[Log] All That Glitters Is Not Nice [2/2]
Watch For: Caithlin smells a rat, Envy is an even bigger jerk, Impulse saves the day, FINGERPOINTING.
Impulse's absence gives the Dynamo just enough time to check both flame-pieces--both empty, like she suspected. One was damaged by the sudden impace with Impulse's face, so the Alchemical slides it back into its holster, to be repaired later. She puts a pinch of firedust in the loading chamber of the other just as the superhero comes speeding back.
She reads the contract, calmly.
"Is that so?" the Radiant Dynamo of Invention asks.
Then she lowers the Flame Piece at the contract (and Impulse, by extension) and literally opens fire.
Then Shane grabs her arm, spins her around, and throws her into the side of the Alpha Custodian. There's a resounding /clang/ as machine-spirit meets Alchemical, and the behemoth staggers backwards, its grip loosening just enough for Jade to pry Caithlin loose. She might be able to get her bow back, too, if she's quick enough.
The Dynamo just lies there on the ground, dazed, her wide-brimmed hat tipped down over her face. She gives 'Digby' a somewhat quizzical look. This came out of nowhere, she made no such arrangements with the mortal... but like hell she's going to blow this chance.
Shane and Jade's efforts bear fruit; with a relieved sigh Kay slides out of the entangling grip of the Custodian's wires, jerking a bit to the left and then back to the right as she fights the rest of the way free. Her jaw sets a little - she is still not entirely comfortable with someone who appears to be a civilian throwing herself into this fight. But she did just save her. "Thanks," she breathes, nodding crisply to the Atzlanti.
Again she brings her revolver to bear, tracking towards the arm that's holding Jade's bow. "Here, le-"
There's a sudden flicker of emotion surging through her sixth sense, cutting her off. It is not her own emotion. The pressure in the back of her mind returns as she takes a step to the side and pivots, bringing her revolver to bear on... none other than good Mr. Digby. Behind her glasses, her eyes are hard and suspicious - or rather, certain.
"You're not fooling anyone. Drop the crap and show yourself."
"Whoa! Hey! /Hey/!" He can't stay in place for that - the thought process goes something like Flame Piece + Impulse = Kentucky Fried Speedster. Unfortunately, as Impulse zips out of the way, he's not as good at keeping the deed out of the way, and it catches flame. "Hey!" Then there's Mister Digby coming in, and Impulse can only look up at him and give a sheepish smile as the deed burns. How do you put that thing out, any way? He tries blowing on it very quickly, which very quickly doesn't work, and the deed soon burns down to ash.
Impulse sighs, kicking the bit of ash on the ground, and the awesomeness of Shane's throw doesn't succeed in cheering him up over that. Or, wait a second - "Did you say /your/ mining operation?" Impulse blinks, and then zips over to Digby's side, pointing behind with his thumb at the Alpha Custodian, which is still being wrangled with (and which he still hasn't thought to help anybody with). "So what's with the techno-troopers and the killer death spider robots?"
This is about the point where Caithlin levels her gun on Digby, and Impulse reels, taking a step backward. He holds his arms out in a calming gesture. "Whoa, whoa! Okay, I am officially lost here. Are we shooting grizzled prospectors now? Is this some kind of recurring grizzled prospector-themed villain?"
The athlete tugs at the tentacle arm holding Caithlin for what seems like an eternity, its grip not seeming to budge an inch. Poor Jade, her real strength's in her legs, not her arms. But a timely stike against the Alpha Custodian finally loosens the machine's grip on the agent, and Jade does her best to pull the woman free.
Tantalizingly, it seems that its hold on her bow has also weakened. It takes all of Jade's willpower to not immediately go after the Birthright, but once Caithlin's free... The athlete bolts, gaining a little ground before leaping into the air to pull the longbow out of the giant robot's grip. She twists her body as she practically flies through the air, landing nimbly on the rocky soil with her Birthright reclaimed.
There's brief glance at the man who's appeared--the owner of this place?--and then back to the IPA agent. While she's not going to point her weapon at the woman she just saved... "Hey, what the hell? I thought you were a cop or somethin'. What's with the pointing-the-gun-at-the-owner thing?" she comments, splitting her attention between watching for an opening on the giant machine, and watching Caithlin in case she shoots that guy.
"Good work Impulse!" Shane shouts over his should-. Oh wait. -Drat-. The deed gets burned up. Hopefully the town has another copy! He strides over to the downed Radiant Dynamo and puts his foot on her chest, exerting a small bit of his godling strength to hopefully keep her pinned down.
He glances over at where Digby is and frowns. It IS a little convenient. Fate perhaps? He gives Caithlin a sharp look then, "Woah there Kay! He's just an innocent old man!" Right right? If Dynamo squirms, his boot will press down a little more. He hisses, "Call off yer dog."
Dynamo tries to rise to her feet, but Shane's foot prevents that possibility. The Alchemical forces herself to take a deep, centering breath, air rushing in and out of coolant vents. She says something in Autochthonian to the Alpha Custodian, which retracts its weapons and tentacles, dropping anything it still has in its grip.
"Done," the Dynamo says. She then gives 'Digby' a hopeful look. Obviously this is some sort of impersonator, but it seems to be on her side.
The old prospector scratches his beard at the pointed gun. "I don't know whacher talkin' 'bout, lil' missy. I'm Floyd Digby, and this here is my mine." Wizened old eyes glance over to where the deed is nothing more than dust in the wind, and he shrugs, "Or it was. Anycase, I let these here automen or whatever do the hard work for me. The lady on the ground yer steppin' on there offered to split the profits! Can't beat that offer, no sir! Now can ya lower yer gun? That's mighty impolite 'round these parts."
Caithlin's teeth grind a little. It's not surprising that Impulse and Jade think she's lost her mind, but she was at least expecting Shane to have a little faith in her. "Shane, could you just trust me for a second?" She does lower the gun, though - by a few degrees. At least it's not pointing right at 'Digby' anymore.
Breathing out, the spy seems to calm down a little. "...Then I apologize; you'll have to forgive me for being on edge. We were sent out here on a warrant to check out some suspicious activity." The revolver is tucked away for now; it seems like she's going to try to talk. "In that case," and here her eyes move towards the Radiant Dynamo, "we can get to the bottom of the confusion easily enough. It's probably just a case of the old deed on file being out of date. I assume you have an updated deed on you, Mr. Digby? You know how paperwork gets - after all, it's only been, ah...." She pauses. "...When DID you purchase this holding, anyway?"
Impulse, meanwhile, rolls his eyes up to the side, not really paying much attention to the matter at hand - or rather, not to what's happening directly /here/. Instead, his mouth is moving quietly to communicate by built-in radio band with Caithlin, as his foot taps impatiently. Impulse stands there for awhile, waiting, and then zooms off. His ten-gallon hat floats in the air, left behind, and drifts to the ground.
