor of Bane has the Batman afraid. What a delight.

Amygdala and Croc are indeed down and out and some of the rioting seems to be settling, as those who haven't escaped realize they're not going to make it and those who were most eager managed to get their way to the exits. All in all, only about 100 men will have escaped, out of the massive prison population. Or, at least that'll be the best guess once Cell Blocks C and E detonate.

Which they do. Right now.

Stephanie Brown has posed:
<< Alright then I am going to try to run down someone I saw get outside the wall. >>

Batgirl shoots a grapple up to the top of a tower, winching herself up rapidly and crouching there as she looks off into the dark. She brings up her nightvision from her cowl and looks out in the area outside of the wall that had the hole battered in it by her fight.

No sign of the fleeing convict. Batgirl's hand tightens into a fist, the composite material of her glove creaking with the force of the grip. She jumps and glides off into the night, sweeping back and forth. But there is no sign of the Cluemaster.

Lincoln March has posed:
     Lincoln clenches his fist as the gunman is knocked prone and taken out of the fight. From looks he's expecting to be shot when the shock goes off because he loosens up a moment later and relaxes on the ground grabbing at his head as he tries to stem the bleeding in the darkness only for it to already be gone.

     He attempts to keep out of sight and mind in the darkness just laying on the floor as he witnesses the bat fight away. He uses his current position low to the ground to crawl over towards the Warden, and places a hand atop of said wardens gaping chest wound. He makes a visible effort in attempting to stem the bleeding but it keeps slipping through his hands.

     "Stay with me Warden, stay with me." He talks down to the body as it begins to go limp the life force leaving him causing his hands to grow bloody hiding the fact that he himself was ever bloodied in the first place.

Carrie Kelley has posed:
<Looks like Bane is heading for the basement if I had to guess. It's the only unguarded and disabled space.> Sparrow states over the comms. She makes sure that the computers are closed off from the inmates that are still milling about before she opens the door quickly and heads out into the still frantic pathes that were set out for them. She's welcomed out with a chair being smashed against her back, causing one of her arrows to fall before she can catch it.

Well, this night was sucking majorly. She uses the bow to shove the inmate away and back towards the guards that were working together as she tries to find a swift way towards the basement. If she had enough time.

Barbara Gordon has posed:
Barbara turns back to face Slade just in time to get a blast from that pole weapon he's using. It sends shockwaves through her body that cause a malfunction in her neural interface. In short, her spine is unable to communication with her head properly, and her reaction times to block his incoming attacks is negated.

What follows is the complete dismantling of Barbara. Each of his attacks lands against her, her armored form helping to at least absorb some of the damage, but in the end she's sent tumbling backward across a line of furniture in the room, her body rolling back in to the shadows of the corner of the smoke filled area!

She goes silent, no words from her as she vanishes in to the darkness.

Slade Wilson has posed:
*CRACK!* *SNAP!*

Slade's brutal retaliation for Barbara's blocking and weaving is met cruelly. Never turn your back on Deathstroke. Granted, Barbara was smart and didn't...but she split her attention, and she paid the price for it. Even as Slade's strike causes her to tumble backwards into the shadows, Slade sneers.

"You're Aikido's for shit. You're lucky you're not on my hit list."

Slade then turns to the mayor, compacting his staff into a small handheld object which he puts on his belt, and a pistol is drawn from his holster. He points it at Mayor March's head, ready to take him down, ready to sen da -very- loud message. But Bane's instructions were clear.

"Consider this a warning, Mr. Mayor. You are not safe." He moves his handgun towards the Warden, pulling the trigger to put the Warden out of his misery, aiming for his head. Or maybe he missed? At this range, near impossible.

"We won't warn you again."

After this, Slade simply turns around to leave. "Get out, Bane." is all Slade says into his comms.

Dick Grayson has posed:
    Nightwing has barely finished securing Croc when the explosion of two cell blocks blasts him back twenty feet to bounce across the pavement of the Yard. Shaking his head a little, he quietly thanks his comm earbuds, which also act as hearing protection from dangerously loud sounds. Pulling himself to his feet, he looks around, spots his dropped staff and limps over to get it.

    He moves over to block an open gate to the street, grounding the staff and facing the courtyard where various criminals are pulling themselves to their feet. "Ok, it's all over. Just stay where you are, there's probably fires in the cells." Switching to comms he says <"Ok, blocking a gate here, got Croc tied up."> Switching his comms to the emergency services frequencies, he makes sure fire and ambulance services are headed for the jail.

Bane has posed:
By the time the tunnels are checked, they will be empty. It is clear they were prepared in advance, however, indicating at least some level of corruption was likely involved. No way prisoners did this from the inside without somebody knowing about it.

Bane has plans for the men he has freed. Or, rather, taken for his purposes. They are not free to go. They have fallen into the grasp of the Revelator. Within hours, they, and Bane himself, will be on a cargo plane heading to Madripoor.

17 inmates will have died, along with the warden and guards targeted by Mayor March. Damage is estimated at somewhere around five million dollars. City jails, already stressed, are overcrowded to their limits as excess prisoners are siphoned off to short-term accomodations. Many modest or low level criminals are simply cut loose to make room for the most vile.

Slade will make his way clear, because of course he does. How could it be otherwise?

The legacy of tonight will have ripple effects no doubt across Gotham. Only time will tell what they are. But one thing is for certain - this is a beginning, not an ending.