2019-06-22 - Who is The Candyman?

Summary:

Fates collide as Alex, Harper, and Mikhail brawl in a warehouse.

Log Info:

Storyteller: None
Date: Sat Jun 22 08:21:21 2019
Location: Not-so-empty Warehouse

Related Logs

None

Theme Song

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mikhail-ursusphobosharper-row

A FEW YEARS AGO:

"Cullen! Cullen! Look at me!" Harper said, shaking her younger brother. He was probably only fifteen, laid up half naked in the shower, trembling as Harper keeps the water running, her hand smacking his face to keep him awake. "Who gave this to you?! Tell me where you got this shit from?!"

He could barely speak, but the few words that he could get out were…

NOW:

The loud hum of the motorcycle dies down as Bluebird parks a block away from the supposed meeting spot. Even though she tried to give up the vigilante life, there were a few things that she couldn't ignore. The first one, funnily enough was a bear in the subway. The second one, was the elusive criminal she's spent most of 'that life' attempting to find. It was personal.

Her brother was involved and nearly died, but on top of that, countless of other teens. The culprit disappeared during the disaster zone event, and now whispers are returning of his name.. he had to be taken down. Drugs. Gunrunning. A power grab which starts in the shittiest parts of the state of New York, probably spread beyond and now he's off and up on bigger and better game.

As of now, a complete arms deal is going down. Harper had good intel that there would at least been ten men; five per side, to make a buy of military grade weaponry and armor. They weren't hulk busters, but they could pierce kevlar and would be deadly to cops and vigilantees alike. That was no es bueno.

So as she approaches the door, she tugs her mask down into place, a few little flat disks taken from her belt and deftly slid under the door and deployed with a few taps of her fingers upon her armband.

She's looking inside.

Mikhail Ursus is working security for one of the sellers, an international conglomerate with enough Russian ties to make it worthwhile. This was standard issue stuff, boring as hell and not worth wasting his bear form on. Still, a little extra scratch on the side. He was saving up. He had a real job now, but extra money never hurt.

He wasn't particularly trying that hard. Or particularly paying attention. Especially since he's currently off to the side and taking a piss.

Alex has been in a bit of a mood since his girlfriend up and left him. I mean, she kept telling him that she would? But he still didn't really expect her to follow through. So, what's a guy to do when life throws a curveball he wasn't expecting? Take it out on random criminals. Which is what he'd been spending most of his evenings doing. Him and, well, seemingly every other powered jackass in the city, to be honest. But thankfully, they're in great supply and plenty to go around.

How Alex happened to come to this particular spot is of little consequence; he's here now, and he's gonna mess up someone's plans. Everyone's plans, if we're being honest. No sword, no mask, just a little godling and his fists. He's on the roof, looking in through a vent. Playing eenie-meanie-miney-moe in his head to decide which asshole gets pummelled first. Pummelling keeps his mind off his own troubles, which, ironically, makes him a happier little godling. And if there's one thing that is good for the immediate area of the city, it's to keep the god of fear in relatively good spirits.

The tiny little self-made drones fly all around the warehouse. Sure there were a few missing, a few glitches here and there, but she captures the videos and the setups were like such.

Such as, she didn't even recognize Mikhail in actual clean clothing. Men surrounding park bench tables, goods being cracked open and unwrapped. Men talking in some odd language and laughing. Harper taps her forearm and considers her actions. It was only ten of them. She can handle ten.

A quick pat of herself down and.. well. She was -never- like Batman and the rest of the crew. Nothing she did was subtle.

The door to the warehouse opens loudly, creaking and dragging against the door, Harper letting out a few girly grunts as she slips inside, then tugs it back into place. Blatantly loud, she lets out a huff, drawing the attention of the men present, varying ages and sizes and all too damn big for the young whip.

Who cares!

"Sorry guys!" Bluebird calls out. "One moment. Sorry." She pushes the door shut with a large creak and groan, then gathers the chain that hangs upon the handle to wrap it around and around, locking it from the inside.

"Vot is this?" One man shouts. Clearly amused.
"Vittle girl haf deaf wish."
"No, little girl get traded. Finish up, Vladizlov. I'll get ze dufflebag. Skinny ting. No meat. Will sell good on th—URK!"

Whatever the hell Bluebird threw, it cleaned his clock and knocked him out cold.

