15715/Supply and Demand

Supply and Demand
Date of Scene:	17 October 2023
Location:	Future Solutions - Main Lab
Synopsis:	Shredder and Juggernaut.
Cast of Characters:	Shredder, Juggernaut

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Shredder has posed:
    Future labs has a lot of rooms with a lot of valuable things. But it's all about knowing whether those valuable things are valuable to someone who will pay to have them stolen. As it is, two outside forces have desired the sonic destabilizer that is being developed here. The Foot Clan is one of them, as the destabilizer has been showing potential to immobilize even very powerful figures. It won't always do damage, but it is capable of sending very powerful being into a dizzying state. This makes it optimal as a countermeasure for powered individuals which the government may want to control.

    The Foot Clan wants to control such opposition as well. But they aren't the only ones. A mutant terrorist group has also found this as something they want. They don't want to use it, they just want to destroy it, along with all of the research done to create it. Hence they wanted to hire someone very good at destroying things to do the job, however he sees fit.

    Outside the lab, Karai, the second in command of the Foot has taken up post along with a team of four elites, planning to break into a rather complex installation right there in midtown. The sleek building stands out from most of the rest of the area, new in construction, and the evening light means that the last of t he regular workers are just clocking out to go home.

Juggernaut has posed:
For someone who is not a mutant, a certain Citizen Cain Marko certainly finds himself in their company or being reached out to by them more often then he cares to be. He's normally picky when it comes to clients, mind you, but it can be easy to presume that he's on 'their side' or fighting for 'their cause' when most of hte time he stays neutral and doesn't particularly consider himself an ally. Most of the time. He's not -completely- devoid of empathy mind you but he can be disinterested if the group or the job doesn't necessarily ring with elements that might attract his attention.

A sonic destablizer though? Now that is curious. Few are the things that can effect or hamper Marko...and high intensity sonics happen to be on that list. He's loathe to admit it. He isn't just stopped in his tracks by it...but it can be a problem much as other inventive efforts that bypass actually trying to do him physical harm. This added incentive makes this particular job worth investigating.

Thus, he's already in the area when The Foot Clan begins making their move. His immense body in his civilian day to day clothes, seated atop a massive bench near a bus station, one arm splayed across the back of the bench an the other holding up a copy of The Daily Bugle. He stands out, a huge mammoth wrecking ball of a man, but might be mistaken for some colossal world record sundering athlete with his garments stretched across his billboard of a body and dark shades hiding his eyes. As the sun begins going down, his watch beeps and he glances at it while an earpiece rings with information from his clients.

"Extraction is set. You can begin whenever you're ready Juggernaut."

Cain nods his head, pursing his lips and then slowly rolls the newspaper up.

"Alright. Just don't be late." he rumbles while slowly standing and turning towards the sidewalk leading towards the building.

Shredder has posed:
    Karai, who is the very opposite of Marko, gives her command to her team at almost the same time. Only they don't move for the door. The line to the roof is fired, and from the higher nearby buildings, the four begin their descent, Karai taking up the rear as they land on the roof. The one who has the electronic bypass is the first to the roof access, quickly accessing the lock with the TCRI tools developed by their resident scientist, Dr. Stockman.

    Karai sees Cain as she descends, he is enough of a notable figure it's hard not to. She glances over the edge of the building, looking around for other threats. Naturally, she just thinks that Cain is a big guy, the small ninja unaware that he has the same target that they have.

Juggernaut has posed:
"Trust me. This'll only take a minute. But if your teleporter isn't ready for me then my 'fees' are gonna be have a thirty percent rate hike."

Cain's gravelly deep voice rumbles with sardonic disinterest into his commlink as he treads closer and closer to the building, unaware of the fact that he's both being observed and that there is an element already here that is a few steps ahead. Shortly, however, their own effort sat stealth may become just a -touch- compromised.

Upon reaching the step leading up to the main entrance there is a flash of red light and a crackling of intense crimson energy that blisters into life around teh colssal man. His silouhette is warped, shrouded and then enlarges rapidly as he summons his signature armor and his body takes on the more iconic frame and physique of The Juggernaut. He goes from a boulder to a mountain range of a man. The very ground now shaking with the heavy -TOOMS- of each footfall that sends shockwave rippling out in all directions and leaves massive footprints sundering into the ground. His body continues to pile muscle on top of muscle. Creaking and stretching his armor and his sinew seemingly an audible thing as it bunches up and groans with the stress of his movements.

