Summary:Dani and Logan happen to be in the wrong part of town at the same time… Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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The Bowery isn't exactly the nicest part of town, especially for someone walking by themselves. Of course, Dani isn't exactly alone here, as she was doing a little covert scouting on behalf of the Young Avengers. However, while looking for some leads into the new arms dealers that were springing up, there's another complication.
Namely the dozen or so gangers that started coming up on her, thinking that she's an easy mark, since she's just in her civilian clothes right now. Dani, for her part, either doesn't seem to notice or, more likely, isn't too concerned about them just yet.
Logan is in the area - one of the forgotten masses that, here, are unlikely to get hassled by police (the skin colour and keep-to-yourself attitude tends to help with that). ID is not likely to be demanded, the cost of living is low, and he is unlikely to attract attention. He is likewise in civilian clothes (not that he owns anything else) but he's a tough-looking, powerfully-built man who doesn't seem to have two dollars to rub together.
He is currently eating the last bites of a cheap gyro bought from a place up the street. Dani is not far off, walking along, seemingly minding her own business. The current of thugs drifts past him. He can smell the gun oil, almost taste the tang of adrenaline. He quirks an eyebrow, canting his head to the side slightly, waiting to see what happens out of the corner of his eye. He remains inconspicuous, stuffing the last of his gyro into his now over-full mouth. Waste not, want not.
Dani, for her part, actually starts paying attention when they start catcalling at her. She glances over her shoulder, noting their position, but doesn't actually do anything, even as they're closing the distance. However, the very observant might notice that there's a large winged creature moving in the skies above her.
The gang members don't seem terribly fazed, or observant, moving around her in a rough circle. The one in the lead, a white kid with a shaved head, smirks at her, "Hey, you wanna pass through here, ya gotta pay the toll."
Dani blinks at that, then smiles faintly, "Funny, you didn't really look like a troll." She then sniffs twice, "Though you do smell like one."
The men encircling Dani are thugs and ruffians, not trained soldiers. They do not maintain perimeter awareness. They are focused on the object of their attention for the moment, the woman who surprises them all by remaining calm and resolute in the face of this bullying. Logan is able to turn, to watch this more directly. He frowns, his lips drawing into a tight line. He looks up and down the street. No police, unsurprisingly. Just people looking the other way, at their shoes, crossing to the other side of the street. No sign of heroes here, though in his assessment Logan hears the sound of something floating high overhead, the beat of large wings, and he squints upward for just a moment.
"Hey, I think we got us a comedian here!" One of the gang members sneers as the circle closes around Dani. "I think comedians pay *double*."
Dani actually laughs a little at that, "Oh, you boys… this is your one chance. Turn around, and walk away." She cracks her knuckles, still looking unfazed as she does, at least, have perimeter awareness. Noting where the men are, judging how to best deal with this as she quirks a faint smile. "Don't expect y'all to be that smart, though."
Logan watches, dark eyes narrowing slightly as he considers the scene unfolding. The confident young woman, seeming to all but spoil for a fight; the aggressive men, moving closer and closer now. The tension in the air is growing thick. And yet… perhaps he doesn't need to intervene. He continues chewing his gyro, waiting to see how this all goes down.
And then it starts, as such things often do. One of the men reaches forward to grab at Dani, to twist her arm behind her back even as another moves forward a split second later.
Dani, for her part, didn't train with valkyries for years to get bushwhacked by a bunch of gangers. Which the man grabbing towards her realizes rather abruptly as she suddenly shifts and jams her elbow right into his gut. Then she snaps out a kick towards the one moving forward, looking to get him right in his unmentionables. At the same time, she whistles loudly, as if signaling for someone… or something.
Logan's eyebrows arch. Quality knows quality. The girl has obviously trained exhaustively - it shows in the fluidity, speed, and strength of her strikes. One ganger is winded and another crumples, cradling his crotch. The others rush forward then, seeking to overwhelm her with strength in numbers. Hands grab for her hair, with which to drag her to the pavement. Others grab for her arms, her legs, the press of humanity sudden and aggressive. She's good, but Logan remains tense, ready to move. Few are good enough to overcome these odds, unless they are gifted with meta human powers. Speaking of which, his eyes flit upward for a moment before returning to the fray.
As they instantly press towards her, Dani's eyes glow briefly, as she says in a low voice, "What do you fear?" With that, a monster suddenly BURSTS from the ground, howling and hissing as it looks around at the gangsters with menace and ire. Blood drips from its claws as it chitters madly, eyes burning with hate as it roars, demonic wings spreading wide as it seems to be conjured right from their worst nightmares.
Which, actually, it was… as Dani uses the distraction as an opportunity to bust out of the entrapment circle, leaping up to catch a ladder for the nearby fire escape, scrambling upwards to try and funnel any gangsters still determined to get at her… though hopefully they have more important problems!