"Alright boys!" Harper smacks her gloved fists together, then smiles. "In the great words of Bruce Campbell who plays Sam Axe in Burn Notice who is -totally- awesome as Ashley in Evil Dead 2.. 'Come get some.'"

Mikhail Ursus had just been walking back from his tinkle, zipping up and wiping his hands on his jacket. He arrives just in time to see his coworkers deciding to try and kidnap the girl. Which is not what he signed up to do. He's hear to guard and arms deal, not kidnap girls, even girls wearing…colorful costumes.

This job really didn't pay enough.

So he just turns around and starts to walk away.

Who the hell is this bitch? Alex grumbles to himself, and stands from his little perch on the roof, conveniently standing over a grating large enough for him to fit through. Who designs these buildings, anyway? He kicks the vent in, which falls down the considerable distances to the floor, and hops down. Of course, he doesn't just hop down. He falls with some purpose, and lands a rather large slavic fellow in a cowboy hat (who dresses these people?), knocking him to the floor, but probably not significantly injuring him in the process, due to the disparity in Alex's size and his target. "Nice hat, jackass," Alex says sarcastically. "I'm just gonna go ahead and take that." The girl looks like she can handle herself.. at least, she seems confident enough. Let's just see how that goes. Alex has a hat to collect.

Bluebird. The ever elusive .. well, retired vigilante. Kid who has seen some shit. One who quit the Batfam by completely ghosting and not returning their calls. That's who she is! Meanwhile..

With Mikhail turning to walk away, there was a faint click in the shadows. A rise of a man that was nearly the same size as him intercepts his path, gun held in hand as he crosses the in front of himself, grasping at his wrist. That in itself was going to be the first problem for tonight.

For those first clicks draw into a sea of many; the warehouse itself was surrounded from the inside out, Harper's glitchy little toys didn't work for her in the long run.

"Where do you think you're going?" The man says to Mikhail, clearly blocking his path.

Alex's .. well. He was pretty easy. Humans do not look up when they walk, they of course do not do it when they stand. It was rather comical the way he landed upon the man, knocked off his feet and probably a broken bone from the impact, letting out a loud urg and a gurgle as he lay upon the ground, attempting to gain his bearings with a drag towards the hat that was definitely his and no one else. You cannot have it!

Harper's foes do not waste time. Immediately five of them approach, and fists were flying. Sure, she looked like she could handle herself, but she was totally undersized and -almost- outmatched. Punches were thrown, kicks were flying. Gut punches were had.

Little did Alex know, the crew that hid in the shadows broke away from Mikhail's position, and began to advance.

Mikhail Ursus regards the man slowly, "I am going home to get sandwich. You pay me for security. That not security. That bullshit not what I signed up for. You want someone who doesn't mind, send out some of your Bravda taintlickers and let them do it for respect. I don't need your respect. I just want my money."

"If we have problem, well…I can solve problem real easy."

And then his makeshift uniform bursts at the seams, fur spreads and rises over his body as his skeleton reforms and extends, his body rising to nearly nine feet in height until a massive, overmuscled brown bear stands in his place.

"Now I have to hurt you. Stupid."

Alex starts to walk toward the hat, even as its owner tries to crawl toward it. "Who the hell wears a cowboy hat in Manhattan? What are you, trying to be John Wayne?" Eyes flicker around the room, taking in the events transpiring. Bluebird-skinny-girl taking a bit of a beating. People rushing around trying to, probably, round up any weapons and goods. A guy turning into a bear. Some other- wait, a guy turning into a fucking bear? "Gotta say, sometimes I love this city. You don't see shit like this in Iowa, am I right Ivan?" Wait, how did Alex know the guy's name? He leans down and picks up the hat, and brushes whatever debris it may have picked up before slipping it onto his head. Alex looks particularly stupid wearing a cowboy hat. This is an objective fact, not just an opinion I want you all to share. Stupid with a capital R. Almost as stupid as the guy who's about to fight the giant bear. "Hey, do you need any help with that?" Calling to Bluebird, toward whom he's making his way; even if she says no, he's probably going to join in regardless. It's either that or fight the bear. Or help the bear. Which side the bear is on is thus far unclear to Alex. But he's generally a friend to animals of all sizes and shapes, so let's just let the bear do what the bear wants to do, yes?