Shane rubs the back of his head as he glances over his shoulder at Caithlin, "Sorry, sorry. On a bit a edge. Sorry 'bout that Kay." At least he has the good graces to look scolded. He glances over at Impulse and Jade then, "Yeh two alright?" And there goes Impulse again. Where is he off to? Well if he can still run like that, the boy must be okay.
The scion grins widely at Dynamo, letting his foot ease up just a little. He's not a mean guy, but until they can get things sorted out, it's better to play it safe. His grin turns down a bit as he hears the conversation on the radio and then looks down at her. "So he's a friend of yers then?"
"So, it was a mistake?" Jade's lowered her bow by now, tossing the arrow it had knocked over her shoulder. She looks, as she watches both the mine owner and Caithlin... perhaps vaguely smug. "Just like I'm always sayin'. You cops need to watch who you're accusin'!" she continues, shaking her head. See? See how the man tramples on the people?
Ol' Floyd nods gently as peace is made, "That's better." He ambles over to where some ashed of the deed remain on the ground, and he nudges at them with the toe of his boot. "Eh? When what? It's been... long time, I reckon." More scratching of the beard, there's even a hint of befuddlement in his voice. "When you're out here scratchin' a livin' out of the earth, ya lose track of stuff like that. I coulda told ya, but someone torched this here deed." More nudging. "Not sure where I'm gonna get another one- er-"
The old man stares at the now empty ten gallon hat. "Where did that young feller go?"
The Dynamo manages to squirm out from under Shane's foot. She straightens her hat, and brushes the dirt off her poncho. "Yes, of course," she says to the Scion, sounding more than a little indignant. He... hired me to help with the resource retrieval here."
Kay's still wearing her cowboy hat.
"Yeah, I know what you mean," agrees the dark-haired spy, nodding easily towards ol' Floyd. Her eyes, meanwhile, track back towards the Dynamo. "But you've obviously had some luck, keeping this property for as long as you have. Must be quite an accomplishment. That is...." Slipping her thumbs into her belt loop, she smiles easily to the 'old man'. "It would be if you really had been out here for a long time. But we had a chance to look at the deed. This land has only been in your name since June 18, 1850.
"For two days."
Someone may imagine a record skip. Floyd, however, refuses to oblige by panicking. "Only two days?" There he goes, scratching his hair again. Are those fleas flying off? "You sure 'bout that, missy? 'cause if I've only been here that long, then where did all this work come from," he gestures towards the cave. "Even as fast as them clockwork men were, they're not that fast." There's a sad shake of the head from the old man, "Kids have no respect for their elders these days, makin' up dates and tryin' to confuse us. Next thing ya know, you'll be bringin' out some other guy callin' himself Floyd Digby!"
Impulse races across the township of Lawton, once again stopping in every door. This time it takes him longer, though - he has to stop each time long enough to ask a question.
Then the electric streak is back, and Impulse is skidding to a halt - carrying an angry-looking middle-aged man with a heavily-bandaged shoulder. The man shakes his head, still a bit bewildered by the trip, but then sets down and stands straight, reaching his arm down to his side. "Reckon you think you're real clever," he says, catching the tail end of 'Floyd's' defense. The older man grunts, pulling his revolver out of its holster, and holding it at the ready. "But it looks like old Floyd's lucky day, you gol-damned trickster." He waves the revolver in the air, eyeing the Radiant Dynamo. "This is /my/ claim, and I wouldn't bank on getting me with another arrow, you whatever-the-hell-you-is."
Impulse, meanwhile, just stands straight, puffs his chest out, and looks proud of himself. Then he pauses, picks up his hat, puts it back on, and resumes the pose.
Jade's not really paying much attention to what the owner and the IPA agent are talking about. At least, not until Caithlin brings up the date of the deed. "Are you serious?" she asks the woman, staring at her incredulously. Floyd, though, doesn't roll over at the accusation, prompting the athlete to shake her head.
No evidence either way, so she'll go with her heart, which is to believe the one who's /not/ the cop. "...Look, if you got the papers, show 'em," she says to Kay, wiping a hand across her brow. It's kind of hot out here. She's betting, though, that the agent doesn't have any paperwork on her at all.
DRAMATICALLY, the fast child reappears, bringing with him an injured man, who then... also claims he's the rightful owner of the mine. Now Jade just gawks silently for a moment, looking from Floyd, to 'Floyd', to... Caithlin. "What the..." she comments eloquently. It's actually sort of worse that the two guys don't even look alike, like they would have in a show.
This is where Dynamo regrets not getting a good look at Digby as he ran for his life. The Alchemical's face tightens into a frown as the actual factual prospector points an accusing finger at her. Seeing as how she's found out, she shrugs at the impersonator, and says, "I never saw the point in resource rights, anyway. The Great Maker needs these far more than you ever could, miserable wretch. I bet you'll just take the resources and /sell/ them, and grow fat off the profits. /Disgusting/."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention, offradio, in Autochthonian: "Load up what cargo we can carry. Just in case."
With his foot just kind of hanging in mid-air, Shane lowers his foot and fixes his Stetson. "Is that so?" He fixes her with a steely gaze before turning to grab the spear out of the Alpha's leg. "That woman over there burned 'em," He informs jade as he looms behind Caithlin. He gives the old-timer a curious look and then Impulse comes back with the -real- Floyd. There's a whistle and then a laugh, "Well done!" He turns his spear over to Dynamo then. "Look. This is his mine yeah? If yeh want it so bad, yeh should have done it the legal way. Now yer under arrest. Yeh and that impostor over there. Yeh got the right ta remain silent," Yadda yadda yadda. But Shane forgot to bring handcuffs.
"Fat as all hell," the younger Digby says. "Gonna buy me a big house and get myself a pretty wife and live somewhere where nobody shoots me with arrows no more."
The old prospector - Floyd? - ambles around, still scratching his head by the time he faces the other Floyd. They exchange looks for a moment, and only then does the old man's confused expression finally break. He smiles. It's not a healthy one, either. Exactly As Planned. "Now that's what I call fast service." Wait a minute, that voice...
There's little time to react. Faster than a ragged husk of humanity should, the impostor raises the pickaxe back with one hand. Not for Impulse or for Kay, but instead he's aiming right for Floyd...
... who by this time should already be impaled by the pike the prospector's other hand formed into.
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention laughs. It sounds a little unhinged. "Efficient!"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "What can I say? When you love what you do, you do it well."
Being an empath helps - but really, the imposter is far faster than Kay would've ever expected. The warning comes just as she's flashing Impulse an appreciative smile.
