Summary:
February 8, 2015: Melody sets a chain of horrors in motion for the minor gangs in Gotham that could be a threat to Catwoman's plans.
The Narrows
<Location Description>
Characters
NPCs
*Random gang members
Mood Music:
[*<http://insert.video.or.music.link.here>]
Melody was going to put herself to the test. If she could make criminal organizations on paper and build them from the ground up, she could actually apply that to the real, and will apply that to the real to set things into motion the best way that she knows how. She notices a pattern, people move when someone gets hurt. People move when the prize is in motion and guess what? All of them would benefit from her genius and humble, maybe! Time to see how valuable she really is!
THE SET UP:
Those who are in the know, know that Melody is Catwoman's and East End's Ace-boon-koon. Perhaps that's why the other week? She was shot to smithereens and considered dead by all intents and purposes. Imagine their surprise when she was still up and running, slinging out intel to the Alley Cats and Speed Demonz, and now it was time to drive that point home. A series of messages state that Rant was on the move, filtered out to some of the small time gangs who were out there to impress, some of the small time gangs who could actually put a dent in Selina's plans to take over the criminal empire that was in Gotham. Pictures were taken by traffic cameras, routed through the necessary channels.. all she needed was one person to drive the point home that the Speed Demonz? Weren't to be fucked with. Not in Gotham.
Of course that could have some drawbacks. Speed Demonz could actually gain a bigger head through all of this and try to usurp Catwoman from her position. But that same thing that would give them a big head would be their downfall.
The Ghost Rider; he's in Melody's pocket. Not theirs. Not anyone elses.
Another message was sent: This time to Dan Ketch. She has his paperwork and wanted to grab a bit of dinner to explain what she had done for his ASC's. Which was true, she did create that paperwork as promised and soon, acquired a building so that Dan could operate his own business out of, do things his way. A small gesture of thanks due to what was soon to happen.
And soon, it was going to get dark.
The Narrows is where Melody targets, the gangs were on the rise, the maze like ghetto was about to be beaten down into a small little pulp; gangsters who kill for money and drugs, rapists, vagrants who were ne'er do wells.. start small Melody. This was going to be a test.
To Dan: Meet me at the pizza shop? I got your stuff! Plus I'm hungry. I'm buying.
Out in the Ethers: Rant is on the move!
It's about to go down.
Dan Ketch has no idea of any such machinations or ulterior motives. For a guy with such a checkered background, he's strangely trusting in this circumstance. Or maybe just optimistic. Getting licensed had already gotten him a raise at the shop he worked - the chance to get his own place, to be able to have no boss at all and just do the work he wanted - yeah, he could get behind that.
Dan's wearing a heavy leather jacket, his helmet shiny midnight. Blue jeans, biker boots. When he unzips the jacket after parking his car, a Five Finger Death Punch shirt stands out on his chest. He takes a moment to light a cigarette, puffing it down quickly as he walks the few steps. He sees Melody through the window, waving before he goes inside as he gets his last couple of puffs, lingering near the doorway.
There was a bit of a bright smile as she sees Dan on his bike. Even though the situation was grim, she was sure that she had at least a few minutes to actually chit chat before the riff-raff came for her. The Speed Demonz had access, that one time access to Melody's internal systems that would allow them to view things from her side, restricted of course. They were only allowed to watch. Alley Cats were placed, far and away from Dan and Melody but ready to swoop in should things go too bad. So in essense.. she was relatively safe. Relatively.
She exits the booth after wiping away at her mouth, lingering bits of soda upon her upper lip, snagging up the papers and folders she had for Dan as she exits out of the building to stand near by.
"Dan!" She squeals, genuinely happy to see him, unleashing a hug that he probably couldn't try to get away from. Melody had untapped strength, and it shows in her hugs.
"You are so going to trip out when you find out what I've done for you." She was wiggling now, in her place. No.. she was really wiggling. She looked weird!
Dan returns the hug, unsure what to make of the enthusiasm, but glad she's pleased. Hey, as long as it worked out for him, he was good. Truth was, he was putting a lot of trust in Melody. This stuff with all the paperwork and shit was way over his head. Dan was a high school dropout and probably hadn't read a book in…well, since before he dropped out. He technically had his GED, but, well…Melody had gotten him that, too.
