Summary:The Silver Samurai goes looking for Batgirl and finds her in a good mood. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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If one was looking for Batgirl, one could ask a seer. The seer, unlike the seers of old, isn't likely to answer in a cryptic fashion. Tonight, the redheaded Bat can be found, on her motorcycle fanging it around Staten Island. She's been chasing leads all weeks since the 'field' went up and tonight has been particularly busy.
At least she's not being chased by the Lord of the Feast. That's something.
Passing through the dingy streets of the poorer section of town, Batgirl is heading towards Freshkills Park … without her cape fluttering behind her.
The Oracle had offered to arrange a meeting but Kennuichio had declined and asked to be told where she was. Which means that the VI had pinged Batgirl with the usual phrase. "Batgirl, he's looking for you. Again."
Ken's location shows up, he's carrying that oracle comm so he can be tracked. It's closing with her fast. He must also be on his motorcycle. He's going to catch up with her in about two minutes which does at least mean she has time to pull over somewhere. Or she can keep going to Freshkill Park, though he'll be on her tail the whole way.
No Lord of the Feast no. Just a swordsmaster.
"Again? He never looks for me, Oracle." Batgirl answers the VI, though it's not programmed to respond to that type of conversation. "Normally he's doing that we want to interrupt. Did he say what he wanted?" His position flashes in the corner of the hud and the redhead smiles to herself. "Lets see how determined he is to catch me."
Gunning the engine of the bike, the Bat takes the next corner at a clip - leaning so far over, the bike is nearly flat and it's a wonder she doesn't scrape her knee along the road. It's towards the outskirts of Freshkills that she's heading - a small out of the way service road where they can meet. "Cut the camera's and surveillence at service point charlie, Oracle. I'd rather noone else know where to find us…"
Will he catch her before she has time to dismount and melt into the shadows?
"He is always doing something, though." The VI responds. That might almost be sass but it's all programmed. It's Babs' sass. This thing isn't alive enough to sass on its own. It's clever but not that clever.
He does not but he does see her bike. The Samurai parks next to hers and gets off.
"Batgirl?" He's already starting down the little shadowed service area. The Oracle had said she was here. She should still be.
Hopefully.
"This is true." Batgirl smiles, melting into the shadows as the Samurai pulls up. As he passes her, a bola-rang whistles out, aimed at his ankles to tangle him up. "Were you looking for me, Samurai?"
She's in a good mood, it seems. There's a sound as she moves - that sounds like her rappel gun. She's gone up most likely and isn't where he thinks she is.
"I was. We need to talk." The Samurai says and then abruptly cuts off as he's tangled up. "Cute."
He has to bend over and untangle himself and that takes several moments. After that, he moves toward the sound of her voice but then realizes she's already gone.
"Are you playing hard to get?" Phrasing? Or possibly that was deliberate.
"I might be. Depends on if you like the chase or not. If you do, then I am…" Batgirl is definitely in good mood - might have something to do with not being chased by worshippers of the devourer and not having to break up fights.
"What do you want to talk about. I'd rather spar." The voice is moving, he can track it … at least for the moment.
"About what's going on here? And that field the other night?"
"About both of those things." Ken pulls one of his blades off his back, but doesn't draw it. He'll keep it sheathed. If she wants to spar he'll let her. Unfortunately he can't get up there at her. He does try to track her voice though.
"The moves they're making feel like testing. And their tests are getting bigger and more public, which suggests they're close to ready."
"Alright then…" The voice comes from his left, as the redhead combat rolls towards him. When she comes up, she's holding her escrima sticks and lunges to bring one down on him. "I'll go easy on you, you're not armoured."
She moves well - he knows that and she's certainly not unskilled. Not at his level of training but it's good and she's certainly agile enough to make up for that lack.
"They're responding to the pressure we're putting on them." The black clad woman agrees. Her cape flares behind her as she flicks it at him - she hadn't been wearing it had she on the bike?. "And they've called that Lord of the Feast."
Ken is better than most people when he's got a weapon in his fist. His unarmed combat is substantially less refined. But put a sword in his hand and he is poetry in motion. He turns to swat the stick away and slide his sheathed blade down taking advantage of the lack of guards on the sticks to try to swat her on the shoulder.