The agent's eyes go wide, sixth sense twitching, and she realizes in about a billionth of a second that there's no way she's going to be able to whip out her gun and shoot the false Digby before he attacks the real one. With a sharp intake of breath, the agent rolls her shoulders forward and braces herself, throwing her body violently towards the fake Floyd in an effort to tackle him bodily. She is quite light - her build's slender - but perhaps the hit will be enough.
"Son of a...."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "It's you! The... Ultimate Abomination, wasn't it?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "You remembered! Yeah, that's me."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Forgive me for... not recognizing you."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "/Ultimate/ abomination, hm?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Nothing wrong with that. Like I said, I do my job well."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "There's no abomination better where I come from."
Jade just sort of... sighs at Shane. "Right, she burned them, how convenient for you!" ...This is before Dynamo pretty much admits that, yeah, she's totally stealing the real Floyd's mine. Throwing up a hand in disgust, the young Scion declares, "Yeah, whatever! I'm outta he--"
She would have walked off the scene about there, but the agent's sudden rush of action has Jade whirl around, and draw her bow at--she's not sure what at first. But thankfully for Caithlin, the athlete did get a split-second look at the weapon that was (had been?) in the fake Floyd's hands. And it doesn't take too many dots in intelligence to figure this one out. "--Bastard!" she hisses, keeping her bow trained on the imposter.
Little time to react for somebody moving at ordinary speed, anyhow.
For Impulse, the world around him is always moving in slow motion. He can get caught off-guard nonetheless, distractible as he is without a real sense of danger for himself - but danger for other people is something else. It has a gravity. Floyd doesn't have time to yelp in surprise as he's taken off in another high-speed blur, cracking the sound barrier back into Lawton, where he's nicely set back down on his bed where he'd been laid up.
In a cornfield another town over, Impulse tackles a burlap scarecrow.
Back at the mining station, a lightning blur crackles past again, leaving the scarecrow in place of where Floyd had been, to be torn into by Envy's formed blade if his aim is true.
Back in Lawton, Floyd shouts, "What the hell, son!" Impulse, skidding back to a halt, says, "Don't worry about it. We'll handle it - you stick around here where you're safer, okay?"
It will take him another moment to run back, primarily because of stopping to chat.
"See?!" Shane replies as Dynamo spills the beans. He hears a barely intelligible blur of words in his radio suddenly. Concentrating, he's able to figure out what the chirp means thanks to his superior hearing. "Got it!"
Just as Caithlin tackles 'Floyd', Shane's running for his rifle. Scooping it up, he aims it at Dynamo and the spear back at the Alpha. "DON'T MOVE!" He roars. "You! Girl!" He shouts at Jade, "Cover Kay!"
This is more to Dynamo's liking. The Alchemical does not surrender--instead, she extends her right arm, the coils making up the 'bracer' sliding apart to reveal a nasty-looking cannon assembly. She trains the Essence Pulse Cannon on Shane's chest, and a gold-tinted glass visor slides down to shade her face.
"You're outgunned," she says, smiling viciously as Envy impales something she /hopes/ is that obnoxious prospector. "Let my men leave with their spoils, and I won't bother the greedy little blasphemer again."
In a split-second, Envy realizes two problems with his cunning plan:
Problem #1 - Not getting Floyd farther away from the speedster. Then again, the kid /has/ to be faster than the speed of light the way he's moving, so there might not have been any way to avoid that.
Problem #2 - Not watching his own back.
The 'prospector' has barely a moment to register his displeasure at losing his victim when he's roughly thrown to the ground by incoming empath. He hits the ground hard, and the pickaxe goes tumbling off to one side before it dissolves into shiny white sparkles. The pike, still stuck through the scarecrow, also disappears, as the impostor is using three limbs to lift himself back onto the ground. "On the first date?" the creepy androgynous voice asks in a mocking tone. "Don't you know the morals of the times?" Where's that fourth limb? That's his leg donkey kicking Kay in the chest. The force is strong enough to shatter bone, or more importantly, get her off of him.
[Fac-Alliance] Envy grunt. "Not as planned."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Hmm?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "That damn kid took away my victim."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Ku's blessed claws, he's /fast/."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Oh, Threadbare Bride. I'm currently engaged in a standoff with a possible Exalt over resources in the territory of California."
Kay's plan is not exactly the most cunning she's ever wrought, either - tackling a shapechanging succubus with no preparation and all. She's thrown to the ground along with Envy, her cowboy hat falling from her head to land beside her. Scrambling a little, she attempts to pull herself away from the impostor so she can actually attack him or something. Her lips curl in mild disgust. "Sorry, I don't go for yokels." And then she's kicked in the frigging chest, the sudden reappearance of the leg startling her. She's caught flat-footed and flung backwards several yards,the impact breaking a couple of ribs; striking the ground, she skids a few yards more, her still-damp clothing picking up what seems like all the dust in the West.
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Caithlin steadies her pistol with her right arm, wincing in pain as she whips a pair of quick shots off towards the chest of the faux prospector. Fighting through the pain, she rolls back to her feet, keeping her distance. "So what are you, anyway? Changeling?"
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Oh, really. What fashion of Exalt do you believe it to be?"
When it comes to bastards killing people, or more acurately, trying to kill people, issues with the law can take a seat on the sideline. It's not so much that Jade's doing what she's told as she's doing what she thinks is right: keeping her arrow ready in case 'Floyd' makes a move. If that guy tries something, he'll get the arrow the young Scion has knocked and ready for his troubles. Which, she goes so far as to state, "Don't you dare move, you bastard, or I'll shoot you!"
Things aren't that simple, though. There's a bit of a problem now that Dynamo threatens to shoot Shane if the robot-people aren't allowed to make off with their ill-gotten minings. However, it's ultimately 'Floyd' who makes the first move, kicking Kay in the chest, which means that Jade does shoot at him reflexively, and immediately draws the bowstring back for another arrow. "I warned you!" she yells, holding her position. "Cop-lady, you okay?"
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "I'm... unsure. It controls its own Essence, it may well be an offworlder or God-blooded or something of that sort."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Ahh, much bet- grk-"
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "These offworlders make things so very complicated. --Abomination?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy's rather silent for the moment
A terrible gust of wind and a small sonic boom accompany the return of Impulse to the fray.
It might be hard to track where he went, though, because he's not anywhere obvious. An attentive eye on the battlefield, however, may note a certain white-and-bronze shape perched on the back of the Alpha Custodian, putting tools to anything resembling a panel, reaching for anything resembling a dial, keeping an eye on anything resembling a readout. It happens very fast, as with everything Impulse does, but the idea is very simple: apply trial and error as many times as necessary to figure out how to hotwire this thing.
Because that would be awesome.
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Oh, don't let him die, he's useful. That's unusual... do keep me informed."
Mistake #3: Fighting back when there's a lot of guys aiming guns at you.