He did know cars and bikes and every mechanical bit that mattered for his job, other than the accounting. He'd have to hire a dude for that, and then put the fear of god into him so he wouldn't think about screwing Dan over.
""I really do appreciate it," he says once Melody finally releases him, "Let's get some slices an' some beers an' you can tell me all 'bout it."
"Hang on. I think we should put these papers on your bike somewhere. I don't want to get any grease or anything on them." She was serious. There were already little droplets of soda on the folder, pizza sauce would just be ten times worse.
"I secured you a facility, brand new in the Diamond District. It's nothing really, but it is outfitted with everything you need and I upgraded the computer systems myself so you can do those car emission check-ie thingies. Cool beans, right?"
She opens up the saddle on his bike, folding the papers and sliding them in. "So you have the deed to the building and all of the insurance papers and everything else that'll make it as legit as possible. No one should really question, but if they do, they'll have to do a hell of a lot of digging."
Her eyes shift to the left as she spies a car pulling up to the corner, which was soon left there by a man in all black. He seemingly runs across the street, disappearing from view..
Melody takes a breath, then slowly stands, turning towards Dan but settling her bottom upon the seat of his bike. She was stalling.
"So, what do you think?"
Dan Ketch lights a fresh cigarette since they're staying outside. Normally, he wouldn't let anyone else touch his bike, but it's just the saddlebag. And she is helping him out. So he swallows that instinctive resistance. "Diamond district, huh? That's definiely a nice setup. And yeah, the emission checks are a good money grab - that and oil changes are bread and butter stuff in a place where most people can just take the friggin' subway if their ride breaks down."
He notices the guy running across the street, narrowing his eyes. He may not be privy to the plan, but he's been a New York street punk since he was eleven years old. Hell, he might know a couple of guys in the local crew. He doesn't make a move, although he feels an itch at the back of his neck, the Rider stirring. There was someone guilty nearby - not freshly spilled blood, nothing immediate, but old sins that made is skin crawl a bit. "Got some troublemakers hangin' around this place. Alleys watchin' over you?" he says, already knowing that Melody is Catwoman's girl.
"I don't know anything about any of that stuff. Yet." She waves her hand briefly. "I mean, there's not a direct need to know? But once I need to know it, I'll know it and give a helping hand. Cool, huh?" Melody grins, arms folding about her chest. She was bracing herself.
Because this was going to hurt.
"Yeah, they are. The Alley Cats, at least. I told them to stay back far enough so that you.." She winces just a little, gesturing. "..You know. But either way, I'm safe, they got my back. Way back. I don't think anyone knows that I'm here aside from them and Catwoman." She finally stands now, hands sliding into her back pocket as she takes a step away from the bike.
"Alright. All I had was a Pepsi, I'm thinking I could go for a who-.."
*POP*
The sound itself wasn't as loud, the initial fire. What was loud was the crack of bones that the bullet forcibly pushed itself through, right at the middle of her spine. From what Dan could see? A dark pooling of blood in between her breasts, immediately wetting her shirt. The look of shock upon her face as a hand reaches out towards him to try to grab until that too, was shot away only to destroy hope.
The car down the street suddenly flares to life, the illumination of the street lamps draws out six figures, and a few more in the distance who cheer and roar as they begin to descend upon the two with bats, sticks, all intending to make Dan their next victim.
Melody tips forward, her breath immediately shrill, the last and final shot intended to be taken towards her heart but instead? Her shoulder gets capped which causes her to spin around like a top headed straight towards the ground.
Normally, there's a moment. A second to think, to react. Dan would've expressed horror, sorrow. He'd have tried to help her, to pick her up, to get her to a hospital. But her blood splatters, blasting from her body by the force of the weapons fire, langing literally on his skin. And where the blood touches him, he begins to burn, the flame spreading rapidly, as if he were soaked in gasoline and struck with a match.
It must be quite a sight for the men in the car, still not even past the sight of their murder, to see their target's associate burst into flame.
