View source for 2223/The Dark Knight Inquisition: Blink or You'll Miss It

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2017/08/29
|Location=Unknown
|Synopsis=Summary needed
|Cast of Characters=1045, 326
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>Molly, perhaps, attracts trouble like a... well, illegal cyborg from an alternate future. Let's face it. And although she's frequently annoyed at herself for having to call out the portaller for assistance, this time? There's no hesitation. She's on the roof, knowing by now that's where the teen will appear, accompanied the bigger, rougher looking cousin of the drone she was playing last time they hung out, but all other evidence of Mollcupation has been removed, from table to hammock to cooler.<br><br>The message itself is simple enough, a request that she needs a little help moving some things. Nothing urgent, but when Clarice gets the chance. Which doesn't explain why her jackets got some lovely new 'ventilated by blade' holes in it or that she's choosing to stay crouched next to the door to the stairs down with the watchful air of someone who's expecting something at least.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Moving stuff. Eventually everyone realised that moving heavy boxes was far easier when you only had to carry them a few feet - and that's when she got a text or a call. Always with the 'when you have time could you...' tagged on. Getting it from Molly had made her grin, if only because it showed what the cyborg had told her was true. People were people, no matter when or where they came from. The answering text had been simply 'I'll be there in ten.'<br><br>Ten minutes had been all she needed for a quick shower and to throw on green skinny jeans, her soft turned-down suede boots and a 'I &lt;3 Genosha' tee that she'd gotten made herself to try and help advertise the regrowing island. Ten minutes on the dot and a -Blink!- heralds the woman's arrival, skipping out onto the roof with her hair tied back in a simple ponytail - the girl's ready to help lift as well as portal it seems! "Mols? You here?" Glowing green eyes scan the roof...<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>Molly stretches from her spot with a low whistle, folding the phone-like control device for the drones up and shoving it into her pocket before she dips her head towards the door,"Over here." she offers as she opens it, a scan of the surrounding buildings to keep a weather eye out and give the teen the chance to go ahead of her,"I apologize for asking this of you Clarice. But the less traceable the better right now." she offers apologetically.<br><br>The space Molly built for herself on the eighth floor has been entirely dismantled, in two rough piles of 'useful stuff to take' and broken construction bits that might as well be labelled 'stuff to get rid of'. Her small collection of weapons; carbine and shotgun of clearly non-human manufacture, a sniper rifle and a pistol, are lain out on the counter island which along with the stripped kitchenette are the only things she's left standing in her small pseudo apartment.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Clarice's eyes widen, noting the guns first then spreading out from there to take in the rest of the apartment. "Looks like you're bugging out... No wonder you're keeping it all under the radar..." She lets out a low whistle, moving in to the room to run lavender hued fingers over the assembled hardware, but never more than the lightest of brushes. Guns really weren't her weapon of choice.<br><br>"So where are we going? And how come you're moving there?" Always full of questions, and with that bright grin too - this could end up being /exciting/!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>Molly leaves the drone behind on the roof,"That, I don't know. Here and Genosha is all I know really of your world. In mine I owned a casino on the Rhine, but I don't have the paperwork for such things here." there's a tight kind of smile from her. She's not going to stop the teen from taking her time to look around. The purse of her lips suggests the other might be a more awkward question, but well, she is leaning on the teen for help, and apparently that's going to net her an answer for free this time.<br><br>"The Batman jumped me in the subway. Asking questions about Stark, and the fight club, and whether or not I planned on killing his child soldier. So the way I see it, I've got two choices... start a war that I'd lose, or disappear from his radar." the gesture at the room is probably intended to convey 'so I'm picking disappearing'.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"/Batman/ had a go at you?" Clarice's face is openly incredulous for a moment before it falls away with a shrug. "Well I suppose you /did/ go up against Robin, so he's bound to think you're one of the crim's." Of course all of this still hasn't gotten to the point that she needs to be of much use...<br><br>Turning to lean against the counter, the teen folds her arms beneath her breasts, giving Molly a knowing look. "But you're dodging the /where/. And I can't get you anywhere I don't know so..." One hand makes a 'go ahead' gesture, without her arms unfolding. "When you're ready..."