"Much better," the impostor coos as he hears Kay's landing, and once again there's a crazed closed smile on his face. Even as he's staring down the barrel of a gun, he starts to move - but is immediately halted by an arrow embedding himself in his arm. That's enough of a pause for Kay's shots to hit the mark. The propsector's eyes widen, his mouth parts, and with a last gasp, he collapses lifelessly to the ground.
The Dynamo stares at the impaled scarecrow for a moment, before a gust of wind and the sonic boom cue her in to the fact that Impulse is doing /something/. From behind her, the Alpha Custodian lets out a frantic distress signal in machine-speak; all its wire-tendrils extend in the blink of an eye in an attempt to grab Impulse and chuck him off its body.
And then Envy gets himself shot, and Bride tells Dynamo to not let him die.
And then the Abomination collapses to the ground and looks very, very dead; Dynamo swears, and sends out an order to the Autochthonians: Retreat, as soon as possible. And retreat they do, hastily gathering up as much gold as they can carry (it's not much) and running for the hills. And, hopefully, the troop transport that's parked not too far away.
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention, tentatively: "His spirit yet lives."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "His body appears to have perished."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Hmm... well..."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "I suppose we could make a new one. Where is his file..."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy nnnnghs
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "--Oh, wait."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention would probably be poking Envy with a stick if she could get to him without getting shot.
Kay's cheeks redden a little asshe throws a quick look over to Jade. "I'll be alright!" she calls by way of assurance. Hopefully Shane, too, will be alright; she does like him, and would be quite annoyed if he got hurt.
Her bullets strike down the impostor, and she lowers her gun steadily, She does not pursue the retreating Autochthonians, merely standing there panting, one hand pressed to her side. So that's it - the real prospector is safe, and the Black Alliance is retreating.
"...Everyone in one piece?"
As the robot-people flee, Jade lets her arrow loose into the mob, not caring if it hits or not. It's simply a better way to get rid of that arrow. Tucking the longbow awkwardly under an arm, she jogs to where Caithlin stands, obviously injured. "Hey, you don't look so good," she comments. "...Pro'lly good if you don't move much." It's not as bad as she'd thought, if the lady can stand, but...
Jade shakes her head, and shrugs at Kay's question. "Yeah, I'm good. Guess I should check out now, if it's all over. Don't wanna miss seein' the town!" she explains, turning to watch the departing claim-jumpers.
Oh, that sound was a gunshot, wasn't it. Impulse bucks atop the Alpha Custodian, dodging and vibrating at high speeds to keep from being caught by it, but thankfully for the Custodian, his attention is captured by something else. Impulse rushes to the side of the fallen Envy, peering down at him. "You... killed him?" The speedster turns his head, and then bolts into the horizon, sweeping past the retreating Autochthonians and grabbing away one of their gold transports, pulling it back to the scene of the mine, and stopping by Envy again. "You killed him?!" Then he's gone again, and then dropping another pile of gold and leaning down to try to check Envy's pulse. "He's not breathing." He bursts off again, and then returns, dropping a pile of screws and bolts, and then throws out his hands, exasperated. "You're not supposed to /kill him/!"
Kay grinds her teeth a little and throws a look towards Impulse. "It wasn't on purpose," she bites out, sinking to an uneasy seat on a nearby rock. Her gun is stuffed grudgingly back into her belt, a bitter taste filling her mouth. "And he was trying to kill US; lethal force in that kind of situation is authorized."
Her eyes lift back to Jade; she sighs, clearly stressing a little but trying to hide it. "...Alright. But first give me your name, if you don't mind. You were a big help."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Did you recover him?"
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "He's being mobbed by the enemy Regulators."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "I suppose it was his fate."
Yep, the old prospector is so dead, he's even starting to twitch, spasm, and convulse. All at once, too. Not for long, however, for soon after that, he collapses to the ground again, his arms and legs splayed and all the arrow and bullet wounds healed.
"Heh. At least someone was polite enough to remember the dead."
Getting shot at hurt. Dying and recovering hurt worse. This time, the impostor doesn't leave anything to chance, hopping back to his feet and quickly shifting forms. His body is overcome by sparkles, and in a blur of white light, compacts its form into something no longer human. A tiny red dragon, held aloft by its swaying tail and beating wings. It winks at the heroes, then flies off into the desert sun. It'll skip the free ride for now, this way requires much less dodging.
The Dynamo swears under her breath, but takes advantage of the half-distraction that is Envy's 'death'--she grabs most of the pile of gold, climbs aboard the transport, and takes off, watching carefully for any speedsters.
She gives Envy-dragon the thumbs-up as he passes by.
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Never mind, he's still alive."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Oh."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "All better~"
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Aren't you disappointed?"
There's a vaguely pained expression as the boy pronounces the man dead on Jade's face. "...Hey, look, I don't... I'm pretty sure he was gonna kill cop-lady there," she says, slowly shaking her head. "Sometimes... you gotta..." Man, she hates having to stick up for law enforcement.
The dead's pretty quickly forgot when, well, the corpse starts twitching. As if she's seen a ghost, the young woman steps back in a hurry, staring in mute horror until... the corpse shifts into the form of a tiny dragon, and flits away, leaving a stunned and silent Jade. At least, she's silent until she breaks into florid swearing.
For a second, the Scion debates making a bolt for it. But reluctantly, she answers, "...Jay." She pauses a moment before adding, "...I really gotta go." She really does head off now, turning away from the IPA members. She only stops on her way out to retrieve her bag and the belts. Hey, if she leaves those behind, she'll have to explain to her parents why she's suddenly missing all the belts in her wardrobe.
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Seeing the shock on their faces made up for some of it."
Impulse doesn't say anything, but the words don't warm him any. It's okay for Caithlin to have done that - she's a cop, isn't she? There's only so much she can do. But the fraternity of superheroes expects more. A superhero isn't supposed to let anybody die on their watch. He just stares down.
And takes a step back as Envy transforms. The shock of the experience is enough to stall Impulse and enable the little dragon to build a good head start - by the time Impulse is moving to catch at him, he's just too far and too high. "Grife! He's getting away..." Impulse trails off, watching the escaping homunculus, and while he doesn't smile over it, he just can't find himself to get worked up over it. He breathes a sigh of relief.
The whole affair is enough to distract him from the Radiant Dynamo taking off with an armful of gold, too.
Curse her inattentiveness! Kay didn't even realize that the old prospector was still alive. She bolts to her feet, watching stunned as the impostor makes good his escape in a fashion she finds quite spectacular.
Damn. They got away, and with some of the gold, too.
She nods to Jay, absently more than anything, but does not stop the girl from leaving. NEXT TIME, DYNAMO! NEXT TIIIIIME! (And your little skort-wearing pal, too!)
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention, over the sounds of paramagnetic engines: "Are we being followed?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Beats me."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "At any rate, Envy, the nation of Yugash thanks you for your assistance."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Eh, all in a day's work."