One would -think- someone would run screaming at the sight of a bear. But half of these people are Russian, especially the big.. now smaller man who stands in front. Unphased. Because he's Russian, and he rolls like that. Instead of talking, it was clear a fight was going to be had.. so the Russian man goes to work.

The more that Alex speaks, or even lingers a little too close, Ivan wasn't having it. He could feel the cold sweat creep up is skin and down his back, probably soiling the horrible outfit that he wears. It was an intense feeling, something he hadn't felt before, even as he still tries to cling and grasp for the hat that'll never be his..

"I.." Harper calls out, ducking a hit, leaping into the air to place a well round-kick flat into a mans chest. He staggers and falls, rolling back to land upon his belly, coughing up a little bit of blood from the constant hits he took. "..got it!" And.. yeah. That was until she saw the bear. He was really hard to miss! Standing over a few boxes which were knocked back by those hidden in the shadows to reveal themselves. They were already running.

"Big bear?!" Harper calls out in recognition. "What are you do—ACK!"

Harper really wasn't that careful, for a man took up a chain and wrapped it around her neck, dragging her back and choking all the while.

Behind Alex? He could hear it. The clicking and racking of guns as they begin to immediately open fire. Anyone who can fall from that distance and still walk must not be human at all.

Ursa's opponent may be going to work, but it's short work and pretty unsatisfying. Mikhail just hits him once, clobbering him lazily along the side and snapping his arm, sending him flying up and over a nearby car to land on a heap on the sidewalk. Bullets start to fly, but, unlike your average bear, Mikhail is bulletproof.

Bulletproof, super strong and very angry bear is NOT a good recipe for asshole gun smugglers.

"What does look like?" he responds to Harper, leaping into a group of men and starting to casually batter an entire mob of Russian flunkies.

Alex isn't bulletproof, but he is pretty terrifyingly fast. He hears the telltale sounds of rounds being chambered before the bullets start to fly, and he dives for cover; this is a warehouse, so of course there's a conveniently placed piles of crates for him to take refuge behind. Whether or not the crates are full of something explosive is another question. "Hey guys?" He calls out, though his voice might not overpower the sound of gunfire. "You ever stop to think, hey, what if the guy next to me tried to shoot me?" Behind the crates, his eyes flash white. Everyone's afraid of being betrayed by a comrade, right? And when it's a possibility, you strike first or you die. From his vantage point though, while that little thought digs into the minds of the assholes shooting at him, Alex can see the bear taking the hits and the bullets without complaint, and in returning generally wreaking havoc with the relatively fragile latticework that is the human body. "Hey, the bear is on our side!" He calls over to Bluebird, who he just noticed is getting strangled with a chain. Of course, he's still getting shot at. We've all got our problems, lady. Except maybe the bear. The bear just looks like he's having a good time.

While Ursa is busy having his fun and.. is essentially bullet proof, Alex hiding and..

It.. was going all wrong. Everything about this turned out bad. It was probably the thoughts in the minds of the men and Harper alone; yet the men who were essentially attempting to hunt Alex down, turn on themselves. One man quickly shoots the other in the leg, attempting a two tap shot, but gets done in with a bullet to the back of the brain with another..

It was mayhem. A bear. A god. All making short work of their enemies.

Harper on the other hand was fairing.. decently. Granted she couldn't breathe but that was beside the point. She was nearly lifted off of her feet as the chain was sinched tighter, and tighter, her mind on the gunfire and.. well.. great idea!

Instead of willy-nilly shocking herself, Harper forced herself forward, choking herself further with a turn of her upper body, attempting to use the motion and leverage to flip him or at least drag him into the spray of gunfire. The bullets pelt into the mans back, releasing his hold onto Harper, crumpling forward onto her which she allows. He was a meatshield! She is totally not upset at that!

Mikhail Ursus hefts one thug over his head with both paws, dangling him over his drooling maw until the guy lets out an extremely high pitched scream, then laughing and tossing him back onto the pile of the others.

He sees the guys shooting at Bluebird and drops to all fours, casually breaking into a charge and running at them. Focused as they are, they don't see him coming, which is bad as he shoulderblocks them directly into the side of the van, denting their bodies into the side and actually knocking the vehicle over off its wheels to flop.