The hellish apparition draws a violent reaction, not only from the gang. The bullies and toughs recoil. Some turn tail and run, screaming as the flee down the street. Others fall back and, in terrified self-preservation, draw handguns and start unloading clips at the threat before them - bullets passing clear through the apparition and striking buildings and, perhaps, less fortunate targets.
Logan too draws back, but just for an instant. The sounds aren't quite perfect, the scents simply do not live up to his experience. And, of course, he hears the bullets whizzing clear through the creature. His lips quirk upward and he smirks. "I'll be," he notes. It's about then that he notices one gang-member trying to cut off the head of the proverbial serpent, aiming his handgun up toward Dani.
"Look out!" he roars, trying to make himself heard above the din. And he launches forward, crossing the intervening distance with speed an Olympic sprinter would envy. The gang member fires two shots toward Dani as she ascends before several hundred pounds of adamentium-imbued man smashes into the back side of the man, sending him sprawling in a heap of broken bones to the pavement. Logan wasn't perfectly on time, but he stopped there from being any more bullets flying toward Dani.
Dani was going to try to make her way out, but then she sees Logan dive into the fray. Then she shouts, "BRIGHTWIND!" and leaps back down into the fray, landing on top of one of the gangers to cushion her fall at his expense. Then she concentrates, her clothing suddenly replaced with gleaming Asgardian armor as a bullet goes *paTING* and bounces off the mystical chainmail. Then she grins and draws her sword out, looking at the leader with the gun.
"Don't say I didn't warn you, pup."
The ganger that shot at Dani is out for the count, his head having smashed off the pavement when Logan drove him to the ground with the impact of hundreds of pounds against his back. Logan is left standing over him, but now faces the wrath of the comrades that remain. Five gangers still, who started firing at the illusion, are coming to the realization that there is no actual monster from the depths before them. That the true threats are Dani (more of a threat) and Logan (less so).
They round to face their two foes and guns lift. It is a brief moment of respite before the renewed chaos of battle.
Dani tosses Logan a smile, her grin growing a bit more feral as she moves with a fluid grace towards the remaining five as they lift their guns. Her blade slices through the guns of the closest two as if they were made of butter, sparks flying where metal meets metal, followed by a spinning kick towards the midsection of one so disarmed. Apparently the chainmail she wears is bulletproof, as a few shots from the others again *paTING* without giving her any sort of ill effect.
Logan gives an answering smile, showing teeth that are too long, too sharp, to be those of a normal human. He isn't facing the remaining gangers, but knows where they are. He can smell them, he can hear their hearts racing. His dark eyes are alight at the sense of battle, the danger, and he gives a roar as he spins around, launching himself toward the gangers as well.
He's fast. He dashes forward and slams his shoulder into the ganger's ribcage, fracturing bone. His arm curls around the man and Logan casually flips him over his hip, slamming him down on he next man over. Their gunshots are wayward, thrown wide as they are flung to and fro by the expert bruiser.
Dani attracts most of the gunfire, but one man targets Logan. Amid the chorus of shots ringing out, three find their mark on him, burrowing into his chest and shoulder.
Dani shouts, "HEY!" as Logan gets shot, then turns with a fury on the one that shot him, slicing his gun apart, then smacking him hard in the ribcage with her sword. Despite how sharp it is to cut through metal, it doesn't actually break the skin, though there's a sharp *CRACK* to indicate a few ribs might be the worse for wear on the guy. Then she twirls her blade and looks around at the few remaining upright, "Get out before I send you all personally to Hell!" Not that she's planning on using lethal force… but they don't need to know that.
Logan doesn't seem to notice being shot. He feels it, certainly, and whirls around to face the remaining gangers. And then it happens. Veins snap into sharp relief in his neck and arms. He lets loose a roar of such fury that it cuts through the din of combat. His hands clench into fists and six wickedly curved blades spring out from between his knuckles and broken ribs are the least of the gang-bangers worries.
The violence is brutal and immediate. In an instant three claws are sheathed in the man's torso. His eyes roll back in his head and blood bursts from his lips before he crumples to the ground. In one more stride Logan is at the remaining two and looks about to end their lives.
Dani blinks in surprise, as Logan escalates the violence that fast, moving quickly between the last two and Logan, holding her sword in a defensive position as she shouts, "GET OUT OF HERE!" at the two punks. She then looks at Logan, meeting his gaze as she sees something in his feral nature, trying to speak into his mind like she would with Rahne or Sharon, Easy… I'm not going to hurt you.