Impulse's absence gives the Dynamo just enough time to check both flame-pieces--both empty, like she suspected. One was damaged by the sudden impace with Impulse's face, so the Alchemical slides it back into its holster, to be repaired later. She puts a pinch of firedust in the loading chamber of the other just as the superhero comes speeding back.
She reads the contract, calmly.
"Is that so?" the Radiant Dynamo of Invention asks.
Then she lowers the Flame Piece at the contract (and Impulse, by extension) and literally opens fire.
Then Shane grabs her arm, spins her around, and throws her into the side of the Alpha Custodian. There's a resounding /clang/ as machine-spirit meets Alchemical, and the behemoth staggers backwards, its grip loosening just enough for Jade to pry Caithlin loose. She might be able to get her bow back, too, if she's quick enough.
The Dynamo just lies there on the ground, dazed, her wide-brimmed hat tipped down over her face. She gives 'Digby' a somewhat quizzical look. This came out of nowhere, she made no such arrangements with the mortal... but like hell she's going to blow this chance.
Shane and Jade's efforts bear fruit; with a relieved sigh Kay slides out of the entangling grip of the Custodian's wires, jerking a bit to the left and then back to the right as she fights the rest of the way free. Her jaw sets a little - she is still not entirely comfortable with someone who appears to be a civilian throwing herself into this fight. But she did just save her. "Thanks," she breathes, nodding crisply to the Atzlanti.
Again she brings her revolver to bear, tracking towards the arm that's holding Jade's bow. "Here, le-"
There's a sudden flicker of emotion surging through her sixth sense, cutting her off. It is not her own emotion. The pressure in the back of her mind returns as she takes a step to the side and pivots, bringing her revolver to bear on... none other than good Mr. Digby. Behind her glasses, her eyes are hard and suspicious - or rather, certain.
"You're not fooling anyone. Drop the crap and show yourself."
"Whoa! Hey! /Hey/!" He can't stay in place for that - the thought process goes something like Flame Piece + Impulse = Kentucky Fried Speedster. Unfortunately, as Impulse zips out of the way, he's not as good at keeping the deed out of the way, and it catches flame. "Hey!" Then there's Mister Digby coming in, and Impulse can only look up at him and give a sheepish smile as the deed burns. How do you put that thing out, any way? He tries blowing on it very quickly, which very quickly doesn't work, and the deed soon burns down to ash.
Impulse sighs, kicking the bit of ash on the ground, and the awesomeness of Shane's throw doesn't succeed in cheering him up over that. Or, wait a second - "Did you say /your/ mining operation?" Impulse blinks, and then zips over to Digby's side, pointing behind with his thumb at the Alpha Custodian, which is still being wrangled with (and which he still hasn't thought to help anybody with). "So what's with the techno-troopers and the killer death spider robots?"
This is about the point where Caithlin levels her gun on Digby, and Impulse reels, taking a step backward. He holds his arms out in a calming gesture. "Whoa, whoa! Okay, I am officially lost here. Are we shooting grizzled prospectors now? Is this some kind of recurring grizzled prospector-themed villain?"
The athlete tugs at the tentacle arm holding Caithlin for what seems like an eternity, its grip not seeming to budge an inch. Poor Jade, her real strength's in her legs, not her arms. But a timely stike against the Alpha Custodian finally loosens the machine's grip on the agent, and Jade does her best to pull the woman free.
Tantalizingly, it seems that its hold on her bow has also weakened. It takes all of Jade's willpower to not immediately go after the Birthright, but once Caithlin's free... The athlete bolts, gaining a little ground before leaping into the air to pull the longbow out of the giant robot's grip. She twists her body as she practically flies through the air, landing nimbly on the rocky soil with her Birthright reclaimed.
There's brief glance at the man who's appeared--the owner of this place?--and then back to the IPA agent. While she's not going to point her weapon at the woman she just saved... "Hey, what the hell? I thought you were a cop or somethin'. What's with the pointing-the-gun-at-the-owner thing?" she comments, splitting her attention between watching for an opening on the giant machine, and watching Caithlin in case she shoots that guy.
"Good work Impulse!" Shane shouts over his should-. Oh wait. -Drat-. The deed gets burned up. Hopefully the town has another copy! He strides over to the downed Radiant Dynamo and puts his foot on her chest, exerting a small bit of his godling strength to hopefully keep her pinned down.
He glances over at where Digby is and frowns. It IS a little convenient. Fate perhaps? He gives Caithlin a sharp look then, "Woah there Kay! He's just an innocent old man!" Right right? If Dynamo squirms, his boot will press down a little more. He hisses, "Call off yer dog."
Dynamo tries to rise to her feet, but Shane's foot prevents that possibility. The Alchemical forces herself to take a deep, centering breath, air rushing in and out of coolant vents. She says something in Autochthonian to the Alpha Custodian, which retracts its weapons and tentacles, dropping anything it still has in its grip.
"Done," the Dynamo says. She then gives 'Digby' a hopeful look. Obviously this is some sort of impersonator, but it seems to be on her side.
The old prospector scratches his beard at the pointed gun. "I don't know whacher talkin' 'bout, lil' missy. I'm Floyd Digby, and this here is my mine." Wizened old eyes glance over to where the deed is nothing more than dust in the wind, and he shrugs, "Or it was. Anycase, I let these here automen or whatever do the hard work for me. The lady on the ground yer steppin' on there offered to split the profits! Can't beat that offer, no sir! Now can ya lower yer gun? That's mighty impolite 'round these parts."
Caithlin's teeth grind a little. It's not surprising that Impulse and Jade think she's lost her mind, but she was at least expecting Shane to have a little faith in her. "Shane, could you just trust me for a second?" She does lower the gun, though - by a few degrees. At least it's not pointing right at 'Digby' anymore.
Breathing out, the spy seems to calm down a little. "...Then I apologize; you'll have to forgive me for being on edge. We were sent out here on a warrant to check out some suspicious activity." The revolver is tucked away for now; it seems like she's going to try to talk. "In that case," and here her eyes move towards the Radiant Dynamo, "we can get to the bottom of the confusion easily enough. It's probably just a case of the old deed on file being out of date. I assume you have an updated deed on you, Mr. Digby? You know how paperwork gets - after all, it's only been, ah...." She pauses. "...When DID you purchase this holding, anyway?"
Impulse, meanwhile, rolls his eyes up to the side, not really paying much attention to the matter at hand - or rather, not to what's happening directly /here/. Instead, his mouth is moving quietly to communicate by built-in radio band with Caithlin, as his foot taps impatiently. Impulse stands there for awhile, waiting, and then zooms off. His ten-gallon hat floats in the air, left behind, and drifts to the ground.
