Summary:A foiled arson attempt gives Barbara and Alex more to think about and Ken more leads into what's going on. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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The man known as the Silver Samurai is not attempting to track or follow either Batgirl or Phobos. It has just worked out that he has shown up at a lot of the places they have investigated. That could be coincidence, possibly. After all they are investigating the same set of things. But there might be another word for it more familiar to the young Olympian's vocabulary. Fate. And the somewhat frightening thing about that is that fate is not often kind.
Today, or rather tonight, the location is out on the docks. The word had been that some of Eurayle's people were out here. That's of interest to Phobos due to… questions he may have of them. It's also of interest to Barbara, because the docks are a major source of goods. Anyone who wants to control things coming into Staten Island needs to take a good long look at the docks. The bridge is nice of course, but if you want to move stuff in bulk, the docks is where it's at.
The pier LOOKS empty on arrival though. Well, almost empty. Someone just hopped the fence and made over toward the modular building that is the office. Given that person is in a leather jacket and has two swords slung over his shoulder, it shouldn't be hard to guess who it is.
Phobos will know of the meetings and the Oracle app on his phone will have feeds of the area. He can see everything that Batgirl can, thanks to Oracle. Including the figure who just hopped the fence.
Batgirl, Kitty, Silver Samurai sighted. Oracle speaks to the pair.
The black clad Batgirl is perched on top of shipping container, in the shadows, watching as the Samurai starts to move. "Sighted." she subvocalises.
Once again on the comms frequency, Batgirl will hear Alexander's voice in response to Oracle's, // Tell him hi for me? // Since the young God of Fear actually kinda likes the guy. Likely the others have no idea why. But he does. That having been said he makes his approach from the shadows from the opposite direction Batgirl used, taking up a place of observation upon one of those tall rolling shipping container towers with the hooks and the chains that dangle downwards. It's a good spot. Several pieces of gear break up its silhouette and provide a fine location for cover.
The area is scoped out, mobile hostiles will be accounted for and any location that has a fair amount of them will be avoided for now. No engagement until the Batgirl makes the call.
Though he does add on the comms, // I'd like to question any of the fae we find, please. // Ever so polite.
Samurai takes a look around, not spotting either Phobos or Batgirl and then takes out what looks like a credit or ID card. There's a brief glow around it as he slides it between the door and the frame and when he's done the door just opens. What… the actual hell?
Either way the moment he slips in both Batgirl AND Phobos see something land on top of the office. Two somethings. As they're backlit it's hard to make out their features but they look like people. With dragonfly wings.
Ask and ye shall receive?
One of them has a container that it starts dumping out on the roof. Liquid of some kind. The container looks like a jerry can.
Batgirl moves nimbly over the container roof, keeping to the shadows using her cape to hid her form. "We're not here for a picnic, Kitty. I'm sure we won't be exchanging pleasantries." She answers. Babs likes Ken, which is kind of surprising. Not that anyone in the family knows this.
Two beings have alighted the office structure. Scanning for what they be. Oracle reports. The Oracle never sounds stressed or flustered, she just reports on the activities. They have a remarkable control on their emotions.
"I'll distract them, Kitty, you catch them." Batgirl smirks a little before adding "Oracle, did Samurai disable or hack the locks?" How had he done that?
"I'll grab that container, actually, Kitty. Be ready…"
Her grappling gun fires, shooting the cable straight for the handle of the container.
"That's bad news," Alexander's voice on the comms is strong and clear as he drops from his perch and starts to move in, at first failing to acknowledge the plan to do so but then coming across the comms again. "I'm heading in. Might want to let Samurai know, I've got the firebugs."
There's a rush of movement as the Olympian youth cuts across the way, moving from cover to cover and then there's that hiss-snap of the grapple line firing toward that container. No more time for being stealthy. He leaps up atop one of the cargo carriers, dashing across it. He closes the distance quickly, mask hiding his features as he leaps /up/ and arcs across the way then says on the comms, "Flashbang out."