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"We didn't fight." Molly corrects,"But I see where the Robin gets it from." there's a faint smile from the cyborg,"And I did what I was paid to do. I tried to get the kid to take the civilians and leave, but he didn't." she passes a hand through her hair,"Genosha, for now. I can't stay on the island, if he does decide to continue pursuit, I'm not going to let him get near you and Lucy. I understand that he... doesn't kill, apparently, but that's still... not an option."<br><br>A nod in the direction of the 'destroy' pile,"That can go... anywhere that isn't here. He's good. I'm not interested in giving him any potential clues about me, and if I dumped it locally I'm pretty sure he'd find it. Bad enough that there was enough witnesses in the bar earlier that someone's probably going to give away that I was there. But I don't regret /that/ one any. Fucking ninja."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Blink frowns softly. "You're not making sense Mols, and you're trying to dodge the questions." Bluntness seems to be the only thing that gets through to the older woman when she gets like this, all worried and pancking. "And if Batman came to Genosha looking to hurt someone, or take them anywhere... Well I think Magneto would show him the error of his ways." She mimes something coming apart, her fingers wiggling from a ball to two seperate hands, fingers splayed. "Like so..."<br><br>Shifting the sniper rifle back a bit, the teen hops up to sit on the side, crossing her legs at the ankle before swinging them lightly back and forth. "Seems to me, you need me to help with some scheme you've got planned." A pause, a smirk. "And I'm not moving /anything/ /anywhere/ until I know what it is. Where it is, and what I'm doing to help." She closes her mouth, points on finger at Mols in the universal 'your move' gesture.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Clarice. I didn't plan ahead." and it annoys Molly, to judge from the tone,"I don't know your world, and I'm operating on a timescale right now with a very finite end that boils down to making sure that he doesn't realize I've left until it's too late. You know your world." she paces a few steps, then sets her hands down on the counter and leans into it as if that's somehow going to get her to calm again,"It's not the Imperator's fight. Nor is it yours, or Lucy's, for that matter. Asking for your help with this is my limit of willingness to risk people I care about on someone else's grudge."<br><br>She expels a breath,"There's a country here. Doesn't exist in my world, but I've heard that they don't extradite people from there. But I know next to nothing about it yet and it's better to worry about that step from somewhere that isn't New York. Okay? I'm not... trying to not give you answers, the fact is I don't have them, and I don't like it."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"Which country are we talking about?" Blink's demeanor softens, picking up on the clear discomfort of her friend. "I didn't mean to sound harsh Mols, you know how you normally are with info. Just needed to know if you were being... What's that word... Obtuse?" She'd heard it on a show the day before, and had decided then to get it into a conversation. Got to keep learning after all!<br><br>"Look, I can hide you in my secret place if you need somewhere to lie low. But it ain't really set up for living in..." Plus the lump of highly radioactive rock that was now hidden there. In a lead box sure, but still... "What country do you mean? I can get us pretty much everywhere." She laughs; "So long as you don't mean Madripoor, coz I promised Mister Creed I wouldn't go /there/ again on my own..." She's still giggling after, as if Molly would want to go to the mutant-hating lawless state...<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"The less you know, the less people can try and extract from you. The fewer people who even know that I know you, the less people I'm going to have to kill if they find you. I understand that's... not the way it works here, but I've already lost more people than I care to think about." Molly grunts, pushing herself from the counter to stare dourly at the piles.<br><br>"Hiding out in your place would be the opposite of that." she adds on after a moment as she rubs at the back of her head. And maybe the silence answers that question before she even looks over,"...apparently their Hightown clinics are among the most advanced in the world?" even she has the grace to clear her throat,"But... as I said... Genosha will be fine. I can work it out from there. It's just a matter of staying ahead of the Bat." because that always works out so great for everyone else that's tried, right?<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"The Bat wouldn't hurt me, I've not killed anyone on his turf." Blink answers matter of factly. "And I helped out Nightwing... Hawk... Something, remember?" She never did manage to remember which of the two he was. Though she remembers being corrected, if only she could remember what she'd been corrected /to/. "So stop worrying about /me/ and start working out what will work best..." The mutant considers it a moment.<br><br>"I've got a place... An abandoned warehouse that I ported into when I was exploring the place before. It's not owned by anyone that I can see, and it's empty." It's also clear she's giving this information reluctantly, her tone dragging even if the words don't. "It's in Madripoor, /but/..." And she raises a finger here; "You'll have to go through first, so that I'm not on my own." Because that way she keeps her promise to the Big Man too.