14525/We Don't Need You Or Your Friends Around Here

We Don't Need You Or Your Friends Around Here
Date of Scene:	26 August 2022
Location:	Central Harlem
Synopsis:	Luke decideds to solo a visit to the new gang trying to get a hold in Harlem. Things turn violent as he reads them from The Good Book. Timely backup provided by the Black Canary makes the situation go better than it might have. In appreciation, Canary is given a private reserve bottle of bourbon for when she visits Luke's Bar..
Cast of Characters:	Luke Cage, Black Canary

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Luke Cage has posed:
In the days and weeks following the explosion and ensuing attack on Luke's Bar by the gang trying to move into Harlem, things have been relatively quiet. Luke has heard a number of rumors and has kept his eyes and ears open. Illogically, the gang has moved back into the same building. Apparently they are just that arrogant. Or stupid.

When word reaches Luke that the gang is trying again, he takes it upon himself to be the Neighborhood Watch and Welcome Party

Having just hired two new staff for the bar, he looks over, "Kerry, I'm going to step out for a little while. You and Jake have the place, ok?" Kerry hasn't been here long but she has been here long enough to know that when he steps out it's to play protector for the burrough.

"Okay Luke. Just.. be careful?"

He nods seriously, "Like a heart attack." He disappears out the door and sets off walking across the burrough toward the garage being used by the gang.

Black Canary has posed:
"Hey there," Canary says as she enters in persona, swaggering up to the bar and claiming a stool.

Then it registers: Luke's not there.

"Hey ... Kerry, was it? You seen Luke? Is he out back cleaning up or something?"

Her eyes stray to the "staff only" door as she asks, that mystery area that every restaurant has whose very presence intrudes into the consciousness of guests. (Well, at least guests who've never worked in a restaurant. Those who have know that it's just boring office crap.)

"Let him know I've dropped by?"

Luke Cage has posed:
Kerry looks up. "Oh. Miss Canary." She is not only a skilled young bar tender, she is also very polite. "Luke has, well, he's stepped out for a little while, as he puts it." She looks concerned.

"But yes. I'll tell him." But she can't leave it alone. "Miss Canary? I know you're one of those who helps keep everyone safe in your ways? I'm worried about Luke. He is going to face that gang. The one that was part of that explosion a few weeks ago? I'm really worried something bad may happen." She is not aware that he is is, as Canary put it, A Meat Shield. She is worried he really is going to be hurt badly.

And maybe he will.

Black Canary has posed:
Kerry's concern brings mirrored concern to Canary's face. When she spills the beans she reaches the point of actually furrowing her brow.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," she lies. Partially. "But tell you what, how 'bout we hold off on my order until I get back. I just remembered I had something to do."

Her hand waves to the door.

"Out there."

She gets off the stool.

"Nothing particularly important."

And with that she's out the door like a flash. Or The Flash. On a slow day.

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage has perhaps a ten minute head start only he his on foot. By he time he arrives at the alley gargage where the gang has set up business again, it is likely just about when The Canary is tipped off to his fool's errand.

There are easily a dozen or more gang members around the garage. Outside there are three. Luke walks up to the one the closest one. THe ganger also happens to be three inches taller than Luke. Which is saying something.

The ganger speaks up, "What you want? This isn't somewhere you want to be."

Luke looks at him, unimpressed and inconcerned. "I'm here as a concerned citizen of Harlem. Why don't you get your boss out here and we can make this simple and quick."

THe three gangers have closed in around him now and the tall one laughs. "No. He doesn't have time for concerned citizens. Leave now and we won't put a bullet in your bald head."

Black Canary has posed:
For most people, Canary would be running afterward, full-tilt, putting all those hard-trained fast twitch muscles to work. For a meat shield she's not in that much of a rush. A jog is enough.

Which leaves a blonde with killer legs jogging in Harlem. Likely to attract attention until the identity is spotted and the smarter reptiles of the scene will fade away. (The dumber ones may try to smack-talk her before their smarter friends drag them away. By the ear.)

When she closes in on the garage, she slows to a stealthier walk, however, finding a place to observe without being spotted, arriving in time to be a block away as the trio surround him and the tall one threatens.

This should be interesting. The instinct to popcorn is strong.

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage sees the three gang members circling around him. He had not wanted it to come to this. Had he expected it to? Yes. But he held hope that they might be smart. Oh well.

"Well. That isn't very neighborly, threatening to shoot -"

The gunshot cuts his words off. His head whipped back, and he staggered several steps. "... fu.. fuck." He straightens himself up to look at them with annoyance. The bullet has deformed his forehead just above his brow line. He reaches up to pull the bullet away. It hasn't even broken the skin even though it deformed on impact. ".. do you have any idea how much it hurts to get shot? Anywhere? In the head, it hurts even more." He flicks the bullet back at the one that shot him. "You misplaced this."