The thrown grenade is hopefully timed well just as Batgirl gets the container back the grenade should slip in right there and then…
"Scanning. The security systems are reporting that the lock is still engaged. It appears that he physically cut the bolt." Somehow. With an ID card. Yeah.
Whatever he's doing in there he actually doesn't have much time to do so. The grenade goes off with an echoing bang, startling and blinding the two winged humanoids who take off despite their disorientation but simply hover, trying to get their bearings. One of them fumbles with a flare as Batgirl gets the container.
And then there's a BELLOW from below. Whatever it is, it's big. And from the sounds of crashing inside the office it doesn't like Ken.
"Don't use a flash-b…." Batgirl curses inventively, it's not really cursing at all, as the device goes off. "That's … likely flammable … and …" Yeah, there's the bellow she expected.
With a leap, the redhead's cape snaps out and lets her glide to the ground. "Samurai, you got visitors." It's late, the notice is. She should have done that first.
Standing a little away from the door, she scans the roof, batarang held at the ready for when they show.
If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. At least so far with Alexander and those flashbangs she gave him. Though now he's out. Awww. Yet once that one goes off he's still in flight, landing on the edge of the building
Just a split second to gauge and weigh threats, as Alex replies, "Go help him, I'll handle these." Whatever they are.
And then he's leaping upward, trying to tackle the one with the flare bodily, one and seeking to control the flare, the other trying to lock it's arm behind its back and wings.
To them he says, "One of you gets to survive if they answer my questions. Other one not so much."
"Visitors other than this one?!" Samurai calls back.
Inside the roof she sees a blade flashing in the dim light and a very large creature 'dancing' with Samurai inside. Then the creature lands a hit and sends Kenuichio through the door. He lands in a sprawl and when he coughs there's blood in it. Inside is an honest to god Minotaur.
The one that Alex tackles actually drops the flare in surprise and he will have to make a grab at it if he doesn't want it to land on the roof. Which he CAN do, he can probably get it. But it's going to take a precious second and seconds are important too because the other one - a slender androgynous form - pulls a pair of hidden punch daggers from his/her belt and lunges right at Alexander's open side. Which is to say the side that the other fae is NOT on. The shrill war cry might possibly be drowned out as the Minotaur below stomps into the moonlight and snorts.
"Kitty, no." Batgirls voice is stern across the comms. No one will hear that except them. "They both live. You hear me." It's a Bat thing.
"This visitor?" It's then she sees the shadow he's dancing with and before she can move, The Silver Samurai comes sprawling at her at feet.
"I don't require worshipping you know, despite what the websites have to say about me…" She sees the blood, but there's nothing to be done about that at the moment, the redhead pulls her escrima sticks from her back and plants herself between Ken and that creature.
"Did you get lost?" She asks the creature. "The Labyrinth is thataway …" She's quickly as she launches an attack. "Get out of the way."
In mid-air Alexander moves wildly, almost like a circus act as he makes that grab for the flare juggling it once, catching it. There's a cry from the one that he's tackled that has a partial hold on him, so he hits the ground, trying to pull his arm free only for the creature to foul the pull.
There's a hiss and a sizzle as he presses that flare to its arm and it quickly retracts its touch, though now Alexander has its other arm with his, pulling it in the way of the other stabby one and /shoving/ it towards its mate where hopefully they get into each other's way…
Long enough for Alexander to rush to the end of the rooftop and _throw_ the flare off and out into the water… when he then spins around to face the most likely regrouping fae.
In response to Batgirl he says, "They don't need to know that, Batgirl."
The flare sails into the river and plummets, still burning but now harmless. When Alexander turns the two pixies have indeed regrouped and split up. One has punch daggers, the other a shortbow and what if he is not mistaken looks very much like elfshot. They're orbiting him now on opposite ends, trying to make it difficult to defend himself. The one with the bow takes a shot as the other one dives in, looking to compromise Alex's footing on the gasoline-slick rooftop.
