Rocky Horror Flower Show

August 28, 2015:

Clean up continues in M-Town… and so do the Purifiers

M-Town - New York

Characters

NPCs: None.

Mentions:

Plot:

Mood Music: None.


Fade In…

After the SRD intiative in M-Town, the streets are still a bit of a mess - even though work is progressing to clean it up. That's where X-Red and the Maria Stark Foundation comes in and why Brinley, Wanda, Mike and Pepper Potts are all here - they're helping clean up and provide aid to the M-Town residents.

Brins in her 'business' uniform, a pair of black tailored pants and black polo shirt with a stylised X on the right breast pocket… not something she'd normally wear for this type of work, but she's been speaking with city officials about the clean up efforts - so she's had to make a concession. A bandage can be seen beneath her sleeve on the right arm and she's limping as well… remnants of trying to help Jean the other day.

Right now, the brunette is standing on an intersection - near the next part of M-Town to be cleared. Rubble can seen in the street…


Lunair was asked by Magneto to look after M-Town and she hadn't forgotten about that. Usually, she's running groceries or visiting friends she's made here. And she'd also been likely picking off Purifiers and such. Not that she'd /admit/ to that.

But Lunair does care. Since she's an independent agent, she may or may not have to wear a stylized x-doodad. Lunair is wary of that sort of stuff. Still, she's looking for her friends and seeing if they need anything, but it's difficult. The clean up is happening, too. "Oh geez."


Although he lives in Mutant Town, in a brownstone three blocks in and two and a half blocks over, Mike Drakos is not around as much as he used to be. Oh, there are plenty of signs of his residency: the unusually high-tech, customized buildings here and there where the owners were unable to keep things in repair and people were suffering from it; the parking lots in the area with (lately) seven odd pillars made of metal and filled with machine parts and things show that he's still resident because they change every few days; the unusually good internet and electrical service, at least when the Purifiers don't get their paws into it.

But being overseas on an emergency mission for a week and then spending a week trying to catch up on his own business, he's been less visible around the neighborhood, and he's learned that telepresence-Mike isn't nearly as well tolerated as actual-Mike, so he doesn't remote-control a chassis except in emergencies now.

Not that he's in a normal chassis. He's in a highly-modified street sweeper.

It's got tentacles.


Wanda has been a bit of a recluse again lately, hiding in her room a lot and learning how to meditate. Whether it is helping is another thing. She is in her uniform because it helps remind her she belongs to something though she is still uneasy about the attention she gains from it. Her fingers twitch and curl as Wanda plays with reality once more. But instead of turning people into living jelly she has made the stone and brick rubble weigh as light as a feather. At least it will be easier to move now.


Pepper Potts is here doing all of the coordinating and organizing and deploying of workforce volunteers. SHe's dressed in an outfit surprisingly similar to what Brinley is wearing, though her white buttonup shirt and black trousers are still clearly well tailored. She speaks into the bluetooth in one ear, tapping at the tablet in her hand and discussing something over a rather heated phone call.

"No, I don't care if you have to form a bucket line all the way from Central Park. You will have those food and water supplies here by sunset." She rubs at her forehead briefly. "Yes, of course the hazard and overtime pay is approved. I said that three times. No. Just get it done." She knocks a knuckle against her tablet particularly viciously, then sighs as she turns to look at Brinley.

"Are you sure I can't just start swatting people with a switch when they don't listen to me?" She's just joking. Really. Maybe.


Why do tentacles have to appear every time he and Lunair are in the same area? These are the things that Vorpal thinks about as he follows Mike's sweeper. The Titans have been sending volunteers to help with cleanup by shifts- Vorpal personally wonders why can't Zatanna simply go teerts, naelc flesruoy or something like that… he's wanted to ask. But he has better self-preservation instincts than that. His grandfather, who tended to be a bit of a sexist pig sometimes, used to say that you never should ask a lady her age… he didn't really believe that, Keith always thought everybody should suffer the indignities of time equally. Now, if he had said 'You never ask a wizard about the limits of his powers', then he would have been 100 on board! Beware the wrath of wizards, because it's just nasty.