,A hearbeat later and the giant is plowing forward through the front entrance of the building...walking through stone, metal and glass as if he were passing through a wall of wet tissue. His very arrival is liek a concussive bomb going off, sending shockwave rippling through the structure and up to the roof.

"Location?" he demands of his handlers as he treads in. "Sub levels?"

Meanwhile, naturally, alarms begin wildly ringing as the lights flicker and security measuses and lockdowns begin occuring.

Shredder has posed:
    "Sub Level 3," comes the response for the location's intended location. Karai hears the crashing through the front and feels the impact, jostling her stance. She isn't at the proper angle to able to see what he did. "We have company," she tells the other. "We need to move, get to the target. I'll handle the competition." She hooks her line over the edge of the building, and then releases herself down, zipping to the street level. The young kunoichi lands in a ready stance, her metal shin guards and shoulders constrasting the black outfit and red scarf. "Can I help-" she realizes quickly that this wasn't done with explosives, but by the mountainous man simply walking through the entrance, "...you?" She steels herself. "I'm afraid you picked the wrong door today, giant." Big talk from a rather small opponent.

    The team of elites leap down the stairs, bouncing down between the flights rather than taking them down properly.

    Inside, the alarm goes off, and the security officer who remains sits at his desk with wide eyes as the unexpected intrusion comes in through the front door. He's the one who should be sending the call for help, but for the moment, the fifty-something man just stares, uncertain how to respond to such a magnificent entrance.

Juggernaut has posed:
The ground continues shaking, violent and sundering, as the behemoth continues his inexorable tread through the lobby only to flicker his gaze towards the arriving guard first.

Juggernaut is cruel. The Juggernaut is menacin.g. The Juggernaut is violent. But The Juggernaut is not 'wicked'. As he looks upon the stunned security guard, he immediately dismisses him as both a threat and a need to actually bring harm to the man. Now if attacked and given reason to retaliate then such individuals bring such doom upon themselves but his first comment is simply: "Ey mac. Do yourself a favor and just head on home early for the night eh? You'll get a good story out of having run into The Juggernaut to tell yer mates.." He grins and lifts his hand up, sniffing and rubbing the back of his nose through the opening in his helm. "Sub-level 8? Works fer me.."

He glances to the security guard and gestures with a thick thumb towards the elevator. "This way, right? Don't mind if I d--"

But then Karai makes her presence fully known to him and Juggernaut frowns. "What th'hell is this? We got company."

That first bit is directed to his comm link but then he focuses his attention in full upon the ninja. "You the local good guy or you here to make a withdrawal? Either way, babe, I got places to go and things to do...so don't mind me if I pick the pace up a little bit here.."

Indeed he's never -stopped- walking and by now he's reached the entrance to the elevators. A massive hand plunges forward and forces the doors open with the ease of warping melted butter.

Shredder has posed:
    Karai has to pause when she sees the ease with which Cain walks through the walls. She takes a moment to consider her options. Her first choice is the achilles tendon, springing forward toward his ankles with her small sword slashing out in an attempt to cut through that very important tendon for walking.

    The security officer decides he's going to take up Cain on the offer. He grabs his coffee mug and quickly ambles out of the building. However, several security measures are in place here. As the elevator is torne open, there's a red light that flashes, and a signal indicates that lockdown has commenced. No elevators will be functioning at this time. It may not mean much to Cain, but the ninjas heading down to the sub level are in for a rude awakening. They reach the door, and it's magnetically locked. The override they possess doesn't work. They need to get creative.

    "No no, not 8, sub level 3!" the radio contact shouts back into Cain's ear.

Juggernaut has posed:
"I thought I heard eight. Don't shout." complains Juggernaut despite the fact that three sounds absolutely nothing like eight. "Damn, calm down."

He notes the change of the lights and frowns mildly. He doesn't consider it a problem or a hinderance per se bu there's no telling what type of security features might be in this sort of facility. Enough to at least slow him down potentially and force more effort out of him. Stop him? Well..no. Never, if you were to ask him at least.