Shane rubs the back of his head as he glances over his shoulder at Caithlin, "Sorry, sorry. On a bit a edge. Sorry 'bout that Kay." At least he has the good graces to look scolded. He glances over at Impulse and Jade then, "Yeh two alright?" And there goes Impulse again. Where is he off to? Well if he can still run like that, the boy must be okay.
The scion grins widely at Dynamo, letting his foot ease up just a little. He's not a mean guy, but until they can get things sorted out, it's better to play it safe. His grin turns down a bit as he hears the conversation on the radio and then looks down at her. "So he's a friend of yers then?"
"So, it was a mistake?" Jade's lowered her bow by now, tossing the arrow it had knocked over her shoulder. She looks, as she watches both the mine owner and Caithlin... perhaps vaguely smug. "Just like I'm always sayin'. You cops need to watch who you're accusin'!" she continues, shaking her head. See? See how the man tramples on the people?
Ol' Floyd nods gently as peace is made, "That's better." He ambles over to where some ashed of the deed remain on the ground, and he nudges at them with the toe of his boot. "Eh? When what? It's been... long time, I reckon." More scratching of the beard, there's even a hint of befuddlement in his voice. "When you're out here scratchin' a livin' out of the earth, ya lose track of stuff like that. I coulda told ya, but someone torched this here deed." More nudging. "Not sure where I'm gonna get another one- er-"
The old man stares at the now empty ten gallon hat. "Where did that young feller go?"
The Dynamo manages to squirm out from under Shane's foot. She straightens her hat, and brushes the dirt off her poncho. "Yes, of course," she says to the Scion, sounding more than a little indignant. He... hired me to help with the resource retrieval here."
Kay's still wearing her cowboy hat.
"Yeah, I know what you mean," agrees the dark-haired spy, nodding easily towards ol' Floyd. Her eyes, meanwhile, track back towards the Dynamo. "But you've obviously had some luck, keeping this property for as long as you have. Must be quite an accomplishment. That is...." Slipping her thumbs into her belt loop, she smiles easily to the 'old man'. "It would be if you really had been out here for a long time. But we had a chance to look at the deed. This land has only been in your name since June 18, 1850.
"For two days."
Someone may imagine a record skip. Floyd, however, refuses to oblige by panicking. "Only two days?" There he goes, scratching his hair again. Are those fleas flying off? "You sure 'bout that, missy? 'cause if I've only been here that long, then where did all this work come from," he gestures towards the cave. "Even as fast as them clockwork men were, they're not that fast." There's a sad shake of the head from the old man, "Kids have no respect for their elders these days, makin' up dates and tryin' to confuse us. Next thing ya know, you'll be bringin' out some other guy callin' himself Floyd Digby!"
Impulse races across the township of Lawton, once again stopping in every door. This time it takes him longer, though - he has to stop each time long enough to ask a question.
Then the electric streak is back, and Impulse is skidding to a halt - carrying an angry-looking middle-aged man with a heavily-bandaged shoulder. The man shakes his head, still a bit bewildered by the trip, but then sets down and stands straight, reaching his arm down to his side. "Reckon you think you're real clever," he says, catching the tail end of 'Floyd's' defense. The older man grunts, pulling his revolver out of its holster, and holding it at the ready. "But it looks like old Floyd's lucky day, you gol-damned trickster." He waves the revolver in the air, eyeing the Radiant Dynamo. "This is /my/ claim, and I wouldn't bank on getting me with another arrow, you whatever-the-hell-you-is."
Impulse, meanwhile, just stands straight, puffs his chest out, and looks proud of himself. Then he pauses, picks up his hat, puts it back on, and resumes the pose.
Jade's not really paying much attention to what the owner and the IPA agent are talking about. At least, not until Caithlin brings up the date of the deed. "Are you serious?" she asks the woman, staring at her incredulously. Floyd, though, doesn't roll over at the accusation, prompting the athlete to shake her head.
No evidence either way, so she'll go with her heart, which is to believe the one who's /not/ the cop. "...Look, if you got the papers, show 'em," she says to Kay, wiping a hand across her brow. It's kind of hot out here. She's betting, though, that the agent doesn't have any paperwork on her at all.
DRAMATICALLY, the fast child reappears, bringing with him an injured man, who then... also claims he's the rightful owner of the mine. Now Jade just gawks silently for a moment, looking from Floyd, to 'Floyd', to... Caithlin. "What the..." she comments eloquently. It's actually sort of worse that the two guys don't even look alike, like they would have in a show.
This is where Dynamo regrets not getting a good look at Digby as he ran for his life. The Alchemical's face tightens into a frown as the actual factual prospector points an accusing finger at her. Seeing as how she's found out, she shrugs at the impersonator, and says, "I never saw the point in resource rights, anyway. The Great Maker needs these far more than you ever could, miserable wretch. I bet you'll just take the resources and /sell/ them, and grow fat off the profits. /Disgusting/."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention, offradio, in Autochthonian: "Load up what cargo we can carry. Just in case."
With his foot just kind of hanging in mid-air, Shane lowers his foot and fixes his Stetson. "Is that so?" He fixes her with a steely gaze before turning to grab the spear out of the Alpha's leg. "That woman over there burned 'em," He informs jade as he looms behind Caithlin. He gives the old-timer a curious look and then Impulse comes back with the -real- Floyd. There's a whistle and then a laugh, "Well done!" He turns his spear over to Dynamo then. "Look. This is his mine yeah? If yeh want it so bad, yeh should have done it the legal way. Now yer under arrest. Yeh and that impostor over there. Yeh got the right ta remain silent," Yadda yadda yadda. But Shane forgot to bring handcuffs.
"Fat as all hell," the younger Digby says. "Gonna buy me a big house and get myself a pretty wife and live somewhere where nobody shoots me with arrows no more."
The old prospector - Floyd? - ambles around, still scratching his head by the time he faces the other Floyd. They exchange looks for a moment, and only then does the old man's confused expression finally break. He smiles. It's not a healthy one, either. Exactly As Planned. "Now that's what I call fast service." Wait a minute, that voice...
There's little time to react. Faster than a ragged husk of humanity should, the impostor raises the pickaxe back with one hand. Not for Impulse or for Kay, but instead he's aiming right for Floyd...
... who by this time should already be impaled by the pike the prospector's other hand formed into.
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention laughs. It sounds a little unhinged. "Efficient!"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "What can I say? When you love what you do, you do it well."
Being an empath helps - but really, the imposter is far faster than Kay would've ever expected. The warning comes just as she's flashing Impulse an appreciative smile.
The agent's eyes go wide, sixth sense twitching, and she realizes in about a billionth of a second that there's no way she's going to be able to whip out her gun and shoot the false Digby before he attacks the real one. With a sharp intake of breath, the agent rolls her shoulders forward and braces herself, throwing her body violently towards the fake Floyd in an effort to tackle him bodily. She is quite light - her build's slender - but perhaps the hit will be enough.