Long story short (TOO LATE), Vorpal is now helping out. He is useful due to the Rabbit Hole, which is an excellent way of dealing with debris. "… I wish I had been here to help earlier… man, this place really got insane, " the cheshire cat notes to Mike. He had been to Japan with Mike, where the mutant got to see first-hand what a useful thing a hole can be. One such phenomenon opens up to swallow a large chunk of debris whole- depositing it on the pile of 'to move later'. While he hasn't been extensively introduced to Wanda, the Scarlet Witch might sense something akin to her own reality-warping whenever a Rabbit Hole opens… the cheshire cat is positively buzzing with chaos magic. "I see you've got a new member," he says to Mike, conjuring a little purple broom and sweeping the sidewalk- it's something to do until the next big chunk-a-debris.


Brin chuckles at Peppers question and rolls her eyes in sympathy. "I really wish you could, but I think it might just make them more stubborn." The officials might even enjoy it! Surveying the work her team mates are doing, Brin looks over to Pepper "I'm glad MSF could help out here, I'd like to say it was unexpected, the way they're trying to ignore the problems here, but it isn't." Given her injuries, Brin is being very careful about the work that she does - at least she can feel mildly useful by liaising with people. Seeing Wanda pitching in, Brin offers an encouraging smile to the woman, she knows that Wanda isn't sure about her place in the team - this type of work is important.

Further down the street from where everyone is working, a group of people appear, moving quickly towards them… those close enough will see that this group is very well armed and seem to be moving in formation.

Without warning, the group opens fires… spraying bullets across the street - they're not aiming at anyone in particular yet… but there are civilians, M-Towns residents in the street.


Once again, Kwabena Odame has managed to slip the dip with his overseers. This time, he wasn't as sloppy; leaving Moontree Manor undetected took a bit of work, but he managed.

With the better parts of his soul missing, having Shift loose and alone on the streets is a particularly troubling matter. In this instance, he's gone on the hunt for drugs. His better half would have chided him for it, but his better half is still largely missing, at the hands of Master Darque's witchcraft. Hence, there's a brutally murdered drug dealer somewhere in the Village, and an 8-ball in Shift's pocket.

Perched upon a rooftop, Shift has just finished snorting a particularly long line of blow. His silver eyes are raging, his blood pumping fast, and he's a bit twitchy while watching the happenings below. This whole affair with the cocaine is a direct effect of being bored and missing shards of his soul… the incoming mob of armed people draws his interest. Why wouldn't it?

Its not for heroics that draws him to leap from the rooftop. He could give two shits about the mutant's here - a clear sign that something is definitely wrong with him - it's boredom. Boredom and gunfire… a wicked combination.

Shift hits the pavement right there almost the throng of shooters. His body transforms into a cloud of black smoke upon impact, then just as quickly, it gathers up again. "Hey, boys," he quips. "Mind if I drop in?"

The nearest two heads are grabbed, and viciously smacked together. He's not interested in soaring lives. Killing for sport, now that's a concept.


Pepper Potts hears the pops of the gunfire (she's far enough away that it only sounds like popping for the moment) and she gasps. She's worked for Stark Industries more than long enough to be VERY familiar with that sound. "JARVIS, get all MSF personnel to safety. NOW." For her own part, she turns and rushes over to Brinley to help her get inside the nearest building.


Notably, it's not as if the occupants of the manor can't just find Shift later.

Lunair is more doing her own bits of charity. But she does have to wave at Metalbuddy and friends. But there is one thing Lunair can deal with and that is bullets. She ducks into cover, emerging armored and with an alarmingly large laser weapon. Returning fire at the head of the trio as Shift just smacks someone's head in. "OHMYGOSH HI!" It's her BUDDY! Her pal! Even if he doesn't quite seem himself. Maybe he just ran out of the awesome botany club brownies?


