2013.03.23 - A Case of Under-Estimating

It's not raining tonight but while it's clear out it's chilly as hell, spring not yet having made its presence known. Makes it a miserable night to be on patrol, Dinah realizes in hindsight but she needed to be out here, to make sure her part of the city's safe.
Several hours have already been spent riding on her bike, driving not only along the main streets but the alleyways as well, her gaze and attention kept as much upon the shadowy recesses and abandoned buildings as they are kept on her driving, the Canary not wanting to miss a single detail if she can possibly help it.
Every computer needs an upgrade from time to time. Even Glitch. The rugged laptop that incorporates One's portable service and recharging kit is powerful, but he needs it to be cutting edge. For his purposes, nothing less will suffice.
To that end, he's been out all night picking up new parts. Sometimes this means sneaking in and stealing something using stealth as his weapon. Sometimes it means kicking down a few doors, beating up a security guard, and smashing open a locked case. Improvisation is key.
This is one of the latter situations. Unable to crack the electronic security on any of the entrances to Prima Dynamics, he settled for kicking through a window high on the ground floor. Unfortunately, this has set off an alarm. A really, really loud one.
Two nervous-looking night watchmen in black pants and white uniform shirts have squared off with One just inside the building's entryway. Despite the fact that they both have batons and One appears unarmed, they seem far more nervous than he does. He's got his armor on tonight, strapped directly over his undershirt along with a pair of work denims and his favorite overcoat. And he's smiling. "I don't want to hurt you," he says. "Either of you. But you're in my way, which leaves me in a sticky wicket."
Normally a call would be put out by the JLA, notifying members of the team in the area that an alarm's going off, security something those on monitor duty keeps an eye on. But this time it's unnecessary as Dinah happens upon the building just as the shrill bell starts to chime, the motorcycle pulled into a skid as she stops.
The helmet is hooked over the handlebar while she looks at the entry way, frowning slightly. While something at the back of her head nags at her to call for backup she does exactly anything /but/ that, the blonde instead running up to the very same window that was busted out, the sight of the guards and the man they're facing off with causing her to come up short. "Hey! You know. That's not a way to make friends," she points out, the displeasure on her expression easy to hear in her voice as well. "You can leave right now and I won't make an issue of it or you can continue with whatever you have planned and I'll have to stop you."
The tall, lean man crosses his arms over his chest and stares down this new arrival. "You could try," he offers. "I hate to point this out, but I'm a lot bigger than you."
Even with three-to-one odds to take into consideration, One doesn't seem terribly concerned. In fact, he's taking steps closer to the woman. "I'm afraid I must respectfully decline," he says, a small smile on his face as he gives her a slight bow, barely more than an abbreviated bob of his head. "Here's my counter-offer. You can leave right now and take those two rent-a-cops with you. I won't make an issue of it. Or you can continue with whatever you have planned and I'll have to stop you."
At least the blond is willing to let the guards go and Dinah's quick to gesture to them, motioning towards the window hurriedly before the other can have a chance to change his mind. She stays put, however, her stubbornness showing in spades. "Now, it's your turn," she points out, her jacket allowed to slide off of her shoulders and fall to the ground. It's very much like she's expecting a fight and is getting ready for it.
A arm is raised and she turns her hand towards him, the back facing the stranger. It is then used to gesture to him, Dinah's best 'bring it on'. "I imagine this will come to blows so how about we just get it over with?"
"Okay," One replies, apparently reluctant. He twists his head to one side, then to the other, producing an impressive snap-crackle-popping sound. "But remember, you wanted this. Not me."
A single catlike pounce closes the distance between himself and his target. Before his feet even settle to the floor, he's lashing out with open-handed blows. Like an animal, he strikes with his palms rather than boxing with his fists, aiming for the sternum and abdomen.
Dinah is expecting One to go on the offensive but she doesn't expect him to move so fast, the speed in which he moves in and then goes on the attack surprising. Puts her on the defensive almost as swiftly but while she can block almost all of the blows he still manages to get some in, the ones to her abdomen winding her and the few that hit her chest causing her to stagger. "Damnit," she exhales hard when one particularly nasty hit reaches her person, causing her to have to roll to the side to dodge anymore he might try to attempt so she can work on catching her breath.
The roll ends with her crouched, a hand and knee braced against the floor, her shoulders and chest heaving. "My turn," she huffs out before leaping back onto her feet. A few running steps bring her closer to the man before she jumps, a side kick looking to be at about face-level with him.