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Yes, well, considering the laundry list of ravening lunatics that he's put away repeatedly and the number of people they've killed... I stand by the premise that permanent solutions stop you from having to repeat the same mistakes." she chews on her bottom lip absently, thoughtfully, then shakes her head slgihtly with a grimace.<br><br>"That stuff." she says with a gesture at the 'garbage' pile,"Would it be eliminated by the event horizon of your portals? Or is there somewhere like... the ocean, or a garbage dump, where it might be dropped? And why doesn't Sabretooth want you to go to Madripoor? Or is it simply the whole... den of criminals and worse?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"Sure." Clarice starts flicking her wrist repeatedly at the pile of assorted crap, each -Blink!- sheers off another half inch from the very top of the pile. It's not so much /cut/ as it /ceases to be/. The garbage's atoms disintegrated line by line. Each portal blossoms, burns and dies within a second. It's apparently no effort for the teen to keep doing it until the pile is completely vanished, whilst she works she talks however;<br><br>"Some people just see the world as a better place, or that they need to keep themselves above the way the world /is/." She smirks. "And some of us see the world how it is, and try and work within that." Apparently the girl's starting to make some peace with the blood on her hands, maybe having both her parental figures telling her that killing's not only okay, but /neccessary/ helps. "I'm surprised you're running though... Would have thought it more in your line to give him a beating he won't soon forget, and then tell him to leave your and yours alone..." A single magenta eyebrow cocks inquisitively.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"This world has a funny idea of a better place, if judgmental assholes in costumes are the harbinger's of how to get there." Molly drawls with dry bitterness, making sure to stay away from the event horizon as Blink works,"But that's the thing, isn't it? This guy's considered a hero. He has an army of kids running around spreading his word like the most virulent preachers of the church of Retransfiguration.. and they buy into it. And that's the part that I don't get, Clarice. Not sure that I ever will. I accept that's the way this place is but at the same time it's just... mind boggling to me." she hoists herself up onto the opposite end of the counter to watch, only belatedly pulling the Beretta out from under her butt,"Situations not so black and white, is it? He already tried to suggest I was either fucking Stark or that he's paying me to kill. So by simply having me on his payroll all of a sudden Stark... whose work I respect, is at risk because of a lunatic in a cape. So what... I throw Stark under the bus and ruin his reputation? Or how about the Imperator's? End of the day the Bat isn't wrong that I'm a killer and that here they seem to take that a lot more... seriously. Than home."<br><br>She draws a foot up onto the counter, lenses concentrated on the dwindling pile of building materials and detrius,"So I pick a fight with the Bat. And he's better connected than I am, with an army of child soldiers he's got no problem sending out to spread his word and commit violence in his name, and what...? Then I have to beat up those kids, too? Then I have to get you to pull me out of another alley before the damage kills me? Then maybe I have to kill them in order to protect my own ass... and for what? Because some judgmental fuck in a costume decided that I'm some kind of evil that needs to be taken out. I don't see that as good, sweetheart. I don't see it as worth the cost. I cut this place out, lose Sally, and he loses his access to find me. No point in trying to go after Stark or the Imperator, ties cut. They can disavow knowing anything about my other shit in complete truthfulness. Unlike when I landed here, I have money. I have allies and options, and in the greater scheme of things it's better and easier to just... move somewhere else."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"Still sounds like running to me..." Clarice opines as the last portal shaves a hair out of the floor too. No choice there, either it /all/ has to be gone, small molecular information too. Or the whole thing would have been a waste of time. After that though, the freedom fighter admits; "But I see your point. Taking on the... What did she call them... Bat-Brats? Taking them on as well means a whole different level, it's not a quick fight but a street war." And gang wars had followed the revolution - until Magneto had seen to that too. Blinks mutters softly; "But he has no claims to Genosha, you're free to stay here. Hell, /I/ can send him back to Gotham every time he tries it if needs be..." But her tone says that the conviction isn't in it, she's already accepted that Molly wants, or needs, or both, to move.