A year and some ago, there was a festival held here in Mutant Town. They called it "Burning Human" and Mike learned one important thing: You Can Not Be Everywhere, You'll Sprain Yourself. But that doesn't mean you can't have a multitude of tiny robot eyes out for trouble, especially with these armed idiots running around. Mike was alerted when they started moving en-masse, but had to scan to see what they were up to, and that wasn't quite fast enough to stop them before they got started. But as soon as the bullets begin to fly, they stop their progress and hang in the air RIGHT THERE like bullets don't. Someone whispers, "Magneto!" … and one by one with a micro-second THRUM the trigger and receiver mechanisms on the guns become one piece, and then the receivers become one piece with the slides and the barrels. This doesn't mean they're useless. They still make great clubs.


Gunfire. The sound makes Wanda frown as she turns towards it. A quick check of the situation sees Potter and Brinley making for cover, Lunair her usual armoured self and…she doesn't know the other folk but they seem to be taking care of themselves. Though there is something about the smoke guy which feels awafully familiar to Wanda and causes something deep inside her to stir. Not to mention the chaos magic she can feel that is not hers. Her hands glowing with her power, Wanda starts walking slowly towards the attackers. She mutters to herself as she does so, "No jelly people. No jelly people."


"Of course there's bullets," Vorpal mutters as the lead flies- but Mike's magnetic personality puts a stop to that, so he does not need to erect walls to protect bystanders.

Good.

As Wanda begins to approach the people, muttering something about jellies, the Cheshire cat leaps forward and into the air, using construct trapezes to plot an indirect trail- "Alright Witch lady, you zap 'em and I whack 'em," he calls to Wanda as he sails above her. He lets go at the peak of a swing, and he sails forth in the air, feet first, to strike one of the men who are still puzzled over their guns, letting out a fearsome battlecry: "TOWANDAAAAA!~"

What? Gar rented Fried Green Tomatoes, okay?


Brin lets Pepper guide her to safety. There's no way she can enter this fight, not with those wounds… but… she can help to protect Civilians! With a little concentration, a glowing green and gold shield appears around a group of residents near her and Pepper and they're guided into the building with the pair of women.

Shifts pair drop to the ground - whether they're still alive will be worked out later but three more Purifiers turn to face him and start swinging their weapons as clubs … the firing mechanisms jammed.

Firing mechanisms jam, thanks to Mikes intevention, Lunair's laser weapon takes out two of three, the third deciding to rush her. Whilst Vorpals efforts down the one he hits… and two more look at Wanda and pale (it's possible her exploits from before have spread.).

It seems though that the Purifiers have learned their lessons and second group round the corner at the other end of the street, quickly attacking the building where Pepper and Brin are sheltering.


Being in the middle of it all, Shift doesn't quite recognize Lunair's elation at seeing him, alive and well. Alright, not exactly 'well'. He's missing almost every 'good' and 'heroic' piece of his soul, and he's on a metahuman cocaine rampage. It's bound to get uglier from here.

The Purifer's weapons pass right through Kwabena, his body transforming to smoke upon impact. He gives them a sneer, then begins bashing the faces of his first victims as they lay on the ground. His boot finds chin, splattering blood and teeth all over the place. Worse yet, he doesn't appear to be stopping, even if the bastards are already dead by now. "You're next," he warns the three who'd attacked him.


Lunair is grateful there are protected peoples. She is really just better at shooting. She's an offensive sort, and not because she tells bad jokes and makes puns. She doesn't - wait, maybe she does - remember what happened to Shift as far as she knows. She blinks beneath her black visor at Shift.

Well, short of a Proton pack, she's not going to handle Shift in a fight. Nor does she intend to now. But her attention is torn between the one rushing her and those heading for the building. "Tch. Bullies and speciesists. You are lower than the lowest of all existing life forms and even it is offended."

This is why we don't let Luna dialogue. She dismisses her laser cannon, as while she has no problems with murder, Metalbuddy and others do. So now, it's time for Operation Troll the Shit out of the Purifiers. It's time for BURLESQUE BOMBS.