"Son of a...."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "It's you! The... Ultimate Abomination, wasn't it?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "You remembered! Yeah, that's me."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Forgive me for... not recognizing you."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "/Ultimate/ abomination, hm?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Nothing wrong with that. Like I said, I do my job well."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "There's no abomination better where I come from."
Jade just sort of... sighs at Shane. "Right, she burned them, how convenient for you!" ...This is before Dynamo pretty much admits that, yeah, she's totally stealing the real Floyd's mine. Throwing up a hand in disgust, the young Scion declares, "Yeah, whatever! I'm outta he--"
She would have walked off the scene about there, but the agent's sudden rush of action has Jade whirl around, and draw her bow at--she's not sure what at first. But thankfully for Caithlin, the athlete did get a split-second look at the weapon that was (had been?) in the fake Floyd's hands. And it doesn't take too many dots in intelligence to figure this one out. "--Bastard!" she hisses, keeping her bow trained on the imposter.
Little time to react for somebody moving at ordinary speed, anyhow.
For Impulse, the world around him is always moving in slow motion. He can get caught off-guard nonetheless, distractible as he is without a real sense of danger for himself - but danger for other people is something else. It has a gravity. Floyd doesn't have time to yelp in surprise as he's taken off in another high-speed blur, cracking the sound barrier back into Lawton, where he's nicely set back down on his bed where he'd been laid up.
In a cornfield another town over, Impulse tackles a burlap scarecrow.
Back at the mining station, a lightning blur crackles past again, leaving the scarecrow in place of where Floyd had been, to be torn into by Envy's formed blade if his aim is true.
Back in Lawton, Floyd shouts, "What the hell, son!" Impulse, skidding back to a halt, says, "Don't worry about it. We'll handle it - you stick around here where you're safer, okay?"
It will take him another moment to run back, primarily because of stopping to chat.
"See?!" Shane replies as Dynamo spills the beans. He hears a barely intelligible blur of words in his radio suddenly. Concentrating, he's able to figure out what the chirp means thanks to his superior hearing. "Got it!"
Just as Caithlin tackles 'Floyd', Shane's running for his rifle. Scooping it up, he aims it at Dynamo and the spear back at the Alpha. "DON'T MOVE!" He roars. "You! Girl!" He shouts at Jade, "Cover Kay!"
This is more to Dynamo's liking. The Alchemical does not surrender--instead, she extends her right arm, the coils making up the 'bracer' sliding apart to reveal a nasty-looking cannon assembly. She trains the Essence Pulse Cannon on Shane's chest, and a gold-tinted glass visor slides down to shade her face.
"You're outgunned," she says, smiling viciously as Envy impales something she /hopes/ is that obnoxious prospector. "Let my men leave with their spoils, and I won't bother the greedy little blasphemer again."
In a split-second, Envy realizes two problems with his cunning plan:
Problem #1 - Not getting Floyd farther away from the speedster. Then again, the kid /has/ to be faster than the speed of light the way he's moving, so there might not have been any way to avoid that.
Problem #2 - Not watching his own back.
The 'prospector' has barely a moment to register his displeasure at losing his victim when he's roughly thrown to the ground by incoming empath. He hits the ground hard, and the pickaxe goes tumbling off to one side before it dissolves into shiny white sparkles. The pike, still stuck through the scarecrow, also disappears, as the impostor is using three limbs to lift himself back onto the ground. "On the first date?" the creepy androgynous voice asks in a mocking tone. "Don't you know the morals of the times?" Where's that fourth limb? That's his leg donkey kicking Kay in the chest. The force is strong enough to shatter bone, or more importantly, get her off of him.
[Fac-Alliance] Envy grunt. "Not as planned."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Hmm?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "That damn kid took away my victim."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Ku's blessed claws, he's /fast/."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Oh, Threadbare Bride. I'm currently engaged in a standoff with a possible Exalt over resources in the territory of California."
Kay's plan is not exactly the most cunning she's ever wrought, either - tackling a shapechanging succubus with no preparation and all. She's thrown to the ground along with Envy, her cowboy hat falling from her head to land beside her. Scrambling a little, she attempts to pull herself away from the impostor so she can actually attack him or something. Her lips curl in mild disgust. "Sorry, I don't go for yokels." And then she's kicked in the frigging chest, the sudden reappearance of the leg startling her. She's caught flat-footed and flung backwards several yards,the impact breaking a couple of ribs; striking the ground, she skids a few yards more, her still-damp clothing picking up what seems like all the dust in the West.
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Caithlin steadies her pistol with her right arm, wincing in pain as she whips a pair of quick shots off towards the chest of the faux prospector. Fighting through the pain, she rolls back to her feet, keeping her distance. "So what are you, anyway? Changeling?"
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Oh, really. What fashion of Exalt do you believe it to be?"
When it comes to bastards killing people, or more acurately, trying to kill people, issues with the law can take a seat on the sideline. It's not so much that Jade's doing what she's told as she's doing what she thinks is right: keeping her arrow ready in case 'Floyd' makes a move. If that guy tries something, he'll get the arrow the young Scion has knocked and ready for his troubles. Which, she goes so far as to state, "Don't you dare move, you bastard, or I'll shoot you!"
Things aren't that simple, though. There's a bit of a problem now that Dynamo threatens to shoot Shane if the robot-people aren't allowed to make off with their ill-gotten minings. However, it's ultimately 'Floyd' who makes the first move, kicking Kay in the chest, which means that Jade does shoot at him reflexively, and immediately draws the bowstring back for another arrow. "I warned you!" she yells, holding her position. "Cop-lady, you okay?"
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "I'm... unsure. It controls its own Essence, it may well be an offworlder or God-blooded or something of that sort."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Ahh, much bet- grk-"
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "These offworlders make things so very complicated. --Abomination?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy's rather silent for the moment
A terrible gust of wind and a small sonic boom accompany the return of Impulse to the fray.
It might be hard to track where he went, though, because he's not anywhere obvious. An attentive eye on the battlefield, however, may note a certain white-and-bronze shape perched on the back of the Alpha Custodian, putting tools to anything resembling a panel, reaching for anything resembling a dial, keeping an eye on anything resembling a readout. It happens very fast, as with everything Impulse does, but the idea is very simple: apply trial and error as many times as necessary to figure out how to hotwire this thing.
Because that would be awesome.
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Oh, don't let him die, he's useful. That's unusual... do keep me informed."
Mistake #3: Fighting back when there's a lot of guys aiming guns at you.
"Much better," the impostor coos as he hears Kay's landing, and once again there's a crazed closed smile on his face. Even as he's staring down the barrel of a gun, he starts to move - but is immediately halted by an arrow embedding himself in his arm. That's enough of a pause for Kay's shots to hit the mark. The propsector's eyes widen, his mouth parts, and with a last gasp, he collapses lifelessly to the ground.
