For the love of life, we'll defeat this

[dynast_queen]

WHO: Amal and open!
WHAT: Going around town, vanquishing monsters and trying to get back in contact with her...contacts.
WHERE: All around the city! If you want interaction with Ashe/Amal, just put the time of day in the subject line!
WHEN: ALL DAY, EVERY DAY WOOT WOOT PARTY

Comments

WAY overdue x3

[emerald_sting]

The Green Hornet rappeled his way down a tenement's rain-slicked walls. Clinging to him piggyback was a shivering boy of five whose grip around his neck betrayed absolute trust. Who else was there when when his mother never came back from trying to find him food?

"You're doing fine, kid.", came the masked man's harsh voice.

Below, a rowboat crewed by four masked men in black maneuvered into position. Two of them took the boy and wrapped him tight in waterproof blankets, then passed him to other evacuees on board. This building was clear, which meant so was the entire block. Not bad for a night's work... and the Swarm's first outing. That was a day the masked man thought would never come.

"That's all of them. Move out." Four similarly crewed rowboats fell into formation behind the Hornet's, each a ferry for its own load of civilians. Two agents per boat rowed for the better-kept sector of the Slums, where safe haven would be found at the government's newly established housing units. The remainder kept crossbows and rifles handy, eyes on the flooded streets around them and the pouring skies above.

Through it all, their charges stared at them in undisguised wonder. Who were these men? Some new gang was the obvious answer, else they wouldn't need those masks. Yet they moved with the efficiency of a well-oiled military unit. A cut above the rest of the rabble, if ever there was one.

But more than that, these newcomers seemed to care. And in these trying times, that was more than they could ask for.

NONSENSE AND POPPYCOCK MY GOOD MAN

[dynast_queen]

Well, wasn't that a welcome sight. That's what you should be doing, Ashe thought. Instead of wandering around and dispatching monsters where you find them, looking for your 'contacts.' The man was a shady character to be sure, but he was the most right-minded of all of them.

Ashe walked into the open, looking down at the Green Hornet from a rooftop. She wondered, briefly, if he would recognize her.

[emerald_sting]

"Over there." The Green Hornet pointed two o' clock high, drawing the Swarm's attention to an abandoned hovel. There was something odd about the man on the roof, about the way he was observing their little convoy. Unlike tonight's would-be avacuees, there was calm self-assured purpose in his stance, though the nature of said purpose was anybody's guess.

In any case, this warranted a closer look.

He ordered the other four boats to sail on, then he waved once at the watching figure; he'd be having company soon. He decided not to take one of his commandos along; if this was some kind of setup, the good folks riding with them would need all the protection they could get.

It wasn't long before the Hornet clambered onto the roof and sized up the man. He didn't know him (outside of a very subconscious feeling of dejavu) but he could see he was armed. Definitely a first for tonight, and that could mean all sorts of things.

His voice came slightly raised against the driving rain. "Need a ride, mister? The Haven's just a few blocks down."

[dynast_queen]

"Not as such, no," Ashe said, not bothering to mask her voice. She smiled. "It has been too long, Hornet."

It had. Ashe had been so busy being caught up in her own selfish melodrama she hadn't been paying as much attention to goings on as she should have. Helping Alma had been the start of her trying to get back on track; she saw a real opportunity to do good with the Green Hornet, grassroots style.

"Noble work," she continued, looking down at the boats. "How goes it?"

[emerald_sting]

The dejavu morphed into all-out recognition, shown in the cant of the Green Hornet's head. The mask remembered their shared living dream from a few months back. The man behind it realized she had not in fact left with the expeditionary fleet.

"I see the months have been kind, Lady Dalmasca. It's good to see you again.", he finally said, surprisingly courteous when he tipped his hat. He followed her gaze to the four boats receding down the block.

"Not bad, considering the gangs here haven't lifted a finger to help the very people they feed off of."

[dynast_queen]

Ashe smiled down at the boats, nodding. "Not bad at all."

She looked the Green Hornet over, thinking. He was a criminal, on the surface at least. From what she'd seen of him in those ruins, though, and now here, and even rumors in the underground she'd gathered from her various contacts...she wasn't so sure.

