2014.01.14 - MGH: Going LIVE

LOCATON: BOWERY, GOTHAM CITY
TIME: 11:20 PM
WEATHER: COLLLLLLLD!!!
The world is never an easy place, and certainly not fair. Even hard workers do not get the opportunities they should in Gotham City, let alone Bowery. So when the youth start to get hyped up on a drug called MGH, short for Mutant Growth Hormone (not that the users or heroes at this time necessarily knew what it stood for), no one was particularly surprised. Was there really anything better to do?
What was surprising though was not how addictive it was, but rather that it gave people temporary super powers! It was all different types too, camouflage, super strength and endurance, super speed, flight, claws and fangs, and more. The cops kept it quiet so far when someone fell to their death when their flight powers turned 'off', they just reported it as a suicide jump from a building, or when someone busted through a wall or door, they were just hyped up on so many drugs they did not recognize the pain, and the list goes on.
Introducing Arrowette...
But what they did not count on is Arrowette witnessing one of those deaths, and losing her stomach contents over it. Not that she called it quits then. That is actually when she started asking questions. A local dealer is located at 106 Downery Rd., pun intended. There are some buyers filtering in and out of the place at different intervals and at odd hours. The rule? Can't use your powers till you are a block away, otherwise they won't sell to you anymore, so the place has been pretty quiet on this block at least.
Arrowette currently sets across the street, watching the front door in deep thought. Her black costume makes her more difficult to see as she also keeps her blonde hair covered up. Her knees are bent, her toes practically on the edge of the building as she squats with forearms resting on her thighs. Her bow is currently hanging from the hooks on her quiver. Her blue eyes are narrowed, her expression thoughtful, mouth pressed into a thin line. Yep, she's terrified, but she can't just do nothing after finding this out, right?
While Roy could usually take on a lot of things fearlessly, the random powers aspect meant that he would need backup. Because the drugs weren't actually -international-, as far as he could tell, this meant he would have to pursue such things independently from SHIELD. And at the moment, he knew one person who could back him up, who had spent much time fighting superpowers... 
Sadly, Nightwing wasn't available, so he had to make do with the old man. 
"Hey old man," Roy asks over the comm. "You okay there, or do I need to break the icicles off your nose?" 
"You watch it or I'll break you," is huffed over the comm. Green Arrow is, indeed, dressed for cold weather, being covered up as much as possible without having his movement hindered. Instead of a cap, he wears a hood on his head which should help cut some of the wind, but it's just that damn cold. "Are you sure that even the perps are going to be out in this mess? Drugged up or not, it's just insane. They're probably going to freeze their balls off."
Green Arrow is situated at another vantage spot, an arrow nocked and at the ready in his bow as he looks at the street and across at the buildings nearby.
Arrowette gives up on waiting and being indecisive, not going to get anywhere if she's like that! It is perhaps her movements that might call attention to herself to the eagle-eyed Arrow Family members. She reaches back and unhooks her black bow and removes an arrow. She notches it and aims at a poorly lit window, "You better be right girl, otherwise you are soooo getting sued." She lets it go flying. When the arrow hits the window it shatters and a smog-alarm goes off, loud and echoing. People sleeping nearby? NOT ANYMORE PEOPLE!!!
Arrowette withdraws another arrow and aims, holding still for a few short seconds as people are drawn to the sound and then lets loose another arrow. When it enters through the broken window and breaks, a pepper bomb is released to those in the area which sets off all sorts of fun reactions! Like, you know, screaming in pain as it gets in their eyes?
The building is only three stories high, so when Arrowette shoots her third arrow and tests the grip from where it hangs on the far roof's edge, she then wraps it about a metal gauntlet protected wrist (YES, it is very collllld), and leaps to go swinging down...she realizes something, "I'm a moooorrronnnn!" And instead of going through a 3rd floor window, she goes into a 1st floor window..and that ladies and gentlemen, is going to leave bruises even if she lands in a roll - she seriously took out a window frame! She didn't think that through, it works in Tarzan afterall! Well, if her actions didn't call attention, likely that scream of self-horror did. Let's not mention it again, shall we?
"Oh good," quips Roy. "And here I was thinking you were going to say something about "Breaking Bad". You're slipping old man. Speaking of which, watch your step. It's showtime." 