<br><br>"So either... Madripoor or what? You want me to find you a place on the island with no connection to the Imperator?" She shakes her head; "It can't be done. To the outside world he /owns/ the whole island. You can't stay here and not be tied in with the Brotherhood at the very least." She frowns, thinking. "You know, there's no law in Madripoor, that's why Mister Creed doesn't like me going there. Well... That and they still think we're less than human." She grimaces, eyes flicking up to Molly, trying to guage whether she's realised the danger that means the place poses for Blink.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"That's cos it is." Molly has no qualms about admitting,"It's business to me, not personal. You, the things that really matter, aren't under direct threat, so the only reason to fight a losing battle for pointless shit is because someone's got more pride than sense. Been there and done that before, just meant it got personal and people died that didn't need to. So unless I'm prepared to go to war to win, and by 'win' I mean... bury them all, I'll lose. And I can either lose here, maybe bring people down on Bogatyr and get it in trouble. On my other allies if they stuck up for me... or I ghost out. Change my identity, set up shop where he can't get to and I don't have connections that I'm going to worry about catching a beat down intended for me. You see? It's part of the rules. At least, the one's I choose to live by."<br><br>There's a tight kind of smile as Blink works her way through it, only to grimace at the last, pressing her lips together unhappily,"That the island is the Imperator's is why I can't stay there. I owe it to him, and you, not to bring my shit onto Genosha's doorstep. But that there's no law in Madripoor is part of the why to go there, for me. And you know I'd never let someone hurt you. Maybe I'll... start a bar or something. Find a way to set it up so I can come and see you and Lucy without the risk to you. Let my friends from here come see me. It's not... ideal, but none of this shit is... and comes back to being careful about what you choose to do with your life, sweetheart. If I hadn't taken that job from Moreau... none of this would be necessary now."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"Moreau..." Another name, another piece of the puzzle that is Molly the Rose. Filed away for later exploration and extrapolation. Each tiny nugget filling in a small piece. Regardless, she's moving on quickly. "So Madripoor it is." Clarice smirks; "And Mol's, you don't /need/ to protect me. It's not my first time there; hell I even stole cigars from the /Palace/." The teen winks; "Just don't mess about there, if you get in a fight /end/ it. They only come back with friends otherwise." That at least, was personal knowledge. And the reason she didn't go there just for funsies anymore, well, that and the promise. But mostly the nasty gang element.<br><br>"A bar sounds pretty cool, and I can get people to and from you for now. Maybe long term you can set up some teleporters or something? I thought I heard Magneto say they were working on them when we all met up that one time..." No need to tell her she'd only seen Magneto once since then too... Doesn't do anything for her street cred that she doesn't see the higher ups all that often. "Warehouse do for now though? We need a landing site, and I know that one."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Sweetheart, I know you're capable, and you can escape a situation far quicker and more easily than I can. Both you and Lucy... I know you don't /need/ me. But doesn't change that I'm not going to let someone hurt you. I'm old and compared to all the mutants and gods and everything else around here I'm obsolete... but I'm not dead yet. You understand?" with a scan of the former garbage pile she nods, pulling out the 'phone' and flipping it open again,"Muffin, return to base and initiate system shutdown, please. Shadow, rendevous with operator." she utters aloud for the device before folding it closed once more and sliding to her feet to start collecting weapons.<br><br>"Went to one in Mutant Town earlier. Nice place. Interesting people there. Thought the Bat had found me when I realized that there was... something off, about the place. But it turned out to be a pack of ninja's." the grin she gives is positively feral,"It was a good fight. They never stood a chance. But yeh... bar. And... someway to move around that doesn't require someone playing bar hop all the time. But for now... warehouse. We can toss that stuff through... that big blue bag last... it's got the money in it. Then I'll go first. So you're not visiting Madripoor alone."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"Sounds like a plan!" Clarice gives the room one more look, a certain memory here being the only one that really tugs at her. Still, /she/ can come back even if Molly isn't. And besides, places are just places - until they're homes. A double handed outward slash of her hands produces a portal twice the size of normal in wide, easily allowing them both to step through together if needs be. For now though, the purple girl just starts tossing bags through. "Bar sounds fun, maybe you can do themed cocktails? I hear that really pulls in the punters..." Or she'd overheard it somewhere, maybe.<br><br>"Obviously if you're there already, then it's totally okay for me to visit whenever. Right?" Grab, hoist, toss, grab, hoist, toss... The girl works with the efficiency of one having spent long hours at labour, easily falling into the repetative movements. "Or dancers! You could get some of those go-go cages or something... Be all swanky like the big city places." Finally the money bag follows the rest, the only thing to get a grunt as she hefts it through as well. "Ready then?