Skin melts from bone, while other flesh corrodes, turns rotting, a mix of motor oil and meat and ash bulking out the body inside the leathers. Chains clink and wrap, crawling from some unknown hell and taking their place. The Rider extends a hand and the chain lashes out, snaking under the car and wrapping around the axle. He pulls hard and tears it free, making the wheels pop off, puncturing explosively as Dan Ketch screams and screams and screams in agony until only the Rider remains.
"Innocent blood has been spilled. Face your punishment," the Rider says, his voice filling the street, the undercurrent of wailing souls, hell's own chorus, providing a backing harmony. His bike is aflame, transformed, bone and metal twisted as he starts to walk towards the car, his chain lashing and flickering around him like an agitated cobra.
Melody is left behind, bleeding. The Rider isn't about saving lives. The Rider is about punishing the wicked.
It was meant to be quick. The shots. That was the only thing that Melody didn't predict. She knew that she would be hurt, murder would be attempted, and she knew that she would be a target. She didn't expect that person to be that damn good of a shot, but she got lucky. It was a one time thing, anyways.
Her eyes glance up just in time to see the skin melt away from Dan, her chest heaving harshly, blood pooling from her lips as her gaze attempts to go dark. Her nanites were set afire, shining brightly, different colors here and there as she heals herself -just- enough to not bleed out and shut down.
"Yeah! We got that bitch!"
"Catwoman's going down!"
East end is ours!"
"Guys.. what the fuck!!"
With the car soon dismantled, the men begin to filter out, while the ones with the chains and sticks rush towards Dan with the intent to do harm. The men in the car? They open fire. They were afraid, but figure.. if they take him down before they reach him, they had a chance to get away. They already got Melody, they were done. All they needed to do was escape with their lives.
"LIGHT THAT FOOL UP! KEEP SHOOTING!"
The bullets strike and seem to pierce the leather, but it's only visible by the brief sparks of flame that shoot from the bullet holes, the leather resealing like a demon's flesh in the wake of the impacts. The Rider walks forward, implacable and unrelenting, direclty into the gunfire, not flinching from it in the least.
The man with the chains and sticks? He does an elaborate kung-fu maneuver, leaping into the air and somersaulting, an impressive display of athleticism as he pops blades from his staves, making them scythes. They call this one 'Reap' after all, and he intends to gut the Rider.
The Spirit of Vengeance grasps his ankle in mid-air and yanks him down to the pavement with the full-force of its strength, interrupting his graceful assault and filling the street with the sound of the faux-ninja's spine cracking on impact.
The Rider steps on his chest and keeps walking. "Vengeance will be served," it says and it extends an arm to unleash a gout of hellfire, striking one of the men with machine guns and setting him aflame. The fire burns his flesh, yes, but slowly, roasting him, the true burning going into his soul, his very spirit burning as the flames of hell torment him like one of the dead and damned.
Ghost Rider says, "ALL WILL SUFFER"
Fire, brimstone. The men were all suffering. Some even decide to take off running, intending to leave their friends behind to suffer the wrath of 'killing' Melody Kenway.
The man with the chains and sticks, he was dying, his back was broken and he couldn't breathe, he could barely even move save for a twitch of fingers left in its wake.
One with the axe rushes forward, intending on vengance with the Rider, swinging the axe high with the attempt to take the Rider's head off as he screams bloody murder, intending to join his brother in arms in death if need be. Tears was in his eyes, fear in his face, but he didn't care. Not when he sees his friend twisted upon the ground and stepped on.
Melody's 'killer'? He was out in the open now, eyes wide, sniper rifle soon trained upon the ghost rider to fire shots towards his direction. Each bang and click was met with rushed reloads and shitty aim.
The other shooter? He's on fire, he can't move.. the gun explodes in his hand as he drops to his knees.. screaming.
Melody hears this.. her body twisting so that she lands upon her belly, her one good hand latching upon the concrete to try to move in the Rider's direction. She couldn't feel her legs.. she just couldn't…
The chain takes care of the runners, lashing out and entangling them even as they make it halfway down the street. One is grasped around the throat, a tight noose that yanks his momentum short and crushes his larynx. The other's luckier, or so it might seem at first, the chain lashing at an ankle and pulling him from his feet, making him fall onto his face and break his nose…and then slowly, slowly dragging him back to his fate.