But just as Roy starts moving, he catches sight of Arrowette. 
What comes across on Green Arrow's earpiece are a bunch of words that Oliver Queen most -definitely- did not teach Roy Harper. Although he probably would be quite impressed by the anatomical impossibilities of some of those positions. 
"It's a girl archer, and it's NOT Hawkeye! What... aw hell with it, cover her ass, and let's ask questions later." 
Saying that, Roy swoops into action, firing an arrow at the first floor window, the better to set up a zipline. 
And... dun dun dun... 
"Hi, I know you didn't call for help, but we aim to save our customers some -trouble-!" Roy hollers as he zips right into the room, tucking and tumbling, ready to fire arrows to draw attention off the young girl's fail... 
"You know I don't watch cable, Roy...I barely watch television!" Green Arrow starts but then scowls when he sees the movement and then the girl crashing into the building. "Damned vigilantes...not everyone should be going about in silly costumes and taking justice into their own hands!" He doesn't zipline over to the building, but he does make a few rather wide jumps from one building to the next before he slides down a fire escape to get to that first-floor window. 
"I see how it is. Leave me out in the cold..." is muttered as he looks about to see if he needs to shoot anyone out here. "Get the girl out of there..." is then ordered.
It's a good thing that Arsenal came in when he did, because the girl was still recovering. She is shaking the glass off, luckily she wore a thick leather uniform that looked like it had some padding otherwise she could have been cut very badly indeed. Her bow had fallen during the tumble, but luckily nothing broke including the arrows...miracle...she must know how to take a fall at least. Arrowette blinks the stars away, and registers Roy shooting, and then a yell to get her out...NOT happy!
But while she recovers! Roy is soon faced with two gangster dealer thugs coming down the stairs, one holding a gun. "Ah, shait! Heroes, cap 'em!" That is what the one without the gun says while the other one raises his to shoot.
Arrowette would have recovered too late to protect herself, if it wasn't for Roy's timely appearance...
Trusting in Ollie to have his back, Roy shifts towards 'protect' mode. Although in his experience with young female archers, they -usually- would tell him to go back off and let them take care of themselves. If she were like the others, well... "This is where you tell me you can take care of yourself, right? Because I really want to get to shooting the bad guys before the old man does..." Arsenal asks, shifting his bow, giving both Ollie and Arrowette a shot at the gangster thugs before he takes a shot. 
Green Arrow is already taking that shot. From behind the others, still outside the window, he fires an arrow at the thug who's already lifting his gun to fire. The arrow is aimed right for the thug's hand...it won't kill him, but it's gonna hurt enough for him to not be able to fire the gun he's holding. No trick arrows tonight. 
"Get out of the way, kid, before you get yourself killed for trying to be a hero."
Known heroes gave them pause, Arrowette alone and wounded wouldn't have. Ya, she owes them a thanks afterwards, but right now isn't the time or place. "When I'm not forgetting how to do math? Yes." Wait, was that sarcasm at her expense? Her math college professor would seriously scold her for not thinking logically! Her words are somewhat growled though thanks to the pain, but at least she finally gets her hand on her bow. Then again, maybe she will just tell her idol to go to hell.
Arrowette twists her body and ignores the pain, she's a professionally trained athlete, she can push past the pain when it means a 'win'. And the arrow she pulled and let loose? A Bola Arrow that hits the second guy right in the chest and wraps about him to pin his arms at his side. "Who died and made you BSA director?" Did she just compare Green Arrow to a government official?!!!! Well, least it was one in charge of superhuman and superhero affairs.
All seems well enough though there is noise on the second floor above and on the stairs...at least until the thug wobbles, makes a roar, and suddenly flings his arms out and puffs out his chest, snapping the Bola.
Arrowette's response? "Ummm...I vote super strength, you can have him, totally, I mean..I'm just a wanna-be heroine, right and you are the 'real thing'?" Sarcasm mixed with flattery...different.