Batgirl is well aware of how good Ken is - he just doesn't know how aware she is.
It's probably interesting, that as he swats at her shoulder she counters nearly perfectly - the sheathed blade barely making contact against the armoured suit.
He'd be forgiven for thinking she's been studying him.
With a swirl of the cape, trying to tangle the blade, Batgirl tumbles again, this time towards to him - her objective to bring herself up within his reach, making it difficult to bring the sheath to bear. The escrima stick flicks out to tap his shoulder.
"Nothing to say? Then let me. Those crystals are designed as the anchors, I think. Agent Grey has been most helpful in providing information. I know that he's recovered at least two since he's been working on this. But if they're moving faster, they must have more to deploy."
She has been. But he doesn't know exactly how. It's not hard to think he's been under observation. And he has been. Very close observation.
"They will be seeding crystals around the city. I know some have been found but the ones they have are either hooked up to some kind of network or more powerful."
His blade spins in a parry and there is a wooden clack when it makes contact. Then he backs up a pace and lashes out in a pair of from the forearm blows on one side then the other. Testing her defenses and her technique.
"If they're moving faster, it may mean that they have fewer to deploy. As in they're almost done."
"And they've found a way to hide the … magic … from others." Clack, clack, clack. Batgirl parries the first hit with the stick, falling back a step or two, drawing him forward as they move. The next hit is parried with the wrist of the glove she wears. "I know, I wouldn't want to do that if that blade was unsheathed or if you did your voodoo…."
She launches her attack, pressing the Samurai, her forms not bad, not bad at all. Does he recognise any of her moves? Babs has been careful not to let too much slip but sometimes ….
"Correct. And I think the Feast Lord has been summoned to distract us and slow us down. Hurting us, wouldn't be bad but they have to know we're stretched as it is."
"I can see if Agent Grey can track more of the crystals but if I were them, I wouldn't be activating them until they were needed."
"No. You would most certainly not." The man in the mask says as he gives ground. He only does it for a moment though before he launches into a flurry of attacks. Batgirl has seen it before, of course. She knows he's testing her defenses but that in an actual fight any one of these strokes could turn deadly even without his powers.
"You're well trained." He grunts. That's an interesting comment. Does he suspect?
"I suspect if the Lord of the Feast killed some of you they would not shed any tears. They're committed now. They will make their final move soon. They're too public otherwise and they'll be tracked down eventually. They know that. Just like any criminal enterprise."
"I know that…" Batgirl lets the Samurai press his attack, she's not a combatant like the other Bats - she relies more on her brains and gadgets. Parrying the blows, she falls back a step or two, then with a swirl of her cape to mask her movement, she tumbles to the side, rolling to come up behind him.
That's when she drops the flash bang and moves to the side again. "I've been training for a while and my 'brothers' didn't go easy on me." That's a bit of fib. Of all the young bats, Babs often had it the easiest. Poor Robins. Does Ken suspect? She's not holding back like Barbara does.
"I doubt many would shed a tear if any of us were to expire. So what do you recommend then, Silver Samurai?" He can track her voice and follow her location but can he be sure she's actually there?
"Decapitation. Find the Gorgons and kill them. That should at least throw their organization into sufficient disarray to stall them and dismantle what they have built, if not send them scattering outright." Ken knows that Batgirl isn't likely to like that suggestion but she did ask.
The Flash Bang goes off and that's going to get some attention. It leaves Kennuichio momentarily disoriented though he covers it by retreating two paces in a blind spin, lashing out with his sheathed blade in a wide arc to catch her if she tries to press her advantage.
"Easier said than done." Batgirl responds. "It's not like we haven't been looking, is it? They're buried good and deep - I'd doubt they're even in New York, to be honest."
That voice is moving as he is, keeping him turning and his blade doesn't hit her - she's not stupid and he knows that. Well… not that stupid.
"I could just send a bolarang in again, tangle your ankles up." This time her voice is behind him and quite close, her escrima stick taps his shoulder and she back rolls away again.
"Let's say I actually like your idea about finding the Gorgons. We'll have to bait them out - how would we do that?"
"You'd need something they want, or something they consider enough of a threat to warrant dealing with personally." Ken spins, his vision is coming back in nicely and he strikes out forward in an overhead slash and then follows it up with a rising crescent arced blow.
