14441/Trainspotting : The Enemy of My Enemy

Trainspotting : The Enemy of My Enemy
Date of Scene:	14 June 2022
Location:	Manhattan Subway Station
Synopsis:	An unlikely alliance forms when some supernatural threats pick the wrong targets
Cast of Characters:	Shredder, Phantasm (Drago)

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Shredder has posed:
    In the New York City underworld, few people will mess with the Foot Clan. After they made a show in no uncertain terms a few years ago that they ruled the city, there was a war in the underworld. A war that the Foot won. Things didn't change much for the average person. In some ways, it may have made it slightly safter. Only slightly.

    So when word reached the Shredder that there were disappearances of his newer recruits, the Shredder was not at all pleased. It's no secret that while the Shredder has been known to sacrifice his troops for goals, he never does it lightly, and places a high value on them. He'd normally have Karai handle this, but given other developments in the world, some leads he has chosen to handle himself, and this is one of them.

    The end of the line, he's trailing a few of his own. The four teens have recently joined the Purple Dragons, a feeder group for the Foot Clan, and they are on their way from Brooklyn back to Manhattan, and they get off on the last stop. The master didn't say anything, he instead instructed two elites to shadow them with himself. They ride at the back of the subway car and outside it, waiting for it to make the final stop at the end of the line. A light squeal starts to build up as the silver box starts to slow.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
It wasn't just Shredder's recruits that were disappearing. Others have been vanishing from the subway and while it hadn't been making the news. There were the occasional murmurs from those more effected. Eventually those murmurs get to the right ears.

Nick has encountered problems before in the subway and when things got quieter, he had assumed that the problem was resolved. His forced time away from the routine didn't really help with proving him otherwise. But with the renewed concern, he has made it a point to check out what is going on tonight.

Nick pulled out his old gear. It wasn't flashy by any means. From a distance it just looked like someone who wanted to go out and get exercise in the chill of the night. The only notable differences to the attire was that if one were to look under the hood, they'd find nothing to identify the wearer with as fabric was set further in the recesses to hide the face. And gloves, while a normal item to wear is a bit odd in the middle of June. Night time or not. If one were to argue, that the hood was even up was probably odd as well. But OTHER THAN THAT it's just a common outfit paired with a bookbag. Nothing distinguishing about it.

If it was visible. But right now, Nick is cheating and using his abilities to hide. He's not going to find out what's going on if he's just blatantly standing there in the open.

And honestly. What's making those people vanish is probably cheating too.

So Nick waits, hidden at the last stop.

The station is pretty empty. With it being the last train, there's little in terms of foot traffic. But there are a few that just linger. A couple having a bit of a homeless quality to them and taking advantage of the benches. A couple that appear to be having a conversation near the stairs. They seem pretty harmless.

But looks can be deceiving.

Shredder has posed:
    Shredder and the two elites step off the back of the train and into the tunnel's access walkway quietly. The four teens step off far less quietly, laughing and talking about things they had done earlier that day. None of them are wealthy looking. None of them are particularly strong looking. They are low income kids from the wrong part of town, and given that the station is mostly empty, their antics are more pronounced. After all, there's few other people in the area.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The boisterous group does have a tendency to draw attention to them. Full of life. Not a care in the world despite what's been going on. One of the homeless looking men glances up to the approaching teens giving a pitiful look "Do you got any money to spare?"

The couple near trhe strairs, glances over to the interruption. The woman gives a frown.

Nick is attentive, hands holding onto several sticks broken to have a point to them. With it being the last train, his primary concern is the loud cluster of travelers which leads to him following along with them.

Off to the tunnels, seemingly un preturbed by the train that came through just moments ago, several shadows emerge quietly, using the tracks to conceal their approach.

Shredder has posed:
    The four video a ridiculous antic as one of them shows off his new atheletic maneuver he learned. He can run up a wall and do a flip. Naturally it needs to be uploaded to social media. As they are asked for money, they do what many might do. They just ignore him. No aggressive mockery of his situation, but they seem to want to avoid engaging him either. They aren't the most observant, unaware of the tunnel that has just produced new shadows that are heading in their direction.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The homeless man frowns as the group ignores him. He shakes his head, glimpsing over to the tunnel's new entrants for a moment but he makes no mention of the newcomers to the station.

But the male of the couple takes notice of the kid who did the flip. "Awesome! Do that again!" He encourages, giving off a laugh. The companion gives a bit of a small smile. Begrudgingly giving her approval.

Nick glances to where the homeless man is looking, causing for him to frown. Oh damn it.

The tunnel group starts to shift, facial muscles contorting to vampiric game faces before errupting into a display of speed, easily leaping up onto the platform as they run towards the teens. The homeless man who asked for the money earlier leaps up, expression also shifting only to errupt into a cloud of ash.

A broken stick lands on the ground where the man once stood.

"Run." Nick's disembodied voice advises the teens.

Shredder has posed:
    The group is caught completely by surprise, unaware that they have been marked by an otherworldly force. "Right?" The young man raises his hands in victory at being given some approval. "Okay okay," He starts to prep his second attempt at the flip when the voice of Nick's voice tells them to run. They don't. Instead, they glance around. "Who said that?" the youth with the phone out to record asks.