This is the time where Mike wants to abandon the "sweet-streeper-taur" body and pop back into a normal humanesque form. But no. That's not going to happen, because apparently that state-shifter guy is on evil-mutant-PCP and he's killing people. He needs a conscience. Fine. Mike will have to make one. And Oh Wait, while part of him designs a proper kind of collar that won't CARE when Evil Fog Man shifts shape, he has to pop up a second virtualized brain to deal with the second group. Once again, no guns allowed… and while he's at it, they don't get to have zippers either. Those are frozen into a single solid metal bar. Just wait until later guys.

Now what is Luna doing? Get some camerabugs on that… oh god. Please. No.


"To Wanda what?" asks Wanda of the strange person flying over her head. Wait…he wants her to zap them? Shaking her head at how crazy the world is…and this is coming from a person who regularly changes reality…she starts flinging energy at the oncoming Purifiers, still unaware of those attacking the house behind her. Flinging energy is not the best use of her powers…similar to using a computer as a hammer…but it does mean no jelly people. Burnt people. Hurt people. Possibly dead people. But no jelly people. The scarlet magic slamming into the two wary Purifiers before they have time to run.


"Brinley, stay here." Pepper moves to step back out onto the street, one hand at the bluetooth in her ear. "JARVISE, can you give me a better idea what what's going."


Chaos, chaos everywhere. Wanda taes down two Purifiers, which makes life easier for Vorpal- but Shift just has to come and make it hard again.

"Hey, HEY! Dude, dial it back! Mike, is he one of yours?" he has never seen this man before- but the X-Men have the same code about killing as the Titans do, so this man's actions just feel wrong. "Stand back and cool down!" the cheshire cat says, reaching out to grab Shaft's shoulder while he is still solid "-don't make me repeat myself!" he says. The man could turn into smoke, apparently… the cheshire had a Pokeball ready to appear, just in case he tried that on him.

Over the comms, he hears that Pepper and Mana may be in trouble. Damnit. "Miss Witch, can you…?"


"Miss Potts. There's a new group of Purifiers attacking the building in, please don't step outside." As Pepper moves out onto the street, the green and gold shield encompasses her - good thing too, the Purifiers trying to open fire and working out their weapons aren't firing rush the redheaded CEO, bouncing off Brins shield.

The three purifiers facing Shift look at each and shrug, rushing him all in a hurry. A group of Purifiers, maybe 6, end up stripped of their clothes and tassles abound, thanks to Lunair's weapon.


"Hands off, pussy-face!" snaps Kwabena to Vorpal. "Dese fucks are -"

Just then, Mike's collar wraps itself around his neck, and the mutant hits the ground, writhing in pain.


Tassles and all, poor Shift. Lunair blinks beneath her black visor, but she's got to protect the downed, even if murderous, mutant. She rushes forward and chucks another burlesque bomb at them, aware that Mike is there and tends to object to her habit of 'level freaking everything if everyone is dead PROBLEM SOLVED'.


Note for the unwary: the collar is actually a jury-rigged take-down device; Mike_1 directs a small swarm of the local bug-shaped spy-bots to reconfigure into defense mode, and loop around the neck of that shapeshifting killstomping guy; it starts out as a delicate looking gold chain of bugs and gets much heavier and denser, as Mike_2 is busy making sure that any FURTHER Purifiers are not going to be able to get here on time. Spark plug problems most likely, that's the easiest way.

Unfortunately someone threw a burlesque bomb, and a disturbing number of those bugs have tassles, and they are doing a Rock-ettes chorus line into place around his neck, and singing in tiny bug voices, "No Killing, No Maiming, It's you they'll Be Blaming, and You don't Want to go to JAAIIIIILLL"


Wanda stares at the tassles. Should that be happening. But then she remembers that she was doing something that didn't involve the can-can. Brin and Pepperpotts was in danger, that's it. She runs for building, coat billowing out behind her, energy building around her hands once more. Brinley's shield protects Pepper so Wanda turns her attention on the attackers themselves. Her hands outstretched as she blasts her energy at them and reality warps. No jelly people…just anything non-organic turning into flowers. Guns. Clothes. It's the summer of 69 all over again. Though if the Purifiers have any metal fillings then they are also now flowers…which could be a mouthful for some.