One dances backward, dodging out of the way, but the kick comes close enough that the breeze from it stirs his hair. He narrows his eyes and takes another step, this time to the side. "Look, I don't have a lot of time. Honestly, I don't have a little time. If you want to play more, we can exchange numbers. For now, though, I'm gonna have to do this..."
He plants one boot against the wall, uses it as a springboard, and launches a kick of his own. This one's also aimed at the head, a vicious roundhouse with the weight and momentum of a large man driving it.
How he pushes off is such a tell and Dinah tries to get out of the way by jumping back. Thankfully it gets her head out of range of that nasty attack but it doesn't keep her from getting hit entirely and her shoulder winds up being hit instead. The impact sends her spinning to the left and collide with a support column. The result might remind someone of a cartoon as she literally slides down, dazed, eyes blinking as she strives to keep conscious.
"I see I have... underestimated you," she grunts while getting to her feet, not wanting to stay down despite how common sense makes it obvious she should. "One more time. Go now or things will be forced to get ugly."
"Don't worry about ugly. I won't mark you up too badly." One trails the tip of his tounge along the sharp edges of his teeth. It's a slow, predatory gesture. "I abhor destroying beautiful things."
Purely as a demonstration, One launches a punch at a brick-and-mortar support column. Not only does he pulverize two of the bricks, the impact sends cracks spiderwebbing up and down the pillar.
The dust is wiped fastidiously from his hands, then he plucks a splinter of stone from between two of his knuckles. "Go," he says. "Or stay. But if you stay, I won't be gentle with you."
Her eyes glance down to the shoulder One's kick made contact with, the flesh already starting to show signs of the bruising his kick created, the coloring nowhere near as bad as the dark purple-blue it'll become later, without a doubt. "So much for that," she hisses, poking at the shoulder.
The urge to make jokes hits but is as swiftly kept under control upon seeing that punch and the damage it creates. She's fought strong opponents before but there's something about his display that startles her as well as his demeanor before the column is used as a punching bag. "I can't just in good conscience let you do whatever you have in mind," she points out, her eyes holding to his face only to then drift downward. The nonchalant manner in which he acts has her thrown off of her game, sounding unsure as what to do next.
"The alternative could be considerably less pleasant," One points out, surprisingly cheerful considering the circumstances. "Yes, I stole a CPU cooling apparatus from this building. You're a hero-type, I can smell it on you. If you leave now, you'll have to nurse your injured pride and find a way to soothe your conscience."
He glances over at the head-sized chunk that he just knocked out of the pillar. "If you stay, you may end up nursing injuries that are considerably more serious. Your choice. I'd suggest you decide quickly, though. This is Gotham, so it'll take a while, but the police are going to show up eventually."
Talk about moral quandaries. She wants to do the right thing and fight the self-admitted thief but at the same time she finds herself too evenly matched to be able to take One out on her own. And man, he wasn't kidding. This is a hit to her pride.
"Don't think for a moment that my walking away is a sign that I've given up," she hisses angrily, bending over to pick up her jacket. "And don't think that this will be the last you'll see of me." Unable to move her stiffening arm easily means that jacket is left to hang in her hand. "What do they call you, anyhow?"
The doctor seems to be enjoying his victory, but he's trying not to let it show too much. Still, a smile is tugging at the corners of his mouth and he can't help sweeping into a low, chivalrous bow. "The moniker's One. Some people call me Doc. When I'm not robbing tech firms and fighting pretty girls, I run a clinic."
He straightens, then stands with his arms crossed over his chest. "I certainly hope this isn't the last I see of you. You should look me up. I'll buy you dinner, make this up to you."
"One. Interesting name. One I will unlikely forget any time soon." Her eyes narrow slightly before she turns away, looking as if she just might leave. That's as far as she gets, however, her head tilting slightly as she looks at him. "I don't think my boyfriend will approve if I were to go out with someone else, even if it were just to make it up to me, as how you put it. But I would like to see you again at some point."
The wail of sirens gets her attention and she sighs, sounding for the life of her like she could stand to punch something - or someone - herself. "Sounds like that's our cue to leave. See you later, perhaps."
"Count on it," One promises. A wide grin stretches across his face. Then he turns and leaps back through the window he used as his insertion point.
Poof. Like that, he's gone.
Category:Log