On the ground the minotaur charges as Babs attacks. It is much less skilled than she but also much more tough. It has no weapons, only it's meaty fists which it swings around trying to catch the agile bat. A single hit would hurt a great deal. Conversely when she hits it, she can tell it does something but the effect is so much less than it would be on a human. It's like trying to beat up a car. An angry, smelly car.
So, you know. A Buick.
Eventually the big bull gets tired of 'playing' and pulls a huge metal pipe off the side of the office and swings THAT right at Batgirl's head.
Babs just needs to last long enough for the Samurai to get back up. Which he will, right? He must have taken a hell of a hit, though, not to be grumping at her repartee.
It's times like this that Babs wishes she'd designed some medical trackers. Something she could have put on Ken and have Oracle monitor him. But she hasn't and she can't spare a glance for the man who's sprawled on the ground, not with this behemoth trying to clobber.
"Focus on the job." She tells Alex. He's right, it's just not the way that Bats do things. That's likely to cause some discussions in the days to come after this.
"Hey, put that down. Didn't your mother tell you not to play with your food…" Barely missing a swing of that pipe, the redhead takes a risk and ducks under the pipe closer to the Minotaur.
Sliding between its legs, her grappling gun fires again, this time she's trying to get the cable about the creatures legs. Then she'll try to make it turn.
Features grim, Alexander makes ready. He focuses on them, scowling as his bright blue eyes flicker from one to the other and then back again.
The two bracket him and flank him, then time their approach perfectly. And there in the crossfire Alexander seems so unarmed and helpless, those fae diving and shooting, and him between them. Only for him to rest his left hand at his hip and hold it there… for just as that shot comes in and the charger dashes…
For that is the moment when the silvered blade appears as he executes a clean looping cut that slices the shot out of the air and then comes around to slash sharply across those punch daggers, seeking to slice them in twain with the staggeringly sharp weapon and not really worrying too much if any fingers are lost with that smooth clean stroke.
On the ground below Batgirl gets the Minotaur entangled but there is a slight… problem. As it turns it brings the pipe down across the wire and yanks, trying to pull the masked heroine into a punch. Or… that's the idea anyway.
It rather falls apart when a sword slices the pipe in two.
Samurai is back up. And Babs can feel utter evil coming off of the black blade in his hand. Phobos likely can as well.
Speaking of Phobos, his defense works flawlessly and the daggers shatter. One of the fae's hands is a bloody mess and at this point both turn to bolt in opposite directions. Which might be a slight problem but… he's still got a grapple gun, doesn't he?
"You don't like to talk? I think you need to meet Nightwing …" Batgirl grunts, her face twisting behind her mask as her back pulls, the suit thank goodness takes a lot of the strain. "… he could learn a thing from you."
Her arms are jerked as the cable on the gun pulls tight and up, fingers reflexively loosening their grip so she can tumble out of the w——
"Took your time, didn't you." She's rather worried, at the moment. "Decide to have the demon fangs polished while you were down?" That sword is just wrong and she knows it. Her preference to back away and leave the man to the fight.
But she won't. "Status Kitty." As Ken circles, wielding that tainted sword, the redhead pulls the cable tight and slides again.
The one with the wound has had a hard enough day, the one with the bow… has not. As they both take flight and seem to be rushing away in either direction, Alexander reaches to his other hip and snaps forward the grapple line, taking the brief second needed to aim and then depressing the trigger, sending the line firing across the distance…
And trying to snare the flying fae, perhaps even going so far as to fire it /through/ the creature's delicate wings in the first loop and then pull it back to him, trying to rush forward and loop the wire around the downspout of the building, hoping to bind the creature against the wall.
"Nominal," Is All Alexander says in response to the query, at least for now. Then he looks over across the way to the minotaur and the samurai and the batgal… He'll take another moment to try and secure the fairy, then drop off and over the side of the building if he's able to, to head toward that side of the conflict.
It's kind of like fishing, but the fish wants to kill you. Alexander's shot causes the fae to drop and swing into the side of the building, THEN get pulled up. Yeah, they're probably not going to fight anymore.