The axe sinks into the rotted meat of the Rider's shoulder, cleaving no further, the undead monster's flesh like mushy concrete. The Rider lashes out a hand and grasps the gangster by the throat, lifting him from his feet.
"You have blood on your hands. Vengeance must be served. You will know PENANCE!" it cries. The tiny scarlet lights in the depths of the Rider's skull flare bright as it meets the gaze of the man, locking him into place. The assassin begins to scream in horror, high-pitched, gibbering wails as he feels every pain he's ever inflicted, every bit of suffering, every moment of fear, blasted into his soul in a single moment, his sanity blasted to ribbons by the time the Rider lets him fall, curling into the fetal position on teh ground.
And the chain slowly drags the other back, back, clawins and scratching at the pavement in his desperation to escape. The Rider waits, patiently, the pleading for mercy meaning nothing at all to it. It has no mercy. No feeling. Only judgment. Only vengeance.
The runners were down, they weren't going anywhere, felled by the Demon on the bike. The Demon of vengance, is what they would call it. Some had given up, resigned to their fate, remaining upon the ground, twitching, wracked with sobs.
Axe man suffered the worst, but it was what he deserved. He murdered children, pushed drugs upon them and tossed them aside while laughing. He even assaulted an old couple, killing the man with a blow to the head while causing his wife to stroke out from the trauma. Her children are taking care of her now, her days fast approaching. She lost her love, and her life, all because of the axe man.
The assassin too. People were dollar bills to him, each pop dropped him millions in cash, all spent on drugs and the finer things in life that only provided him with five minutes of pleasure.
The other one? He's dragged back but he doesn't fight, but he does cry.. knowing that he deserved his impending fate.
The Rider plants its booted foot on the man dragged back, rolling him over onto his back, "Look into my eyes and know pain," it says and, much as the man tries to resist, he does, only the briefest glimpse enough to lock him into the Penance Stare, his screams joining those of his fellow as his back arches in spiritual agony.
Carnage, wreckage and havoc left in its wake. The Rider considers it a job well done. Slowly, it turns its head back towards Melody and starts to walk in her direction, chain furling itself in and lashing around the body of its master.
"You live, Melody of the Lights," it says. "Tell me who these men are. Whoever sent them has earned vengeance."
The beginning of the Narrows was a mess. A total mess. Bodies were strewn about, as well as car parts, blood.. flames. Melody would consider this a job well done, but it was going to take a while for her back to knit itself into proper order. The last of the men crumble and cry, remain upon the ground.. sirens weren't heard in the distance just yet but it was all very suspect. The comms, obviously, were still down and in need of repairing.
Melody's eyes flutter as the Rider approaches, her good arm pushing herself around to her back, the blood filling her lungs just a touch until she lets out a little cough to clear the ways to actually speak.
"I.. I don't know.." She whispers out, her body soon shivering. She wasn't afraid.. she didn't kill any innocents but yet, there was guilt. Her hand even reaches out towards the Rider, at least for a little bit of assistance, just a smidge. She was almost healed, but her legs were not yet functioning.
The bike growls, quite literally, a snarl like a wild animal coming from it as it shifts into gear, jetting forward to its master's hand.
"Then I will find out for myself. Keep yourself safe, Melody of the Lights. Your mechanical angels may not always be able to save you," it says.
The Rider turns and mounts its cycle. The driver thought he'd escaped, hiding inside the wreck of the car, pretending to be dead. The Rider rides over, spinning a wheel to send a gout of flame behind and ripping off the roof of the car. It draws out the driver, plump and squealing like a pig in a suit, holding him over its head.
"Come with me, round boy. We're going to have some laughs," it says with a hideous snarl and then it takes off, the motorcycle flying into gear at impossible speed, reaching over a hundred miles per hour before he gets to the end of the street, the driver's scream of fear making a doppler effect in his wake as he's taken to be broken…
Back to: RP Logs