    However, from their hiding, the three unseen defenders are paying attention, and as the man disappears into ash, they burst silently forward. The Shredder himself takes the lead, while he is not superhuman, the truly unnatural speed of the aggressors seems to give him no pause. It's not a factor to fear, only a factor to be overcome. He leaps an intercept for the rear figure, like the breath from another world he appears with a flashing claw that thrashes forward at the side of the most exposed member of the vampires.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
As a couple more of the homeless figures start to turn to the more Vampiric forms to try and go after the teens, two more figures start to turn to ash. More sticks falling to the ground from the void.

"GET OUT." The voice repeats, tone not joking. The phone is yanked from the youth's hand thrown up the stairs

The couple near the steps stands still, looking over towards where the vampires vanished with wide eyes.

Shredder's attack works well to draw the attention of the one in the back. As the claw sinks in, the vampire turns around, baring its teeth to try and bi-Oh hey, that's a lot of blades. "WHAT?!"

The other two protectors have mixed results. While one manages to get the slightest of cuts in. The speed of the vampire engaged by the second catches him a little off guard. He misses. But his reaction time is good enough to avoid getting taken out.

Shredder has posed:
    "What is that!?" the teens seem to recognize now that there's a serious threat as the fighting breaks out around them. The one with his phone thrown up the stairs chases after it, and the others all backpedal from the fight, eyes wide.

    The revealed elites show that the vampires aren't the only ones with scary faces. The two wear rice hats, their faces hidden behind red and black kabuki masks. One carries a spear, and the other a pair of dual katanas. The one with the spear spins back as his attack is interrupted, landing low and then thrusting forward, the spear attacking from his more distant position, sliding forward to the end of his grip before he takes hold of it again, making the attack almost like a thrown instrument that he doesn't lose.

    The one with the dual katanas follows up his slice with extreme aggression, blades slinging forward with a rapid succession of strikes, designed to either kill, or at least keep his foe on the defense.

    As for the Shredder, he doesn't hesitate, as the vampire turns in surprise to see him, the second hand of blades is looking to fill the mouth with another steel blade of the second claw, following with a thrashing outward with both hands, one disemboweling, the other tearing through the mouth and skull in terrific levels of gore, severing it just above the jaw with a clean cut. He stands in challenge of the remaining, his stance clearly shows that he is unintimidated by superhuman abilities.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
With the homeless attackers gone and the couple seemingly stunned at what's going on. Nick's attention switches over to the Tunnel crowd that seem to be engaged with several...ninja? The flash of metal makes him grumble.

Seeing the one before Shredder errupt into ash upon the head leaving the rest of the body there's a bit of hope that they figured it out. But the others managing to hold out as they're getting hit in places that, while disabling or killing to humans, aren't being very effective for the creatures being focused on.

Well, knowledge is power. And they don't have time for independent study.

"DECAPITATE OR WOOD THROUGH HEART!" Nick shouts out, making the instructions clear and quick.

A nearby vampire uses the erruption of sound to leap towards where the voice came from, only to be rewarded by being turned into a cloud of ash.

Hearing the shouted voice, The panicked couple seems to recover, running up the stairs.

Shredder has posed:
    Shredder shifts his attention toward the voice that cannot be seen. Upon hearing the phrase 'wood to the heart' he takes that to understand th rest. Rumor has it that vampires don't like garlic. "Metsubushi!" his voice calls out. Both ninjas disengage briefly, and pull an...egg? from their pouches on their person. Both throw the eggs at the ceiling over the vampires, bursting into a powdery cloud. It's a pepper bomb. It just so happens though that one of the ingredients in the concoction is garlic. Shredder himself does not pull a similar bomb, but waits to see the response, lest he blind himself. The two ninjas both fall back to defensive positions as well, a formation between the three that might be like a hunting party on safari working to take down a large predator.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
As the pepper bomb errupts, one of the vampires move back, grtimacing in response to the smell while the other one oddly seems to smile at it. Seems one of them has an acquired taste.

Nick throws a stick hard, imbedding it in the ground next to one of the ninjas. Impromptu stakes. Just in case. He remains in position, making sure no one else approaches the kids.

Shredder has posed:
    As the first vampire recoils, Shredder bursts forward, not with lethal force this time, at least, given what he's learned. He goes for a strike to the back, followed by a slash low at the ankles. He's not looking to kill this one, he's looking to incapacitate it. He has info tha the wants.

    The other ninjas focus the first that smiled, the one with the katanas sheaths one blade to pick up the stake. The spear elite takes his spear and kicks his foot down to break his own spear, flipping it around to the newly constructed stake. Together they strike, a certain tackle to their strategy rather than anything too fancy. They are looking to use their combined strength to try to pin and stake this abomination.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Now that the three ninja divide their attention amongst the two remaining vampires, progress is made. The addition of the wood usage does allow for the garlic loving vampire to gain more of a weariness of these attackers. The broken spear does end up coming in contact with the vampire but due to the movement, it just slightly misses the mark.