Pepper Potts hears JARVIS' warning just a moment too late, then startles and backs up against the building as … Brinley's force field keeps her from a gruesome death. She's just about to try and flee back inside when all of the Purifiers are suddenly awash in flowers. ANd their clothes are gone. "What the…?" It doesn't stop her from fleeing back inside, though. "This is just insane. JARVIS, is everyone all right?"


It's the summer of '69 all over again- and you know what that means?

It means Vorpal was in the range of the Burlesque Bomb, that's what it means.

~What good is sittin' just to wait for your doom?
Come hear the anvils play
Have a metal beret, ol' chum!
Here's your metal beret!~

Tiny glowing anvils, the 'metal berets', appear and fall on the Purifiers closest to Vorpal. *ding.* It should be mentioned that, at this moment, the cheshire cat is wearing a black leotard, fishnet stockings (hey, at least he's got the legs for it) and a little black bowler hat with a white fringe. Zatanna would be so proud. He also throws the little bowler hat at the nearest Purifier. It makes for a surprisingly good frisbee weapon.

"Aha, is it a foot chopper? One!" kick "Two!" kick "And a-three!" the kicks are quite effective, "Will a Fosse neck do it?" a karate chop to the neck to the nearest Purifier, and then the victory pose-

"That's 'Vorpal' with a 'V', darling!"


Brins already called the NYPD, her contacts there, to be sure. Sirens can be heard approaching the street. As Wanda's spells take effect, she just kind of stares at the Summer of '69 happening right outside the door of building whilst limping over to Pepper, looking a little helpless "I guess that's different…."

Burlesque-Vorpal and Lunair take out what remains of the first group… of the second, a good number have flowers peeking through their teeth - most just stare at Wanda in disbelief - if someone's quick, they'll be able to take what remains of this group out too.


There's simply no avoiding the Burlesque Bombs. While Shift wrangles with his collar, he tries to transform into smoke, but the little buggers just stick to him, still around his neck every time he re-forms.

Only now, Vorpal isn't the only one wearing a black leotard and fishnets.

Mollified, the whole ordeal has Kwabena frozen in place, staring down at the tassels now sticking right to his man-nipples. Because aforementioned leotard is equipped with boob-holes. Kwabena's better parts may have been separated from him, but his capacity for self-respect was restored, not long ago, by agents of WAND.

Its like an equation trying to right itself without the sum of its parts. The damage done to his psyche may leave him more animal than human, but this… this is an onslaught to his self respect that he has no words for.

He turns to look at the others, wide-eyed.

"… Make it stop?"


It's true. They are AoE. Lunair is giggling inside of her armor. Wow. This is far more fantastic and amusing than she had ever planned. She is remarkably catlike in batting her opponents around for her amusement, if by batting, one means burlesque dancing. Nevertheless, the Purifiers aren't entirely out.

She'll help Vorpal and trip one of the passing Purifiers. There's poor Shift, too. "… sorry, in a moment." Lunair has to make sure the Purifiers are down. "We need to um, subdue -" The Purifiers. She's trying so hard not to laugh at this all. So. So hard.


There's a small problem for Mike's quick-acting takedown in that all the metal on their bodies has been violently replaced by something that has given him a sharp, sudden headache, and he can't get headaches. Wait… yeah, when he overextended. But this is different. This is what happened when Vorpal got chaos all over Mike's careful, orderly constructed device in Japan (for details, see part two of Cat and Mech In Tokyo, in stores and inboxes next month.)

"Chaos magic. Just what I needed," Mike_2 says with clenched teeth. He aims a fist at the purifiers about to escape, and hits them with a sonic blast, a variation on the 'brown note' effect that should simply make them unable to control their limbs for a few hours. They should just slump to the ground. It'll be messy, but they deserve it.