"Focus." The swordsman says to Batgirl, rather than respond to her repartee. "They don't really talk while they're doing this anyway."
Ken would probably disapprove of Nightwing on some level. Lots of people do, on some level.
The swordsman spins away from a counterstrike and lops off one of the bulls horns. Then he lashes out, hooking the things arm and hurling it 20 feet into a conex.
Nothing in his file said he was superhuman in any physical way…
The minotaur shakes itself and rolls over, then lumbers up to retreat.
"Of course they don't…" Batgirl quips. "And I am focussed, thank you very much." This redhead is very different to another redhead that Ken knows.
Ichor coats her suit as the arm is removed. It stinks. Batgirl still has the grapple gun cable tangled about the creatures ankles. It might get up, but Batgirl takes off in the other direction, wrapping the cable about a pylon and leaning into it.
Either the creature will fall flat on its face or the cable snap. Either will do, she'll try not to laugh. "Don't kill it. We can question it."
As he breaks into a run toward the minotaur, the other pair of heroes will likely hear him call out, "Hey!" Alexander's voice carries as he rushes in then skids to a halt some distance from the Minotaur and flanking it with its attention likely still on Samurai since he already cut it.
But the rest of Alexander's words are for Batgirl as he gestures with that silver-bladed sword and its gleaming golden handle, "Batgirl… that thing is a monster. Soooo can we…" He makes a sort of decisive gesture with the sword vaguely across the throat as if that might be a feasible possibility. Since otherwise putting it down might be a bit harder than they're prepared for.
Only for Batgirl to answer that question as he sighs to himself, "Seriously? I got one of the fairies wrapped up over… ok fiiine."
Alas, as he strikes a ready stance, the things he does for love.
The Minotaur DOES go down. Which may make Batgirl pleased, at least until the Samurai walks over to it. His blade begins to glow, as if some kind of aura is around it and then he cuts the thing's leg off at the knee. It screams and - naturally - bleeds profusely.
"Ask quickly. He doesn't have long." The demon masked man says. "Though Minotaurs aren't actually all that smart, I have discovered. You might get more out of the faerie."
He… um. Yes he just did that.
"What the hell are you doing. We don't kill…" Batgirl moves quickly but she knows it's a loosing battle. Alright then. Questions. "What were you doing here before we got here?" She adds the qualifier because if they really are that stupid, it's likely to say 'fighting you'.
Alex's arrival has her mask turning towards to him. It's probably a good thing he didn't voice his last thought. She'd ask if he always paid his debts as well.
Alexander's response to the bleeding to death minotaur is to reverse his grip on Grasscutter and hold up a hand as if to stave off the inevitable tirade that's likely to come from Babs. He tilts his head one way, then the other, then shrugs bonelessly. "I didn't do it." Of course he probably would have if needs be, but he has held off rather well since running with the Batcrew.
He steps up beside Batgirl and takes up a spot beside her, one pace behind. His blue eyes sweep over the minotaur, taking note as he can, but seeing not much else. He'll leave Babs to the questioning though he does add. "I captured one of the others. If this does not turn out well."
This isn't going to turn out well but Samurai doesn't tell him that. Actually Samurai isn't paying that much attention because he's seen something. Specifically he's seen the sword in Alex's hand. His eyes widen and then narrow and he looks as utterly at a loss for words as it is possible for him to do without being able to see half his face.
"Kusanagi. Where did you get that sword?"
Says the man holding a black blade that radiates evil.
"Guarding…" The minotaur says as it takes off it's belt and tries to tourniquet itself. "Guarding the shipment. We were expecting him… was going to trap him… and burn him. The shipment had already been moved…"
Which sounds like a good plan unless you know like Oracle does that he can cut through near anything. Certainly anything in this pier except Phobos' sword.
"How did you know to expect him?" Batgirl gets the rest of that but that's the interesting part. Someone knew to expect Ken to arrive. Oracle, are you scanning any transmissions from The Silver Samurai? Of course she goes there, not to magical means - why would she?