The Dynamo stares at the impaled scarecrow for a moment, before a gust of wind and the sonic boom cue her in to the fact that Impulse is doing /something/. From behind her, the Alpha Custodian lets out a frantic distress signal in machine-speak; all its wire-tendrils extend in the blink of an eye in an attempt to grab Impulse and chuck him off its body.
And then Envy gets himself shot, and Bride tells Dynamo to not let him die.
And then the Abomination collapses to the ground and looks very, very dead; Dynamo swears, and sends out an order to the Autochthonians: Retreat, as soon as possible. And retreat they do, hastily gathering up as much gold as they can carry (it's not much) and running for the hills. And, hopefully, the troop transport that's parked not too far away.
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention, tentatively: "His spirit yet lives."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "His body appears to have perished."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Hmm... well..."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "I suppose we could make a new one. Where is his file..."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy nnnnghs
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "--Oh, wait."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention would probably be poking Envy with a stick if she could get to him without getting shot.
Kay's cheeks redden a little asshe throws a quick look over to Jade. "I'll be alright!" she calls by way of assurance. Hopefully Shane, too, will be alright; she does like him, and would be quite annoyed if he got hurt.
Her bullets strike down the impostor, and she lowers her gun steadily, She does not pursue the retreating Autochthonians, merely standing there panting, one hand pressed to her side. So that's it - the real prospector is safe, and the Black Alliance is retreating.
"...Everyone in one piece?"
As the robot-people flee, Jade lets her arrow loose into the mob, not caring if it hits or not. It's simply a better way to get rid of that arrow. Tucking the longbow awkwardly under an arm, she jogs to where Caithlin stands, obviously injured. "Hey, you don't look so good," she comments. "...Pro'lly good if you don't move much." It's not as bad as she'd thought, if the lady can stand, but...
Jade shakes her head, and shrugs at Kay's question. "Yeah, I'm good. Guess I should check out now, if it's all over. Don't wanna miss seein' the town!" she explains, turning to watch the departing claim-jumpers.
Oh, that sound was a gunshot, wasn't it. Impulse bucks atop the Alpha Custodian, dodging and vibrating at high speeds to keep from being caught by it, but thankfully for the Custodian, his attention is captured by something else. Impulse rushes to the side of the fallen Envy, peering down at him. "You... killed him?" The speedster turns his head, and then bolts into the horizon, sweeping past the retreating Autochthonians and grabbing away one of their gold transports, pulling it back to the scene of the mine, and stopping by Envy again. "You killed him?!" Then he's gone again, and then dropping another pile of gold and leaning down to try to check Envy's pulse. "He's not breathing." He bursts off again, and then returns, dropping a pile of screws and bolts, and then throws out his hands, exasperated. "You're not supposed to /kill him/!"
Kay grinds her teeth a little and throws a look towards Impulse. "It wasn't on purpose," she bites out, sinking to an uneasy seat on a nearby rock. Her gun is stuffed grudgingly back into her belt, a bitter taste filling her mouth. "And he was trying to kill US; lethal force in that kind of situation is authorized."
Her eyes lift back to Jade; she sighs, clearly stressing a little but trying to hide it. "...Alright. But first give me your name, if you don't mind. You were a big help."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Did you recover him?"
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "He's being mobbed by the enemy Regulators."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "I suppose it was his fate."
Yep, the old prospector is so dead, he's even starting to twitch, spasm, and convulse. All at once, too. Not for long, however, for soon after that, he collapses to the ground again, his arms and legs splayed and all the arrow and bullet wounds healed.
"Heh. At least someone was polite enough to remember the dead."
Getting shot at hurt. Dying and recovering hurt worse. This time, the impostor doesn't leave anything to chance, hopping back to his feet and quickly shifting forms. His body is overcome by sparkles, and in a blur of white light, compacts its form into something no longer human. A tiny red dragon, held aloft by its swaying tail and beating wings. It winks at the heroes, then flies off into the desert sun. It'll skip the free ride for now, this way requires much less dodging.
The Dynamo swears under her breath, but takes advantage of the half-distraction that is Envy's 'death'--she grabs most of the pile of gold, climbs aboard the transport, and takes off, watching carefully for any speedsters.
She gives Envy-dragon the thumbs-up as he passes by.
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "Never mind, he's still alive."
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Oh."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "All better~"
[Fac-Alliance] Threadbare Bride says, "Aren't you disappointed?"
There's a vaguely pained expression as the boy pronounces the man dead on Jade's face. "...Hey, look, I don't... I'm pretty sure he was gonna kill cop-lady there," she says, slowly shaking her head. "Sometimes... you gotta..." Man, she hates having to stick up for law enforcement.
The dead's pretty quickly forgot when, well, the corpse starts twitching. As if she's seen a ghost, the young woman steps back in a hurry, staring in mute horror until... the corpse shifts into the form of a tiny dragon, and flits away, leaving a stunned and silent Jade. At least, she's silent until she breaks into florid swearing.
For a second, the Scion debates making a bolt for it. But reluctantly, she answers, "...Jay." She pauses a moment before adding, "...I really gotta go." She really does head off now, turning away from the IPA members. She only stops on her way out to retrieve her bag and the belts. Hey, if she leaves those behind, she'll have to explain to her parents why she's suddenly missing all the belts in her wardrobe.
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Seeing the shock on their faces made up for some of it."
Impulse doesn't say anything, but the words don't warm him any. It's okay for Caithlin to have done that - she's a cop, isn't she? There's only so much she can do. But the fraternity of superheroes expects more. A superhero isn't supposed to let anybody die on their watch. He just stares down.
And takes a step back as Envy transforms. The shock of the experience is enough to stall Impulse and enable the little dragon to build a good head start - by the time Impulse is moving to catch at him, he's just too far and too high. "Grife! He's getting away..." Impulse trails off, watching the escaping homunculus, and while he doesn't smile over it, he just can't find himself to get worked up over it. He breathes a sigh of relief.
The whole affair is enough to distract him from the Radiant Dynamo taking off with an armful of gold, too.
Curse her inattentiveness! Kay didn't even realize that the old prospector was still alive. She bolts to her feet, watching stunned as the impostor makes good his escape in a fashion she finds quite spectacular.
Damn. They got away, and with some of the gold, too.
She nods to Jay, absently more than anything, but does not stop the girl from leaving. NEXT TIME, DYNAMO! NEXT TIIIIIME! (And your little skort-wearing pal, too!)
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention, over the sounds of paramagnetic engines: "Are we being followed?"
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Beats me."
[Fac-Alliance] Radiant Dynamo of Invention says, "At any rate, Envy, the nation of Yugash thanks you for your assistance."
[Fac-Alliance] Envy says, "Eh, all in a day's work."