"Aw, old man, don't be discouraging. It's not like this was her first time at the rodeo... it's just that sometimes you don't want to tackle something like -this- all alone, right, kiddo...?" Arsenal comments, flashing an encouraging grin at Arrowette, as he draws the net arrows. The ice arrows seemed so UNNECESSARILY cruel on a night like this, with high risk of hypothermia. As the bolo arrows are fired, Arsenal backs up Arrowette with those net arrows, aiming to take out the main small fries so that they could concentrate on... ugh, the superpowered ones. Small wonder Batman -refused- to condone superpowered people in HIS city... they were, to put it mildly, hemorrhoids on the blight of Gotham that required, like... Preparation H. 
"Because I love rescuing newbies who are in too deep," Green Arrow mutters into his goatee even as he nocks another arrow. This one, he fires at the strong thug, aiming to hit him just a little to the right of his groin, on his thigh. "Who told you to go up against a cadre of pumped up idiots alone, hmm?" He's not going to answer her little insult.
Instead, to the thug, he offers, calmly, "Get out or the next one will be aimed more center."
Ugh, they are so sounding like Arrowette's mom now! There is a bit of a clog in the stairs now due to the net arrow and Arrowette then asks, "How are we supposed to get up there now?" Still, it will filter them more so it's like shooting fish in a barrel. That was of course to Arsenal. And to Green Arrow? "My speed dial broke 'DAD'," the term obviously said sarcastically and perhaps with a hint of bitterness. Guess not the type of girl with a good relationship with her dad? Ah, whatever. All heroines have "issues" with quotation marks anyway!
Still, the girl doesn't hold still, she pulls out another arrow herself and shoots it, popping the big thug right in the balls with a punching glove arrow while one hand is busy trying to dig the sharp arrow point out of his thigh. The thug grunts with the impact, and then frowns. "Going to so mess you up girly."
And then it hits Arrowette what Green Arrow just did and she actually grins! She pulls out one more arrow and lets it fly, a regular one. But this time, she sends it to the man's sneaker covered foot. Eat that jerk! "Sorry, I like real men," she says almost sweetly!
That of course leaves Roy and Ollie with a handful as someone goes running down the stairs, knocks into the netted bunch in the stairs and comes tumbling down in a mess before knocking into the big guy with an arrow in his hand - as he just pulled it from his thigh with blood oozing - and one in his foot! And boy, the one in his foot...dang, it didn't nail him to the floor, Arrowette was so hoping! The speedster that caused the massive tumble though is back on his feet and goes, "Arrrrrgh Matey! My ship be taken!" And moves to charge toward Arsenal. Wait, does that mean he has a crush on Harper? Talk about awkward. Na, he's just really, really high.
Green Arrow may be able to hear someone falling out of the window with a grunt and heavy THUMP just outside.
"Ease up, old man, we can go take turn playing Good Dad, Bad Dad later," Arsenal comments as he pulls out a concussive arrow, aiming at the thug. After a moment of realization where Arrowette had been shooting, the archer winces a bit in sympathy. "Let me guess, you call that the nutcracker arrow?" he asks, as he shifts his gaze, taking aim at the frown and firing. 
"If you were any kid of mine," Green Arrow starts, but then clamps his mouth shut as he looks at Arsenal...and then gets flashes of Connor in his mind's eye. Right. Whirling around instead, he swings his bow, full-force, at whomever landed behind him. "Just...ngh. Take 'em down so we can get out of this damned cold!"
And poor Ollie gets to knock a fifteen year old's teeth out. The good news? He's out cold. The bad news, he gets to say he punched a catboy...not bragging material. Actually, maybe it is best to never mention that ever again either.
"I'll call it bad dad, good dad arrow if you try to take that role again," Arrowette warns, and of course she is BEAT red, but hopefully the black scarf wrapped about her head and neck like a hood will hide it. Arsenal only looks a few years older than her! How awkward! But then Arrowette starts to move. While Arsenal lets loose his concussive arrow and the speedster runs right into it only to be blown backwards, Arrowette is running. She literally leap atop the netted mess of druggies and is heading right up the stairs!
"Fine, fine. We'll sort out family issues -later-," Arsenal replies, readying another arrow. But as Arrowette dashes up the stairs, Arsenal grimaces. "Man, she's totally -your- daughter. Lian was never -this- bad," the redheaded archer replies as he dashes up the stairs. 