"I want to help." She figured she may as well come out and say it.

[emerald_sting]

The Hornet regarded Ashe in profile. He shouldn't have expected any less from this woman, whose heart was as noble as her upbringing. Still, hearing this straight from her was assurance that there were people here who gave a damn. Just like himself.

But was that aid just for one night? Or did she mean it for something in the long-term, which was the kind of aid he'd always been looking for? Could he then trust her with complete knowledge of his game?

His question was worded safely. "You are welcome to. But what are you offering?"

[dynast_queen]

Ashe began to pace, as she often did when having these kinds of conversations. She knew it was wrong, but whenever she asked for help it felt like some kind of failure on her part.

"A partnership. To keep Rivelata safe. To preserve it for its citizens." That's...yeah, that's pretty much it. "I am not interested in taking power for myself, or any other Outworlder." The reason, she assumed, was self-evident.

"My main goal at this moment is to evacuate the citizens into the castle. With the flooding and the creatures and Sylar both on the prowl, it's much too dangerous to have them out." She stopped in her tracks, turning back to look at the Green Hornet. "Sylar is, however, laying lower than I thought he would given the situation. Thus the impetus we need to force the King to announce an evacuation is out of our reach.

"However, if we simulated an attack by Sylar, the King, having imprisoned Sylar previously and letting him escape, would be almost obliged to make such an announcement."

[emerald_sting]

Long term then. Their goals were the same but unlike the Green Hornet, Ashe was much more up front about lending a hand. An ally like her was exactly what this whole operation needed. And she seemed to know that, on some level.

"You'd go that far to keep those folks out of the warpath. The same folks who'd just as easily stick knives into us as accept our aid." He shook his head, pacing over to the roof. "That's just crazy." Irony from the guy who'd just been ferrying said people. That was indeed the point, as his amused tone of voice showed.

"I want in. And I know my men would too." Coated arms folded. "It's just a matter of playing our cards right to fool just about everyone." No easy feat, considering the things Sylar was said to be capable of. Which was... plenty.

[dynast_queen]

Ashe really wasn't sure what to say to that first part. She had never been one all that susceptible to flattery, and decided now wasn't a good time to start.

The Queen nodded, holding a hand up. As the rain began to pool in her palm, it froze. "Leave that to me."

[emerald_sting]

"May I ask how far you're willing to go in order to see things through?" The Hornet meant not this staged attack, but everything else that would come of this 'unholy' alliance. Even for a pretended gangster, he had his morals.

[dynast_queen]

"As far and as long as the Garnet sees fit to keep me here," she said firmly. "Do you doubt me?"

[emerald_sting]

"Only because there are lines I won't cross." Most of his allies came from the wrong side of the fence. But when it came to those who sat on the right as Ashe did... the masked man could be more straightforward about his limits.

"I'm one of the bad guys, Lady Dalmasca. But I'm not a bad guy."

[dynast_queen]

Ashe thought back to her confrontation with Sylar. Carrie had stopped her from finishing the job--she couldn't have that happen again. Sure, she had gotten a semblance of a promise of obedience from the girl, but she wasn't willing to bank on it in a similar situation.

"I will do whatever it takes to further our goals. To protect the people and those I love." She looked down. "Whatever it takes."

[emerald_sting]

Which meant extreme measures might be an option. Something even he never agreed with.

They'd cross that bridge in time. It mattered more for now that her heart was in the right place. And that through him, she would have her very fingers on the pulse of Rivelata's greatest asset; its people.

"Then it warms my heart to be doing business with you. And for you.", he said at last. Overhead, the rain wavered in its merciless torrent when the Green Hornet offered a gloved hand to the Queen.

"Partners?"

[dynast_queen]

Ashe hesitated, but only briefly, before taking the Green Hornet's hand. That old fear would always be there, she reasoned. As long as she was prepared to be left on her own at any time, she would be able to deal with that when it came.

"Likewise." She made sure to keep her grip strong. Her father always taught her that a weak grip discouraged trust. "How can I contact you?"