It's a very aggressive style he has. Advance. Advance. Advance. Very rarely fall back or re-orient. It's sort of impressive that he's as good a swordsman as he is. Because with his powers he could get away with being a very bad one.
"And I am not sure that we have that, unless you have resources I do not."
"Come on Samurai, you know you want to get a hit on me …" Batgirl is taunting him, falling back as he advances. She's nowhere near the swordsman or melee fighter he is, but she's got some training and she's quick and agile - mostly, thanks to the suit.
Her escrima sticks parry and block - the redhead doesn't try to attack or press him back. Only another step or two and she drops, sweeping his legs with hers, holding the escrima sticks above her to catch the blade when it comes down. "I don't know if I do, I don't know what type of resources you have, really. Oracle has a long reach. The problem as I see it, is that the only thing I think we have that they want is the island itself."
"We can ask the Yakuza what they want. But they may not give the answers easily. We will need leverage. And we will need to be very, very pointed." The blade does come down but only for a moment. It dips to nearly waist height and then the swordsmaster reverses his grip and sweeps out and low in a very unusual path. One that SHOULD be awkward but isn't thanks to the amount of time he's clearly put into it.
Clack. That will probably make contact. Did he want to hit her? Yes. Yes he did.
"Ah, but you have an …" Batgirl grunts when the blade connects, but doesn't stop moving. As Ken sweeps his blade at her, the redhead drops the sticks and grabs the arm - rolling to the side to pull him with her, as her leg still sweeps his.
It's not elegant and it's incredibly risky. Even as fit as she is, Batgirl likely won't have the strength that the Samurai does.
"… in there. Why don't we kidnap a Yakuza and give them a reason to speak to us? Or perhaps, Oracle can work her magic and come up with the leverage we need."
It does make him fall though. Predictably. He crashes down. He comes up in a roll but she's still got his arm. By that point he's got his blade in one hand though and brings it right up below her collar and just holds it there. If this were an actual fight that cut would be hard to deal with. Well, he'd have it slightly higher. On her neck.
"Not bad for someone who only gets to practice on common thugs. Yes, I have an in there. I may be able to call upon some obligations."
Batgirl laughs as the Samurai falls, rolling with him to rise as well, chin held high as the sword touches her collar. "Who said I only get to practice on common thugs? Oh, right, you think we're a crime family which would make my 'brothers' thugs as well, right?"
Is she making fun of him?
"No, don't use your obligations. That's not what I meant. Tell Oracle who the best target is and we'll try to make sure you don't have call in too many favours."
She's still now. The sticks are still on the ground and she's still holding his arm. "You're not too bad for someone who doesn't need to know how to use a sword."
"There are two. A fixer by the name of Isoroku Ishida and a senior 'businessman' who goes by Nobuo Fujimora. Both of them are in New York and if your Oracle is good perhaps she can find some places where they have been indiscrete."
The Swordsmaster stands up. Or well, pulls Batgirl up and puts his blade back over his shoulder. She's still got his arm.
"But we are running out of time. If we do not find something we can use soon, they are going to make their move on the island." And then there will be absolutely no hiding it.
"Oracle…" Batgirl rolls to her feet with the Samurai "Start the search. There should be something we can find on them. They *are* Yakuza after all. Check the illegal imports and such, to start. We know there's something going on there. But anything will do …"
She trails off - she had *almost* spoken about loosing face. That wouldn't do.
"Oracle will work on that. Tonight I'm checking some locations that our friends have friends. Did you want to accompany me or do you have a hot date or something?"
"I will be happy to come with you. I do not typically dress up like this for dates." Actually Barbara knows that he doesn't really go out. It seems to be home, dojo or vigilante so far as his evenings are concerned. He doesn't seem to feel the need to keep up a social calendar. Possibly doesn't much want to.
"Shall we then? My bike is parked by yours." And he does like riding. And he's quite good.
Barbara knows that but Batgirl doesn't - and Barbara is still concealing that information from Ken. "Pity. You'd get a good take up, I think. The mask adds a certain something, don't you think?"
Turning to retrieve her escrima sticks, the redhead makes her way to the bikes. It's going to be a good evening.