"And where has the shipment been moved to?" They might need that damn faerie after all. Hopefully they won't need to clap.
"Would you two focus, please? You can compare swords later."
Alexander tries. He really does try to stay on focus and point, but it's like a trigger flips, changing the pacing of Alexander's words and shifting his manner subtly to one of controlled formality urged into being at the request to know of Grasscutter and what tale placed the weapon in the hands of the young Olympian. For when he answers Ken it's with precise pacing and a word choice unlike the usual manner of the teenager.
He grimaces a little, looks to the side, looks at Babs, then says in a low furtive murmur, "The Demonic Nothingness that is Amatsu-Mikaboshi bound this blade to my soul and charged me to fell my father in a battle between the two great Pantheons. I led the army against the forces of Olympus and set upon my father Ares, God of War. We battled, and I felled him. But the grief stole the cloud of lies the god of evil had placed upon me. I slew him, and in so doing saved my people."
He might catch a /look/ from Batgirl at that point so he finishes quickly with, "And for that I am Phobos." A beat and Batgirl probably even looks at Alex even harder as if he's pushing his luck even further. So he ends it abruptly with, "God of Fear." Then clears his throat. Ahem.
The Samurai just stares at that explanation. It's not that he has reason to doubt it, per se. It's that it's so out of anything that he might expect that he isn't sure whether he's being told the truth or trolled. "That blade… is one of the imperial treasures of Japan…" What else is there to say? It's being wielded by a man who claims to be a greek good. Just… what?!
Slowly, and deliberately, the Silver Samurai sheathes his own blade and glances to the Minotaur Babs is questioning.
"Across the river. It was moved… moved to…"
It passes out.
"Lovely." The demon masked man says. "Might want to question that pix now. More brain, less brawn. Sometimes useful but do not make it any promises. It will hold you to them in ways you won't like."
"Yes, yes, I know." Batgirl answers, casting that look at Alex as the men talk. "Gentlemen, take this to the locker rooms. I want to know about them too, but we have a job to do."
"Do you carry iron, Kitty?" Batgirl draws a small knife from her utility belt. "Bring her, him … it, down. A Pix did you say? Has someone been watching Carnival Row?"
Alexander's response to Ken is pretty open and accepting of the incredulity as he spreads his hands wide, one of which still holding the blade in it and gesturing as if to say, 'Hey man, I just work here.' But even as he makes that gesture the sword disappears with a rather subdued swirl of compression, its mass seeming to fall inwards on itself and once again returning from whence it came. It leaves the golden-haired teenager there in his black uniform, standing beside Babs and ready to back her play.
At her statement he tells her, "Not Cold Iron, ma'… Batgirl. If we were wanting to use it properly against a fae it should be properly forged and with a minimum of impurities. I believe." Since he's not 100% sure on that.
But then she gives the other order and he snaps to, rushing off into a run and leaping up to clambor atop that building where the pixie is held. He'll undo the knot and lower it down gently, letting it alight upon the ground and then dropping down to resecure it to a lower point of security.
Ken is just… going to pretend for his sanity that when Phobos dismissed his sword it went back to the shrine where it belongs. Yep. That's what he's going to do. And not think about it very hard…
For the moment.
"Ow. Ow! Ow!!!" Being dragged and Faerie handled isn't the most comfortable thing with a punctured wing. The pixie looks up and glares at Phobos. "You did this." He. She. It, looks back at the punctured wing. "Naturally you're going to promise to make it right, won't you?"
Arrogant Pixie is Arrogant.
Samurai looks at Batgirl while Phobos finishes tying the thing off. "Carnival what?"
"Of course, Kitty. You should get yourself some weapons forged of cold iron. I'll make sure you and Orphan are equipped. Objects of faith and holy water too - though I'm not sure of the efficacy of those …" The little knife certainly seems 'ceremonial'.
"Hello there, my friend has some questions for you, you're going to answer them and not require any promises." What must it seem like to have the redheaded woman in a hood saying that. "Otherwise, I'm going to find out how effective my cold forged iron knife really is." That gets held close to the Pix's face.