"Stay away from drugs," is ordered to the now-unconscious cat-boy. That done, Green Arrow scowls after the girl and Arsenal, "She ain't a kid of -mine-. My kids have sense!" There are mutters curses as he crawls in through the window and follows the others up the stairs. Some of the mutterings might even be about letting the girl get beat up a little to teach her a lesson. Not that he'd say it aloud.
Arrowette is headstrong, just like her mother when she gets the self-esteem to back it up anyway. She skips the second floor after taking a glance about and heads on up to the third floor with Arsenal and Green Arrow right behind her. Her running is a little 'off', as if she substained injury, but she isn't acknowledging it. As she swings open the third floor door, she comes face-to-face with a gun barrel. Luckily, her mom made sure she had some self-defense and she acts instinctively. She uses her bow to knock the arm aside as the gun goes off and she lifts a booted foot and slams it toward his inner thigh.
Of course, the guy has to open his mouth and scream, which suddenly sends Arrowette being knocked back hard against the wall. While the girl hits the wall in the stairwell with a grunt and slides to the floor painfully, the guy hasn't noticed Arsenal or Green Arrow yet. "Geez, one slip of a girl cause all this trouble? Boss won't like this." The guy goes to grab Arrowette and hears the running sounds up the stairs to turn and look. Heroes! But he has a hostage!
And then CLICK. Did Arrowette just pull out a handcuff arrow while the guy was looking away to handcuff him to himself? She grins. "I GOT YOU!" Yes, her ears are ringing. It likely doesn't help she totally, briefly sticks her tongue out at the guy to distract him so hopefully the other two 'heroes' can use the opportunity to free her.
And this is where teamwork applies. As Arrowette exposes the villain, Arsenal skids down, dropping to his knees and allowing the momentum to skid down low. They had to work fast before the thug decided to pound the girl. So it was going to be the old low-high shooting. While Roy aimed low, trying to kneecap the dude, the OLD MAN, assuming he wasn't suffering from Alzheimer's, had a perfect opening available in that TINY TINY window of opportunity between the knee-capping attempt to do -something- with that one-in-a-million small gap between Arrowette and the thug's face...
Shooting in stairwells isn't the easiest thing to do and sometimes it's not the smartest. That said, Green Arrow has never been known to go the wisest route but his methods are often, at the least, effective. Sometimes, they're even brilliant. Knowing that his own arrows would cause some nasty 'hole-in-the-head-itis' to the thug cuffed to the girl, he reaches out to Arsenal's quiver and pulls one of his 'trick' arrows and fires it at that TINY TINY, one-in-a-million small gap. When one has a shot, one just has to take it.
And suddenly there is a grunt of pain, a heavy one, before the thug's shoulder starts to get frozen and it strales out to his arms and down toward his waist and up to his neck.
Arrowette gasps at the cold and moves to kick free, falling to the landing and catching herself with a grown. Her scarf finally falls off her head, but remains hanging about her neck. Blonde hair is revealed, but she wears a black cowl still. She steps back. Powerful arrows...so cool though! But then she remembers she's supposed to be doing something. She reaches back for an arrow and picks up her bow. She pulls the arrow as she aims it at the guy's face. "Who's your boss?! Or I'll...I'll....she looks a little green when she realizes her mom stuck another one in! "I'll powder your nose! I'm sure they will like that in prison." She is so trying not to turn red right now. Darn her mom! Who the hell uses a powder-puff arrow these days?! She doesn't even use make-up other than lip gloss!
The ice climbed up along the guy's neck while he is on his knees, but he opens his mouth to scream at Arrowette, but...with his neck frozen like that, it isn't very powerful...but he does explode the arrow tip and cause a bunch of powder to bust back against Arrowette's face! She luckily closed her eyes in time, but as her lashes flutter, they are littered with white powder. She coughs, spitting powder. "Never mind," and yep, she starts hitting the guy with her bow. Someone might want to reminder her that she's a heroine.
"... easy there, powderpuff girl," Arsenal clasps a hand down onto Arrowette's shoulder. "I... whoa." Taking a step back, Arsenal eyes Green Arrow. "Maybe we should call the cops, get the special meta-human units involved. And get the hell out of here. Kid, we'll talk later, right? You got my number?" 