While the three are stunned that he is not only alive, but able to fight back, he wades into things. A huge fist breaks the bridge of the nearest guy's nose with a crunch. "You want the hard way? We go full fucking hard!"

Black Canary has posed:
Time to dive in. Canary saunters forward from hiding, scanning windows and doorways for lurking assailants as Luke cuts loose.

"You're supposed to burn bridges, not smash them," she quips from a respectful distance, letting Luke know a) she's there, and b) she's got his back, and c) she's still a smartass. "Need any assistance or should I just start my cheerleading routine? Or maybe a good movie action scene soundtrack?"

Luke Cage has posed:
The guy whimpers and just falls to the ground after Luke's fist hits. He isn't waiting, turning to the guy that shot him. The guy is starting to raise his gun as if that will work better the second time.

A large hand wraps around the gun and the man's hand. "I told you. It fucking hurts. And you try to shoot me _again_? What are you? stupid?"

He wrenches the weapon from the man's hand, breaking fingers in the process. Then he puts the weapon on safe before proceeding to beat the living hell out of the ganger. "Just be glad I didn't choose to shoot you. It would have had a permanent effect." His voice is dark and very displeased right now.

Black Canary has posed:
Canary spots a fourth ganger trying to get to Luke from behind. She snorts and catches the guys eye, shaking her head in an emphatic 'no' and pointing back.

"My friend, don't be a dork," she says.

From behind her she hears a foot scuff as a fifth ganger tries to sneak behind her. The teaching moment opportunity is one she takes with a gusto, stepping sideways to grab her wannabe bushwhacker and send him flying forward toward the one behind Luke, the hapless predator winding up face-first in the asphalt in front of his compatriot.

"That's what happens to dorks," she clarifies. "Scram."

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage finishes with the second gang member, letting him fall to the street. He won't be moving for a while. There will be reconstructive dental work in his future.

He looks to Canary, eyes narrowed for a moment. He is in fighting mode. As she takes the next two down, he nods.

"Thanks. Came here to give them one last chance to clear out. It appears their answer is no. But these weren't the leader. So I'll need to hear it from him, myself."

"You want to hear it from me?"

The sound of guns cocking, of safeties being flicked from the left. The leader and a half dozen more gang members stand there. Of the seven, five have guns and two have knives.

Luke looks at the leader, "Really? You're going to try nd do this? I am giving you one chance to pack your shit and leave Harlem and not come back. YOur boys tried to shoot me. And I'm still here. I kicked his ass. And you're still trying to do this."

He uplifts his chin toward the Canary. "She fucked your last boss and some of your boys up last time. And she's still standing. You _really_ want to do this? How do you figure you're going to win?"

The leader looks torn. He doesn't want to fight it seems, but he's trying to look tough since he claimed leadership. He works his jaw, mouth opening and closing in indecision.

Black Canary has posed:
Indecision is not Canary's way. Bad guy pauses, Canary's in full swing. Bad guy has guns, make sure he can't use them.

There's no delay between decision and action. (Is there even a difference in the experiential world of the Canary?) While he works his jaw, Canary's already in action, bum-rushing the nearest guy, turning herself into the Canary among the cats. (Pity the gang name wasn't something like the Tigers or the Lions or such. The pun would work better!)

And of course with Canary in their midst, the guns aren't much help. The one guy who uses his shoots his own compatriot in the leg, earning a snapped wrist and a concussion from a chop and an elbow smash respectively for his troubles. Adding insult to injury, the bullet wound gets further blunt trauma damage from a kick, amplifying the pain.

That had to be accidental, right?

With two out of commission before most have even figured out someone brought her fists to a gunfight, Canary takes on the next pair, drawing a line between where she is and where her target, the leader, is.

And she's grinning, clearly enjoying the workout, catching the chain one brings down on her around her arm, absorbing the impact to bring him in for a sudden punch to the face.

"You're missing out here!" she calls out Luke's way. "You start the other end of the line. We'll meet at fuckface there in the middle."

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage wasn't one to hestitate, himself. He did, however, believe in giving these guys one chance to do the smart thing. Then they had to go and prove unfit for intelligent thoughts and that means it is time to go to Plan B.

Just being the Canary's efforts, he is on the other end of the semi circle of previously over confident gang members. Now? They're not even normally confident.

As he nears the other end of the group he leaps and lets his weight carry him downward, his fist slamming into the first ganger. The blow is teeth jarring. He crumples, gun dropped from his no longer consciously controlled hand.