"Carnival Row. You've not seen it yet? We'll have to fix that …"
"I'll see about that acquisition, Batgirl." He nods at the wisdom of starting to carry around Cold Iron equipment, assuredly that would help in the long run with their efforts against the Fae. Then his attention shifts towards the pixie.
"My dad would've pulled both your wings of by now, so consider yourself lucky, bug person." That said Alexander folds his arms over his chest and takes up a place standing at Batgirl's side, expression curious as he looks to her to take lead in the interrogation for now. Though he does lean over a little and says, "Your sword is rather interesting too,"
Perhaps it's legitimate curiousity, or perhaps he wonders if the tale of its acquisition might be a similar thing that requires utterance by its wielder upon query.
Then he looks back to the prisoner, advancing the question once he has a chance to, "Euryale spoke of a doom stalking the woman known as Orphan. I would know more of this."
"Interesting is a good word for it." Silver Samurai says. "It is definitely a two edged kind of thing." See what he did there?
Batgirl gets another look, this time for suggesting that she's going to fix his TV watching habits. How exactly? He doesn't ask that, though. He turns his attention back to the Pixie.
Who does NOT like the look of Batgirl's knife. It squirms back, wings - well single good wing - flexing nervously.
"Y-y-you. You're the doom." It stammers. "That's what she said. That we only had to wait for you to break her. And in so doing break yourself."
That is probably not news Batgirl wants to hear.
Ken will want to check his phone sometime soon. There's may be a message from Oracle and a link to a show. All paid for and everything. Or maybe Babs will convince Ken to watch it with her … one day. How exactly? Batgirl and Oracle have their ways.
"Did you really just do that?" The woman says flatly, not that anyone listening would know the tone. "Muramusa. That's the name of the sword." That's for Phobos' benefit. The searching for that isn't revealing a lot.
She manages to suppress a sigh at the question. It's a good one and one that they have to ask. If she's worried by that answer, the suit hides the response. "Keep going." the words are murmured to Phobos but to the Pix "Where was the shipment from here, taken?"
"What?" Alexander's answer is quick, unthinking. But then he frowns to himself and seems to accept that, frowning as his bright blue eyes lower, half-lidding and then he grimaces. "Oh." As if understanding and then he nods. A deep breath is taken, held… then slowly released as he looks sidelong towards Batgirl as if for her reaction.
Back to the pixie and Batgirl he says levelly, "There's nothing else I need to know." Though the others might have other lines of inquiry to follow. Fairly easy to see where Alexander's priorities are, at least in this matter.
Another step back takes him out of direct interaction with the creature. At Babs' mention of the name of the sword, Alexander looks down at it, then back up at Ken, than back down at the sword. Finally back up at Ken again and he says, "You should, umm. Probably get a different one." Like telling a smoker they should quit smoking. They know!
"It's the name of the smith, not the sword." Ken corrects before looking to the prisoner.
"Explain that." Samurai knows little of Orphan - he's never met her and Batgirl has only referenced her a couple of times - but he sees what the answer does to Phobos and he is suspicious.
"The Orphan, she's like hard steel. Strong, but fragile if struck in the right way. She has lines she will not cross. Things she will not countenance. Fear's nature runs counter to that. She will not be able to bend, and so she will break."
"And how do you know that?" Samurai presses.
The pixie gulps. "Eurayle told us. She told us to watch. To wait, that it would make him vulnerable and when it he might… side with us."
Ah. There it is. But is it true? Or just a deception planted to mess with their heads?
Finally Alex himself gets a glance. "I would consider it but I dare not abandon this one for fear of what it might do to others. Now, answer the woman with the terrible fashion sense."
Pix looks at Batgirl and ALMOST laughs. "Um, across the river into into Jersey. It was needed to pay someone there. It's probably already been given over though. So, um, you're… to late?"
Normally when villains say that it's with a bit more conviction.