The loaned out stick has better luck hitting the mark, leaving a cloud of ash as they trigger a Vampire Vanish.

Shredder on his own does cause for the recoiling vampire to leap back. Finding himself to be vastly outnumbered, he turns to run. Going in the direction the kids are cowering in. But upon the hooded figure appearing on the platform between the escaping vamp and teens, the vampire has another change of heart and turns away from that direction.

Smacking into Shredder.

Oh right.

Shredder has posed:
    As the vampire turns to run into Shredder, he meets it with his claws, and twists to use the moment up to throw him to the floor of the subway. He wastes no time, but tries to step on the back of the vampires leg and sweep down again to sever the achilles tendon. He wants answers from this monster. At the top of the subway steps, the four teens cautiously creep back down, trying to see what action is left to be seen. The one with his phone has retrieved it, even if it does have a cracked screen now.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The vampire gives a snarl as the tendons are cut. Using his arms he uses his strength to try and push up, making the task of pinning him down a hard one. The cut tendon makes the task of the vampire escaping also quite difficult.

The hooded figure glances around, seeing no more threats, he quietly collects the sticks dropped upon the platform. Nick doesn't address the teens during this task.

Shredder has posed:
    "Stay down," Shredder growls. As the srong vampire starts to stand up, Shredder delivers a heavy blow to his ribs to knock him over rather than try to pin him. again. "Unless you'd like to lose your other tendon." Shredder glances to Nick, a certain level of recognition meeting his eyes behind his mask, but doesn't address him yet. He's not done with his business yet. "You have one opportunity to leave this situation alive," he tells the vampire, "and one alone. Do you wish to know it?"

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The vampire struggles for a few more moments before Shredder becomes the voice of reason. The creature slows, looking to Shredder and then to the figure collecting up sticks on the platform. "What?" He growls.

Nick shakes one stick, letting the ash that settled on it flutter away. A glance is given to the teens for a moment before another one is given to the area surrounding. No change in situation. Seemingly satisfied, the masked man vanishes.

Shredder has posed:
    "You are going to tell me what has become of my family." Shredder says with definitive authority. He "We've had five of them disappear over the last two weeks. Where are they?" He doesn't seem to be giving an expectation that there will be a disagreement on whether this creature knows about the situation. His gaze is hard. For someone who seems no more than human, he carries himself with the confidence of a god.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The vampire's expression d- Well it's still vampiric so it's pretty much already darkened. But the sneer crossing the features in response to the question expresses much.

The loaned out stick vanishes from the elite's hand. The only evidence of it being there is the fading memory of it in the hand. It is a few moments later before the figure reappears a bit aways, holding the newly reacquired sticks. "Ten in total." Nick volunteers. "...Are any of them still alive?"

Shredder has posed:
    The elite looks surprised, his attention shifting to the ready when the stick disappears, then relaxes slightly when Nick re-emerges.

    "Ten," Shredder echoes the updated number given by Nick. "You have been busy. The man asked a question. Answer him without delay."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The vampire tilts its head, looking towards Nick, giving a hiss of protest. "Some." He responds, uppper lips twitching as he holds the facial expression, "Waste not. Want not."

The mask tilts aside, "Where's the nest?"

Shredder has posed:
    "I too will have the same location that this man seeks," Shredder confirms Nick's question. "All of your victims will be returned presently in the best health possible, or you will all be destroyed before dawn." The Shredder is not known for emotion when he engages his foes, but it's clear that the attack on his younger members has certainly brought him to the edge or rage. For a ruthless warlord ninja, it's quite clear that he has emotional investment in his people.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
The vampire glowers. There's a moments pause before he opens his mouth again. Unfortunately it's not helpful at all. He leans his head forward, working to look to both Shredder and Nick with the same defiant phrase.

"BITE ME."

It's not quite literary gold, but it is effective to conveying the sentiment.

Shredder has posed:
    "I understand that certain things can kill vampires, but may not do so quickly," Shredder says in a contrastingly neutral tone to Nick, though he keeps his eyes on the vampire. Clearly a torturous implication. Of course, the warlord is not an expert in that which vampires fear.

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Nick doesn't add anything to Shredder's statement, at least not vocally. He's done enough talking for the day. But the slighest of nods is clear enough for the attentive vampire. Unspoken confirmation to Shredder's general assumption. The younger man takes a step towards the prone vampire.

"COLUMBUS CIRCLE!"

Nick stops moving.

Shredder has posed:
    Shredder narrows his eyes. "That was rather...fast." He seems skeptical. He looks at his elites. "Bind him, we will find if he is truthful so quickly." He looks back to Nick. "You've done rightly by the Foot tonight," he says. "I am not above giving gratitude where it is due, and I do not regard debts lightly."

Phantasm (Drago) has posed:
Nick smiles under the mask to the response. He tilts his head down for a moment to obscure any movement to the fabric as well as to nod to the acknowledgement to the comment. "As far as this is concerned I believe our motives are the same." Nick looks to the vampire, "If what he says is true, there will likely be be many more where they came from."