Black Canary has posed:
The shortcomings of chains as weapons are made clear as Canary unwraps it from her arm in a single, swift motion and wraps it instead around her stunned assailant's neck. As he clutches at the chain, trying to get it off of him, she supplements this by wrapping it around the gun arm of another guy trying to get a clear shot. His reflexive tugging of the chain to free up his arm tangles it up further, and half-strangles his buddy in the process, given Canary the chance to slip a step closer to the leader.

"Um, excuse me: who do you want kicking your ass to perdition? The blonde chica or the big black guy? Conversely, which one hurts your ego more?" That directed at the leader as she ducks under a clumsy attempt at a pistol-whipping. "'Cause make no mistake, one of us is going to whip you but good. I'll leave the choice up to you. Or to him if he wants the job."

She darts a wink Luke's way. "How're you coming along?" she asks, sending her paired chained ones careening Luke's way for the final takedown. "Oh, I expect a free beer for this."

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage started one or two behind the Canary isnce she jumped right in. He doesn't seem to be trying to race, but they each had three to work over and through to get to the indeciisve leader.

After his first guy, he closes in on the next two. They both have guns and one gets off an errant shot that hits a parked car setting off its alarm.

Two large hands grab ahold of the gang members, slamming their heads together like a pair of melons. The two moan and drop.

Then she's tosisng two mostly down and out guys toward him for the takedown. He does it fast and ismple with large fists.

Glancing toward her he shrugs, "I'm doing just fine, Lady. Right behind you." He walks over and stands on the other isde of the leader from Canary. He looks at the guy, "I'll take him. I appreciate the asisst but this is my neighborhood." He walks up to the guy, looking well down at his shorter frame.

"I'm not going to lay a hand on you. Neither is she. Why? Because your guys? They got the beat down. You told them to do it. But they expected one thing. Leadership. The thing you apparently were an idiot and somehow convinced them you had and could do. But we all know that you can't. You're the one standing here untouched. You never even fired your gun."

He lays a large hand on the man's neck and shoulder. "You. Are going to get to face your guys. The ones who got messed up because you didn't want to leave. And we're going to let you explain to them why you weren't touched. I bet they won't buy your bullshit a second time." He looks strongly at the guy.

"But either way? You're leaving by morning. Don't you ever think of coming back here again. Because if you do? Everything those ten guys got is going to be unleashed on little old you. You think on that."

Letting the now pale guy go, Luke looks to Canary, "We're done here. Problem solved." A long hard glance back to the guy and then Luke turns toward his bar and starts to walk.

"I need a drink. that's what Harlem needs. A good place to get a drink."

Black Canary has posed:
"Isn't it lucky then," Canary says, falling in beside Luke, "that it has such a place. And that we're heading to it."

Beat.

"You still owe me a beer."

As the odd pair walk the streets back to Luke's bar, something happens in their wake. People who'd been cowering behind curtains or shutters, watching through little holes, trembling, start to open the drapes or shutters. And looking out the window openly. And a little something is showing in their faces.

A little pride.

Sometimes it's the little things that raise community spirits. And sometimes it's just kicking the shit out of bad guys.

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage grunts, wincing from the fight. His large hands flex out the stiffness in the joins.

"I do not recall this. I think we're more than abundantly square, Lady." THe tone is a lot less harsh than his firm words may seem. "But I'll give you a bottle for showing up today. Not sure how you knew, but it was good to have backup. I'd have gotten them all. But there would have been more gunshots and that would have risked a stray round hitting innocents not part of the fight."

Black Canary has posed:
"It's my job to know things," Canary says lightly. "Otherwise I just go out there at random and hope I stumble into trouble I can fix."

She walks in silence a moment.

"You know, you shouldn't do shit like that without backup. Even if they couldn't hurt you, in their stupidity they could have hurt others. And you can never assume they'll be unable to hurt you. You have my number. Call next time, OK?"

Says the person infamous for getting in over her head because she goes in alone. But hey, who better to advise about rules than the person who breaks them all?

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage looks over, "I just said that was what could happen. Don't go acting like my Ex. I have enough people that don't listen to me already that I don't need you doing it too." The smirk would suggest he is joking.

"You've got your Jelly things," he points up, "in space. Or whatever. Beaming you away like Uhura. You don't need me calling you for little gang skirmishes like this." He sees it as a matter of profile and availability. If it were a fire why would they roll out the hook and ladder when they could just run a pumper truck. It would pull bigger resource from any other emergencies.

Black Canary has posed:
"Because street is where I started," Canary says, "and it's where my heart rests. All the league stuff? Yeah, it's important, and yeah I help when I can. Same with Alpha. But what's the point of any of that if life is a craphole for most people?"