Batgirl stills at the words, she heard Samurais correction but doesn't acknowledge it. "And if it doesn't make him side with you…" she says slowly, putting a gloved hand on the youths shoulder to steady him. "… if makes him more resolute to see the end of you, what then? It's a dangerous game you play for this Eurayle. Has she got you so tied up, you'd believe anything?"
Two can play mind games. Just how well Babs and the Bats can do it, remains to be seen.
The almost laugh and the lack of conviction has Batgirl turning the knife in her fingers. "I like your wings. They'd look very pretty hanging in my window with the moonlight shining through them…. Are you sure I'm too late?"
Jaw tightening for a moment, Alexander crinkles his nose and says, "Ah, well if Euryale said that, she's clearly in the know." The sarcasm isn't exactly lightly applied to his words as he levels that statement back at the Pixie. He seems to dismiss it for the time being, or perhaps has already partially crossed that bridge in matters before.
It all comes from having to deal with Fate, or the Fates, fairly regularly. So much so that they hold a grudge. He nods towards Batgirl as he embraces her view of the situation.
As for Ken, the young Olympian bobs his head a little and seems to understand the position the man might find himself in. Hold onto a thing because if it leaves your sphere of influence then you might not be able to angle it towards things safely.
"Um well… she's been right so far? It's fate right? You can't fight fate. Everyone has it. Trying just hurts you and those around you." The Pixie says.
Samurai wonders if that's a recruiting tool. Get them to believe that they don't really have a choice. That everything is predestined and they might as well just go along with it.
"N-no? I mean you're probably not too late if you go look for the one they call Grundy?"
THAT should be a name that Batgirl knows. And a a person she has some idea of how to track. He's in Jersey is he now?
"Most people can be right some of the time. It's called playing the odds and I don't believe in Fate. If I did …" The black clad woman doesn't finish that though Ken might realise she was about to say something that might be a key to who she is.
"Of course, it's up to you if you want to believe that some shadowy Gorgon has the key to whether you live or die. When you decide you don't, you know where to find us when you need help."
The knife gets palmed and put into her utility belt and she looks out over the river. "Grundy is it? That little weasel won't be happy to see me, but I'm going to pay him a visit. Oracle, locate Grundy."
"Yes Batgirl, getting those details for you now."
She did *that* deliberately. She wants this fairy believing she's speaking to an Oracle.
Bonk. Shortly after Oracle makes its pronouncement Ken smacks the faerie over the head with the sheath of one of his blades. It puts the creature right out.
"Not a name I know. But one I take it you do. Is he dangerous?"
Grundy is not a LITTLE weasel but then Batgirl knows that. It MIGHT be possible to talk to him. Depends on what kind of mood he's in. Or it might get punchy.
Batgirl looks at Samurai, he can't read her expression at all. She doesn't say thank you, but she thinks it. He didn't kill the creature. At least now it might spread rumours.
"Grundy? Not really. Tricksy. Bit of a slimeball really but no different to the usual type we have to deal with. I can try and talk to him. If he doesn't want to talk, lets say our friend over there experienced the sorts of persuasion I might need to give him."
Another look over the river "I'm going now, want to come?"
The Samurai's eyes follow Batgirl's across the river, into New Jersey. Grundy. He knows little of what he's getting into but then… he's got two swords and he can cut through almost anything. How bad can it be?
"Yes, I'll come. Though I'm not going on a zipline." He gets around the way God intended. On a motorcycle. Duh.
Ask that again Ken, when you're further into this. How bad can it be?
"Bats don't zipline *everywhere*." Batgirl answers and heads out of the yard. Her bike isn't far away either. "They knew you would be here. Oracle's not detecting any signals coming from you, so it's not likely they were tracking you. You should sweep your place, where you work and where you live at the least for bugs."
"I can help with that, if you trust me."
Samurai gives her a look over his shoulder and pauses. "Let us see how this goes first. Perhaps after. After all, I know little about you." She could be a friend. But she could just as easily be the opposite.
Either way, they have places to go and Grundy's to question.