Alex he's noticed. Seems professional enough. Probably a superhero. Long as he was after these guys and not a trophy hunter after Mikhail's pelt. "This is part where you morons run," he calls out in Russian.

Once the gunfire pelting the boxes behind which Alex has found some measure of safety comes to an end, he gets up to survey the damage. "I -really- wanted to punch someone, but you jackasses just had to get all.." he makes a face and wavey handmotion. "Guns." He even sticks his tongue out. Alex is in a mood. "I swear to the gods, if this bear wasn't here kicking so much ass, I'd be suuuuuper pissed off." Yeah, he's talking to a bunch of guys who are either dead, dying, or wounded to the point where if they don't get medical attention in short order they may well bleed out on the floor. What fools these mortals be. And Alex really was gonna go help Bluebird out, but for one, she figured things out on her own, and two, what's he gonna do that the bear didn't already accomplish? I mean, he could make them wet themselves, but that just seems petty at this point. "Hey, do you want the rest of them to leave, or do you want to keep any for interrogation or something?"

It was clear mayhem! Mikhail cleared out the most; while others turned on the other due to Alex's suggestion and killed themselves in proper order. The few that Harper had to herself were all groaning, and soon scrambling to run away at the sight/yell at the bear and the shocking way that their own people and those they tried to buy from executed each other.

Some jobs just weren't worth working.

Harper made out alright, sliding from beneath the guy with a kick of his body off to the side, wounded and bleeding and unconscious. Thankful that she herself doesn't have a bodycount, she slowly rises, staggers.. then moves towards the upturned table to sit and wheeze.

She presses a hand against her side, clearly bleeding from being shot, then looks around at the carnage with a wince.

"We don't need them. We got the bear." Yeah. Harper is stupid when it comes to fighting, but hey. Her critical thinking skills were on point. "Mr. Bear.." She says, attempting to catch her breath. "..who were your people selling to? Do you know someone named The Candyman?"

Mikhail Ursus bends down over one of the fallen Russians, peeling an oversized gold chain from around the unconscious thug's neck and casually draping it over his own. Thankfully, the hireling in question was a fatty, so it's not -too- snug on Mikhail's ursine neck.

"Not really my people. I just hired for the night. Extra cash," he said. "Heard of Candyman. Not Russian, but works with Russians a lot. Stupid name. Who is afraid of candy? Chainsawman. Now that is good crime name," he says.

He tears open the fat guy's jacket and pulls out a pack of cigarettes, "Can one of you light for me? Bear paw shit with lighters."

Alex shoves his hands in his pockets, and walks toward where Bluebird and the Bear ended up; anyone left conscious on the wrong side of things would suddenly get a very strong urge to GTFO, as Alex's eyes flash again. "Bye bye, boys," he says quietly, quoting The Princess Bride for his own amusement. "You're bleeding," Alex says, stating the obvious.

Harper groans as she listens to Mikhail talk. She wasn't irritated with him, not at all. But she was saddened by the fact that there was no clear indication that the Candyman was here, nor that Mikhail probably doesn't even know what he looks like.. "Ugh. It's fine.." She says to the bear, moving from the table with a hunch, her foot kicking around on the ground until she finds something akin to a lighter, then approaches and flicks the wick.

She stares at the flame for a moment, then down at her wound. "Yeah. Got shot." No big deal right? She does give a half-hearted smile, but that fades. "What about you? You looking for him too?" She pauses. "In fact.. how the hell did you hear a.. wait. Wrong question. Who are -you-." She lifts a hand to point towards Alex, all bloody. Clearly he was a good guy, ish. Though it didn't seem like he did too much.

Commotion ahead. A few guys regain consciousness and they immediately flee. Must be the bear..

Mikhail Ursus leans down and sniffs at Harper's wound, "Oh, wait. I know you. You're the girl. You do this, too? Why?" he says.

"There are bandages in glove compartment of van," he gestures. "Always good to keep on hand when doing crimes." He puffs on the cigarette, the filter clamped between large and very sharp teeth. It makes his speech a little mumbled. "I think he superhero. Sorry I steal thunder. They shouldn't have pointed gun at me," he says, kicking the guy he knocked out first and giving him a few choice curses in Russian.