"Sorry, Mister Shifter," the chorus bugs sing, "But we've … GOTTA DANCE! GOTTA SING!"

OK, that wasn't the burlesque bomb. That was all Mike_1 remote controlling them.


At least people aren't yelling at her this time so Wanda decides that flower people is better than jelly people. Though the jelly people was pretty cool…maybe just one? Wanda runs for Brinley and Pepper. "Are you two okay?" Brinley's bandaging after the encounter with Jean reminds the witch how she isn't around enough so when she is, she wants to make sure she does all she can. "I don't understand what is happening" she explains to the two women, "There are people singing and dancing…badly."


Pepper Potts leans to look out a window, and thinks she recognizes the armored figure that is Lunair. "I think it's okay…. well, let me rephrase. I think it's to keep us and all the civilians around from getting shot at. At least she and Brinley were clear of whatever is going on out there. SHe'd NEVER live it down.


What Vorpal does… is best not described fully in detail, if only because it will probably be all over youtube soon enough. Suffice to say that now he is re-enacting scenes from CATS, with a lot of kicks. Funny enough, though, there are no Purifiers left in the area- he's just doing the coreography for kicks.

Or not. A quick -zip- through the Rabbit Hole, and the cheshire cat is visiting Jellicle Kicks to any Purifier unlucky enough to still be standing.

"Round the cathedral rang vivaaaat- life to the everlasting caaaat!~


Purifiers litter the ground … most with flowers sprouting from them. Brin looks at Wanda and Pepper before stepping outside … only to blink at the view of Vorpal and Shift in burlesque clothing. She might need some brain bleach after this!

Taking some zip-ties from her messenger, Brin hands them to Wanda and nods to the thugs on the ground "Good work, Wanda. Now zip-tie their hands together, the police will be here to take them into custody." The sirens indicate the NYPD are nearly there.

Seeing Lunair, Brin raises her good hand "Good work, Armory. Thank you Vorpal and Mike." There's really not much else to say.

The civilisations slowly file out of the building and disappear… who can blame them for not wanting to be there when the police arrive.


Lunair smiles, and waves at Brin. Only the second is visible. Lunair isn't keen on staying around with the police, so she will quietly depart. "Glad to help, good to see you. Be well." And the young mutant will wander off, chaos and nipple tassels in her wake.


Despite appearances, Mike's a force for ORDER dammit. So why is it so funny that there are repurposed bugs wearing tassels on the nice torc that Shift is wearing? Order doesn't HAVE to be boring, is why.

The major street repairs will continue when he gets the man some clothes that aren't suitable for a person doing things that aren't very dignified.


Wanda looks at the zipties…then the 'prisoners'…and then the zipties. "Okay, I can do that" she smiles to Brinley before getting to work. The sounds of sirens make her flinch but she doesn't have to run from them anymore. She has a Visa!! Which she carries with her everywhere.


Pepper Potts sees that everything is under control and sighs. It's a mixture of relief and exasperation. Tapping at her tablet, she starts a phone call. "Hello… yes. No, no. I'm actually calling to postpone that delivery until tomorrow." She abruptly winces and pulls the bluetooth from her ear. "I kind of deserved that."


There can be such a thing as too much chaos, and that burlesque bomb sort of tipped the scales for Vorpal. As the effects wear off, he looks a little worse for wear. Never you mind the fact that he is wearing a leotard- his uniform is basically a unitard anyways. Granted… it does not have fishnets…

"Um… I think I'm going to go back to Titan HQ and… send Zatanna or someone else over," Vorpal says once he approaches Brin and Pepper. "I don't feel so good…"

He departs via Rabbit Hole. He is feeling so poorly that he actually ends up appearing in the middle of the stage during a "Cabaret" touring company performance. Lack of focus can do that.

He goes back to the Titans' castle after that.

But not without first doing some choreography- because,hey, when in Rome…

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