"She's a little young for you, don't you think? Unless you're lookin' for a babysitter," Green Arrow points out. There's a frown at the powder-puff arrow...he's seen those before. "We should definitely call the cops and leave. And you, girlie, need to go home and not go about attacking multiple guys on your own unless you have some sort of vigilante death wish." He gets out one of his burner phones and dials the cops, "What would you have done if we weren't here, huh?" 
No one ever said Green Arrow was humble, either.
"I'm legal!" That is snapped out from Arrowette as she finally wipes at her face, which only makes the powder worse. She doesn't know if she should go back to beating the guy, or burst into tears. How embarrassing! Just her luck! This always happened to her when she was younger! Thanks MOM! "Survived," is Arrowette's single word. "Stubborn like that." Basically, no, she isn't going to just give up and quit, no matter how horrified she feels.
Arrowette doesn't look directly at Arsenal. Well, least her shots were dead on, she has skill...as an archer anyway. "Why would I have your number anyway? And don't call me kid. This is awkward and embarrassing, and I'd likely curl up in a tight ball after a shower, but I'm not a kid." She's rambling...rambling isn't a good thing. Alright, so maybe she kicks the guy while he's down, but it wasn't toooo hard. "Jerk," she grumbles. Well, least he's out cold after being hit in the head with a heavy-duty bow a couple of times.
"So you can call me -before- you dive in alone. I mean, _I_ didn't want to tackle these guys by myself, and you know how it is!" Arsenal replies, wincing. Maybe the Red Hood might have been happy to join, but Roy wasn't about to admit anything to -that- LED-Head. Of course, Ollie would probably never let him live this down. "And uh, I think he got the message, Arrow Girl." 
"And I'm thinkin' not, girlie. But you go ahead and think that and you'll find yourself dead or worse before too long." With the cops on the way, Green Arrow tucks the phone back into a pocket of his cold-weather gear. "But you want to get into this business, the first thing...the VERY first thing you need to know if you want to -keep- doin' this is know when you need help. There's no shame in having help and no one's going to reward you for beating folks up all on your lonesome. It's the -kids- who think they're invulnerable." He then looks to Arsenal, "You can flirt later. It's too damn cold for this."
The young woman grumbles at Roy, "Arrowette." Not that it's her proudest moment by far. She so imagined this would go way better and smoother! Well, it's her first time fighting metas or mutants or whatever. Guess she should just be happy she lived. "Well, I'll think about it," and moves to hold out an empty hand, powder covered. "Your digits?" And suddenly, she's glad for the powder a bit, hides the red in her cheeks that she can soooo feel.
And yep, even redder when Green Arrow lectures her. "I'm not invulnerable," she says more quietly, "I know that...I...know people die." The words sound heavy, they feel heavy to her. Sometimes...she still has flashbacks. But she swallows and squares her shoulders. "I can DO this. And I'll get help, if people make the time for me. I made my choice, I'm putting my all into it to make a difference. It's not for fame, or to get my name in the lights. I...just want to help." Well, apparently the lecture did good, it got through to Arrowette pretty quickly.
"Arrowette," Arsenal offers a comforting grin, lowering his shades just a bit. "I dunno what you were doing all by yourself or who you're trying to prove things to..." Here he gives Ollie a jaundiced -look-, mostly because this was a -chance- to avoid all the crap with people just leaving teenager-hood and finding their own path without being self-destructive. "Best reason to get into the business, at least, to -help-. Now we just have to show you how to help without..." 
"Without being an idiot and getting yourself and others killed," Green Arrow finishes Arsenal's thought for him. He peers at the younger archer through his own domino mask, "Doing good and helping is the right reason, but you won't get it done if you keep going at it like you did tonight." Arsenal gets another glance before he looks at the girl, "Might want to think of another name. I knew one by that name...kind of a stalker type. Doesn't hold the fondest memories."
"...jumping with too long rope or letting people sneak powder-puff arrows into her quiver?" Wait...why do powder-puff arrows sound familiar to Ollie? Oh...yaaaa, THAT! "Or maybe get better tech? Better tech be nice." And she scowls at Green Arrow, "Without having to deal with jerks would be nice. I'll find my own help." She looks...hurt...though it's difficult to tell through all the white powder. She doesn't wait for Arsenal to really share a number with her, she starts to head for the stairs as the cops will be here soon and to leave, pulling her scarf back up to cover her long blonde hair.
Category:Log