She snorts and skips ahead to plant herself into Luke's path, poking him in the chest. "Don't you start sounding like my cosmic-minded colleagues telling me what I should or should not worry about."

It's pretty clear she's joking, given the wide grin and the dancing eyes.

"Don't go without backup," she repeats, voice more serious. "That whole thing that lets me beam up and down like Scotty makes me available with very short notice. Use that resource, OK?"

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage stops short as she skips ahead then decides to step in front of The Night Train. The fact he stopped without running her over is a testament to the control over his large frame. He listens to her, getting poked in the chest.

He looks at her as she makes her final insted demand. "I'll take that under advisement." He says his as he reaches out to resthis hands on each of her biceps. With surprising gentleness considering the beat down he just gave out, he lifts her off the alley and deposits her beside himself so he can resume walking. The flicker in his eyes shows the measure of amusement he feels in the moment. Even if his noncommittal words do mean he'll seriously consider what she's said.

Black Canary has posed:
Canary laughs as she's casually lifted aside like a small child with a circus strongman. "Damn, brother! You've got muscles!" she chuckles, taking her place at his side again. At the bar she slips in ahead of him by several seconds, nodding discreetly to the woman who'd directed her to Luke and briefly signalling with her head behind her before sashaying to the bar and sitting at a stool, crossing her legs and looking the place over.

"Oh, hey Luke. How've you been?"

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage snorts. "So I've been told. But moving you aside isn't anything to brag on. You've got, like, hollow bird bones or something. You can't weight more than what? Ten pounds?" He half chuckles.

He doesn't once spare a look back toward the garage the gang was using. Either he's that confident or, no, he's just really that confident they're not coming back.

At the bar he holds the door for Canary, following her in.

Kerry looks up and the relief is clear. "Luke! Miss Canary! We heard gunshots." For her sake alone, it is good that the impact of the bullet to Luke's forehead has disappeared or she might well have passed out.

Luke offers a nod to Kerry, "We're good."

Another chuckle to Canary. "Oh. You know. The usual. A bar to run. A neighborhood to keep clean and looked after. The sweet life. Can't ask for more." He makes his way to the bar and sits down beside her. "Kerry? Please get the Lady a bottle. Whatever she wants it's on me. For me - I'll take my personal bottle."

Kerry looks both relieved and nervous just the same. It isn't often Luke has parked himself on the paying side of the bar (even if he isn't paying). Or asked for his personal reserve.

Kerry nods, "Okay Luke. Miss Canary? What'll you have?" In the mean time, a 2/3 full bottle of Redbreast Irish whiskey and a glass are set out for Luke then she waits for Canary's choice.

Black Canary has posed:
"Ooh, that's so unfair!" Canary laughs. "You know I have to drive so I'm not going to take a bottle of your top-shelf bourbon!"

Feigning a defeated, grumpy face she turns to Kerry, "Just a bottle of beer."

Her eyes swivel to Luke.

"Whatever you think is tastiest," she continues, continuing to address Kerry. "Not most expensive. The two don't match all the time."

Turning briefly to Kerry to smile at her, she nods and turns back to Luke.

"It's a good thing you did today, though. You're helping a community find its feet."

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage looks to Canary, "Kerry - get her the bourbon - and a beer. We'll set the bottle aside. It'll be here for when you want it." He pours himself a tumbler and pauses till Canary has her beer. And her bottle of bourbon. "You've been a friend to the neighborhood. To the bar. And to me. Not many would take the time to come back here. You have. Thank you." He offers her a serious nod of appreciation.

Black Canary has posed:
"I'm blue collar, Luke," Canary says. "I mean roots. Obviously now I'm not in the life. But I mean I lived on the streets. I stole food and other things from dumpsters to live."

The delivered bottle of beer arrives at a perfect point for her to pick up, drink a gulp, and then gesture with the bottle to the door.

"I've got a lot more in common with what's out there than ... well ... most of us in the trade. It's also why I'm not very forgiving of the people who predate upon that. Like the friends we had a chat with today."

She shrugs and takes another slug, savouring the flavour before continuing.

"I saw everything that went wrong in communities. I saw how people like our buddies outside dragged neighbourhoods down." She makes a wry face. "In my own way I even kinda participated in that, though pretty mildly. And it's why I started doing street stuff after I quit working for the government."

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage nods. "I know you are, Canary. Doesn't mean I can't appreciate it. Because I do." He lifts his glass in salute before tossing back the amber-gold contents with gulp.

"Not a lot remember where they come from. Those who do are appreciated by those of us who never really get the chance to leave. It's hard." He pours another glass for himself before he side glances to her. "Accepting help. It's not easy. But thank you."