Not that it's stopping others from trying. He turns his head, helmet swiveling enough to allow him to catch the incoming Karai out of his peripheral vision. He doesn't move and her attack against him lands exactly where she aimed for. His leggings aren't exactly 'armored' either. The 'armor' portion is more implied for the upper torso of his suit but it's not really the armor that's the problem. It's him. The Avatar of Cyttorak is for all intents and purposes invulnerable and as the sword strike they find no purchase as greater power and weaponry has failed to do so.

It does, however has the unfortunate side effect of getting Juggernaut's full attention. It's not a matter of need. He could just keep going.. It's a matter of ego.

"Hey! You aint got the juice, sister. Unless you packin' a nuke in that sword yer wasting your time and even then..you'd be still wastin' time. MY time!"

His massive hand swats out, a dismissive sort of wave...but for the fact it'd feel like getting hit by a car if it lands.

"Beat it! I aint got time to worry about some freak ninja security crackpot!"

Shredder has posed:
    Karai ducks beneath the hand, but doesn't retreat, a bold move perhaps for someone who just found out that her sword is useless against him. "All right, let's waste time, then," she declares, her voice quite a bit bolder than her size. She goes to her sash and pulls a couple of flash pellets out, tossing them at the massive torso. They are only light, but the objective is to blind him more than harm him.

    The ninjas below expect they are in a time crunch with the security going off. One of them takes a kunai and plunges it into the sheetrock of the wall. He digs a hole, and then sticks a small explosive in that hole, backing up, and the explosion can be heard all the way up the line, as the elevator shaft is right next to the emergency stairs.

Juggernaut has posed:
"Hrght!"

Indeed. Slow him down. Juggernaut's senses are not so protected after all. The flash of light rips right into him, both startling him and robbing him of his sense of direction, balance and focus.

He stumbles, massive footfalls shaking the entire building now and oen hand going up to clamp over the eye sockets in his helm as his shoulder crashes against the side of one of the walls as he stumbles and attempts to regain his balance.

s the explosion ripples up through the building, Juggernaut grits his teeth putting two and two together finally. "Fine! Looks like we're working against each other. I gave you a chance! You're all dead meat"

The lack of direction results in a flailing Juggernaut. Not exactly something you want when a casual blow can send smoeone hurtling across a skyline. She may be able to avoid it but the building isn't quite so nimble is it as he goes down towards one knee and rings a massive fist down towards the floor with force like an incoming meteor.

The impact is like a concussive bomb going off. An earthquake roars out from the behemoth as the floor sinks inward, caving violently into a spreading crater that rocks the entire building and the blocks beyond. For the interior of the atrium, furniture hurtles about like a debris caught in a violent storm. Windows shatter and walls cave inward. Nimble movement may assist here but there's no telling what may happen to the sub levels as the shockwave travels in all directions.

Shredder has posed:
    Karai gets a smug grin on her face as Juggernaut stumbles, just long enough for it to get wiped back off her face as he slams his fist into the ground. With the seizing impact, she may be nimble, but she's not immune to earthquakes of that magnitude, and she finds herself crashing down with the floor to the floor below.

    She lands hard on her backside, and sees electrical harnesses from the lights above crashing down at her. She rolls to the side, scrambling to find good footing as she regroups herself on the first sublevel.

    On the third sub level, the impact jars doors and sends ripples through the concrete, cracking the supports. It's a good thing a place like this is designed to resist a lot, and has reinforced supports, or else the entire place might have come crashing to the ground.

    The four Foot elite make their way through the hallway, rushing for their target. Lights flicker, the emergency lighting has kicked on. They may have another problem when they make it to their source, though. That problem will be how to leave once they have what they came for.

Juggernaut has posed:
He heals fast. Not fast enough to compare to the likes of Wolverine or 'Jade Jaws' as he'd call Hulk..but fast enough, especially with dedicated effort. So his eye sight is rapidly restored although blurry at first. Hazy and disorientated still.

But additional purpose and urgency lies in him now.

"You got company! There's somebody else after this thing!" he rumbles, "What kinda intel you got? Who else might be after this? The Hand? It's some sorta ninja. Martial artist..."