Logan raises a fist as though he is going to lash out at Dani. His fist cocks back and trembles for a moment, as he glares into her eyes, huffing out through wide nostrils. Whether it's the presence of this innocent, the imposing quality of her Asgardian armament, or the way she speaks to the beast within, he doesn't strike. His hands unclench and the blades snap back in under his skin. He looks down at the man giving a last, rattling cough before staring up glassy-eyed at the sky, chest still. Logan doesn't seem to react much at all to the death, simply growling, "Better get movin'." He tucks his hands into his pockets then, intent on pushing past Dani to walk up the street.
The remaining gangers have taken off running, finally heeding Dani's advice.
Dani glances at Logan, blinking as he just… looks to move off, then she says, "Um, hey… you." She pauses, and that's when a winged horse lands near her, snorting a bit as the steed looks curiously at Logan. Sheathing her blade, Dani gets on her horse with graceful ease, then says, "Need a ride?"
Terrified onlookers watch from behind windows and from down the street as Dani's pegasus swoops down to land lightly on the street. Large gangs like this simply were not stood up to, not usually, and now a body was left too cool in the street. Logan glances back over his shoulder, quirking a brow slightly as he's addressed. There are no exit wounds for the bullets visible from this side - just the holes and blood-stained front of his shirt. He glances down at himself. The first of the bullets drops out of him, flattened, to lay on the ground. "I guess I ain't keepin' a low profile regardless," he notes before turning back to Dani. Her ride is considered with a quirked brow. His gaze shifts from the magnificent beast to the young woman. "I ain't ridin' in back though," he notes. Apparently beggars can be choosers when it comes to pegasus rides.
Dani smirks, "Alright, hop on front then. Brightwind knows New York pretty well already." She keeps the offered hand out, though she does slide back a bit so Logan can sit in front. "Any place you need to be dropped off at?" With the fact that she is, well, pretty obviously a Valkyrie, or at least the most dedicated cosplayer ever, she doesn't look too fazed at the legalities of the situation. Of course, she can always claim self-defense.
And she DID, in fact, warn them off.
Logan hops up onto Brightwind, showing some agility in doing so. Sitting astride the great beast, he pats the animal's neck with the air of one who has ridden bareback some time before. Another bullet drops out of him, clattering down to the pavement below. "Just someplace quiet enough that we won't get noticed. Don't want to get tracked anyplace," he growls, though his tone is lighter than before. He glances back over his shoulder, quirking a brow. "Do I just kick it like it's a horse?" he asks.
Dani snickers, "Rather you didn't, he's a bit touchy that way." She whistles at Brightwind, who immediately spreads his wings, and she does add, "Hang on, though!" With that, Brightwind kicks up into the air, launching himself through the New York skyline and soaring up and away from the streets.
Once airborne, Dani chuckles, "I do appreciate the assist back there. Figure this is the least I can do. Oh, and I'm Dani." She grins at Logan, "I know a few spots with open roofs, one of those would probably be best for a dropoff…" The nice thing about having an empathic link with your horse, he knows exactly where to go.
Logan grips Brightwind with hands and thighs, and soon enough is grinning at the feeling of the flexing muscles beneath him and the city falling away below. He glances back over his shoulder and he answers, "No problem. Not that you couldn't have handled it." He returns his focus to the dizzying drop below, peering downward without any apparent nervousness. "Logan," he reciprocates. Then he adds, "You're on… what's it. On one of them hero teams. I seen you on the news, I think. Didn't recognize you without the getup though."
Dani grins, "Yeah, I suppose I shouldn't use my first name, but I wasn't exactly expecting to get jumped. I'm on the Young Avengers." She nods towards Logan, "Good to meet you Logan, and this is definitely the best way to get around the city." With that, Brightwind whinnies an assent, banking slowly as he angles gradually towards one of the open rooftops that Dani mentioned. Then Dani notes, "You're not on any teams or anything? You definitely have the skills for it." She doesn't sound critical, but… well, popping claws and healing that fast seems to be pretty handy and all.
"I ain't much of a team player," Logan answers with a wry grin. He glances back toward her, lofting a brow again slightly, and he notes, "Besides. I don't think I'd qualify for the Young Avengers. And the real deal? Bit too close to government. Ask Cap about it, if you want." He watches the approach of the rooftop below, having long since healed the most severe of his gunshot wounds, that one resulting in a sprinkling of fragmented bullet dropping down his chest. "Thanks for the lift, sweetheart," he says, finally hopping off when Brightwind lands. He offers a nod and then, with the ease of a native-speaker, offers a farewell in Cheyenne. "Madjashin." He's just full of surprises.
Dani blinks in surprise, then laughs and returns the farewell, following up in English, "See you around, Logan." She grins and waves, urging Brightwind back into the sky as she rides off on her winged horse, chuckling to herself as well… a Cheyenne farewell was not something she was expecting, for certain!