Well, getting shot is kind of a big deal? Alex doesn't say that though. She doesn't seem concerned, and well, he's the last person who should be making assumptions about what's best for people. There's a bear here for fucks sake. All the questions, though! He'll answer as he moves to start rummaging through the van for first aid supplies. When a bear says they're in there, Alex is inclined to believe him. In fact, talking bears almost exclusively tell the truth in his experience. "I'm Alex. Not really -looking- for anyone, I just wanted to kick the crap out of some people tonight, and it was either this or a mens' softball team, but they lost their game so I figured they'd already had a bad enough night." He shrugs, and pulls the bandages out of the glovebox. "You and Mister Bear here got all the good licks in. All I got was this stupid hat." Which he promptly takes off, and holds out to Mikhail. "Probably looks better on you than me."

As Mikhail leans down to sniff, Harper reaches up to lightly pat his head. Once his cigarette is lit she tosses the lighter upon the floor, then goes back to leaning against the table again. She keeps quiet as Alex retrieves the medical supplies, figuring her doesn't have a shaky enough hand, already pulling her shirt up and peeling it back with a wince to reveal the two twin holes on her right side.

"Why do I do this?" She frowns. "This in general or?" She shakes her head. "Candyman was someone who hurt my brother. So I'm looking to hurt him. And.. this?" She gestures at herself. "It used to be my calling. Vigilante, cleaning up Jersey and Hoboken and all of that. Now?" Man, she was getting loopy. And a bit deep. "I'm Bluebird." Yeah, secret identity still.

Mikhail Ursus nods, "Was both. Revenge I understand. I like revenge. The rest I don't care about," he admits, shrugging. "If she goes to hospital, they have to call in to police. I know a doctor. Piece of shit, no license, but good at what he do. Very scared of bears," he says.

He spits out his spent cigarette and there's a shudder as he starts to shrink, absorbing hair back into himself until he leaves a barrel-chested, very hairy and tattooed buck naked Russian guy in his forties.

"I can show way. Let me just find pants that fit."

With the bandages in hand, Alex tentatively approaches Bluebird, seemingly intent on performing whatever limited first aid he has knowledge of. He's not a doctor or anything, but he can at least do something to stem the bleeding. Hopefully. Assuming, of course, that she'll even let him, a complete stranger, do such a thing. "Revenge is as good a reason as any," he comments. "Family should take care of family." And that's a naked former bear. Wow. "No offense, but Bluebird is probably the least scary vigilante name I've ever heard."

"Yeah.." Harper grunts out, keeping her shirt up so that a quick patch job will be in the works. "Back alley doctor it is." It's odd for Bluebird to trust a bear, and someone who jumped from the ceiling. But they weren't actively trying to kill her, and they were helping. No. It wasn't trust. It was assets.

"Well, I like my name. I'm not going around screaming that I'm Beowulf or Alex, am I?" A little snip and snark, and a slight stumble. She was starting to feel sick. "I totally hope you're strong, Alex.." She says, because she was totally about the pass out. "Catch me will you.." And.. down she goes.

Mikhail Ursus has at least retrieved a pair of pants and shoes, along with another pack of cigarettes. He doesn't seem to feel that urgent need to find a shirt.

"I can carry her if you like. You can drive. Stupid American backwards roads fuck me up still," he says. "There's a titty bar down the street. You can buy me a lapdance while she's getting stitches.

And down she goes. Alex catches her, because despite all appearances, he is pretty strong! He even hoists her up in his arms without any trouble; it's not really much of a feat, since she's kind of small. Guess the name kind of fits. "Beowulf would be a kickass name for a superhero," he comments, because he wasn't just going to let that go. He carries her to the van, and sets her down as gently as he can in the back. "Yeah, you two seem to have a good rapport. I'll drive." Keys? In the van? "And I think you're cool, bear-dude. Big fan of the whole mauling people thing you did here tonight. But we just met, and I'm not buying you a lapdance, unless it's also your birthday or you're getting married tomorrow. I'll buy you a couple beers. Cool?"

Mikhail Ursus had pushed the van back up while still in bear form. There is a noticeable dent in the side. Oh, and the back is still full of illicit weapons. And a large briefcase full of unmarked bills. About ten grand in total. Mikhail remembers that, of course, but may forget to mention it to the others.

"You scared my bear sauage will make you feel inadequate? Is okay. You are not first. I will buy own lapdance. Beer and vodka. Then we will check on girl and make sure she did not die. I hope she does not die. She is my only reference on my CV."

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