He doesn't expect this splinter group of mutants to know everything about who they could be up against but its worth asking.

Focused and now more single minded, Juggernaut pulls himself up from the cushion of rubble formed from the collapsed first floor and then desecnds the rest of the way down to the first sub-level thorugh the cratered opening, landing with another earthquake causing impact some distance away from Karai. From there he turns towards the ruined elevator shaft and starts plowing ahead towards it, intent on dropping the rest of the way down.

The thought of just destroying this whole building has come to him as well but he wants to make absolutely sure the weapon is gone. Not just buried.

Shredder has posed:
    "I'm sure a bunch of people want it," the answer comes. "That's why we gotta destroy it. They will make us all slaves with something like that!" Maybe a bit extreme in their expectation over the device, but the mutant sounds sincere in his concern.

    Karai sees the elevator shaft that Juggernaut is going for, and she contiues her interference. She can't do much to hurt him, but this time she tosses a smoke pellet, bursting in front of the elevator to make sight difficult again. She certainly isn't going to stay put, though, as she moves to try to obscure herself in the smoke as well.

    The ninjas below find the room. Everything was on lockdown, but they are able to pry open the door with the sonic disruptor. They begin scouring the room for the device.

Juggernaut has posed:
She's brave. He'll give her that much. Dedicated and determined. He doesn't go as far as thinking she's stupid. She's clearly got some smarts in her as she now is avoiding trying to engage him directly. Many are those who would hurtle themselves at the behemoth regardless of being so outmatched. Entire teams whose powers combined are nothing compared to the behemoth.

But the old adage of 'You can't stop him but you can slow him down' is largely a truth and she seems to have taken to that. The smoke bombs billow up before him and they indeed do cause him to pivot ever so slighlty, unsure of what to expect... But though they slow him it's not enough or persistent. He continues forward, disappearing into the billowing clouds and lowering his shoulder to slam violently into the far wall. The impact sends another force wave out that billows through the smoke, wildly whirling it about and dispersing it to reveal the colossus exploding through into the shaft and then dropping down like before lifting his hand up to dig his fingers into the sides to arrest his movements lest he plummet to far. Indeed the entire shaft buckles and groans against the pressure of his size and strength but he's not intending on staying there for long.

"Catch ya later, sweetheart!" he bellows back up towards the above sub-level as he begins siiding downward, "I'd get outta here if I were you! This whole place is gonna be a crater when I'm finished!"

Shredder has posed:
    Karai grits her teeth as Juggernaut refuses to have his attention kept by her. She really doesn't have anything with her that could do much to foce him to be slower. Unlucky timing that he showed up at the same time she did. She pulls up he4 wrist radio. "Get out of there as soon as you have the target," she says, breaking radio silence.

    The four ninjas are scouring the cabinets in the lab. They find details on the plans for the device, and one finds the device. The two things they'd want. They are good for their exit. All they have to do is make it back to the stairs.

Juggernaut has posed:
An explosion of debris fills the central hallway of the sub level as Juggernaut drops in with a rain of debris behind him. Lights flicker and the dust cloud rolls through the halls, briefly obscuring the goliath from sight but eventually simply rolling around him like an unfolding curtain as he lumbers into view and begins making his way down the hall towards the lab.

"Alright. Sub-levle 3." he declares into his comm link as he treads forward and catches viw of the main lab entrance and the movement within.

"I'm going in. Get ready." His deep voice rumbles as his fists tighten, producing a sound like boulders splintering as his knuckles crack. His approach is a loud rumbling *TOOM* as each foot sends more earthquakes through the structure and he bears down towards the lab and those within.

"I'm here to do a job fellas! I aint interested cleaning blood off my armor tonight and got a few strip clubs to hit so how about you drop what you came here for and I let you walk out of here with all of yer bones intact?"

Shredder has posed:
    The four elites in their kabuki masks crouch to steady themselves as Juggernaut bursts down their level. The one carrying the gun looks at it, looks at Juggernaut, and pulls the trigger.
    It's too bad he doesn't know how it works, or that might have been a really good solution to their problem. Two of the others think quickly, and throw their own smoke pellets at Cain's feet. They have to make it past this behemoth if they are going to get out of there