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Cocktails?" Molly snorts,"No sweetheart... if I'm going to go into business again... in a place with no laws... it's going to have a ring in it. People can come slug the shit out of each other and get drunk. Screw the fancy cocktails." granted, she'll probably add a few once she works out what's popular in this world, but still. She prowls over to help toss through stuff until the pile's eliminated and she can survey the place, the rasp taptaptap of the mechanical spider at the door finally getting her to move and open it, collecting it from the ground like it was a small child with the instruction,"Shadow, standby mode."<br><br>Over to the portal at last, to step through it and grit her teeth at the inevitable shift in her connected systems before going,"No dancers, either." the spider set down before she adds in a heavier tone,"Shadow, perimeter check."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Clarice hops through seconds after. "Bye apartment!" She waves at the building, snapping the portal shut with a -Blink!- not a second later. She shifts her weight to lean on a hip, looking around the place, checking windows and the dust. "Looks good, no new prints, just mine." She gestures to two or three sets leading to and from the point they just entered by.<br><br>"So no cocktails /or/ dancers?" She shakes her head, this bar idea is quickly going down hill. Though a ring... "And /obviously/ you're gonna let me fight in your ring. What with me helping you set the place up..." The line's delivered in a meaningfully light tone, aiming to bypass Molly's brain entirely. "Right?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>Molly cracks her neck as if that's going to somehow loosen up that vague headachy feeling as everything slowly finds its way back online,"It's better than the alternatives... for sure. I wont use it as a permanent spot... but it'll do for now." she offers with an additional,"Thank you."<br><br>"And no, no cocktails, or dancers. And no, sweetheart, because your father would have my head, if the Imperator didn't beat him to it, and neither of them are people I want to piss off this week." Molly offers with a wry smile,"But nice try. How about money? Or.. I don't know. Maybe a percentage of the take. On the condition of /silent/ partnership... after I die if you want to clutter the place up with dancers and cocktails, go wild. Until then... no dancers."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"You'll need music at least, all bars need music." She's not pouting... She's /not/. Okay, maybe just a bit. But silent partner? That has possibilities... "Alright, ten percept of the take, I don't want to bankrupt you or anything." But it'd be nice to have a proper cash flow for once. There's only so long you can get by on the goodness of the Brotherhood. "Having my own money would be good, I guess I'll just have to find my fights elsewhere..." Like in that fighting ring everyone keeps talking about... Where Sabretooth's been fighting.<br><br>But that's when it finally sinks in; "Wait, did you say /ninja's/!?" The pacing stops, the checking the windows stops. Hell her /breathing/ stops for a moment before she confirms; "Like /proper/ ninja's? With the swords and the pajama's?" Her feet bring her back towards Molly and this new, very exciting sounding story.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Music, yes." Molly agree's, flipping open the phone to take a look at Shadow's recon of the layout before sending the spider to keep an eye on the main entrance for now. Her lenses going up towards the ceiling as she considers her possibility's right now,"Ten. Agreed. And you shouldn't be fighting. Fighting's how I met Moreau." and thus, how she ended up here,"/and/ how I got my scar." not that it's ever likely to stop /her/ from fighting, but still. She at least tries to be not horrible mommy.<br><br>The belated question makes her bark a laugh,"Yes sweetheart. The Hand. I've run into them a couple of times. Chinatown, mostly. But this short guy with an eyepatch... Patches? Some big blonde Swede called him... he had it on lock before I even did. Told the bar owner that the Hand wasn't happy with him... then bang, ninja's."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"The Hand? And that's the ninjas..." Clarice files the information away, wondering idly what she could do to upset them just a little so she could face off against a couple of real life /ninjas/. It's an idle wondering though, and one she doesn't linger on for too long.<br><br>"That sounds so cool Mols! Far more exciting than what I've been doing the last week or so... Seems like all the exiting stuff happens everywhere I'm /not/!" It takes a moment to realise that she's pouting again, and to wipe it from her face. "Honestly, it's like everyone's avoiding me. Gonna have to start patrolling on my own at this rate..."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Don't ask me where these people come up with these names, sweetheart... I don't know. But yes. Black wearing..." she peels off her jacket and sticks a hand through the hole along the back of it,"sword-wielding, ninja's. And I wouldn't say it's /cool/ Clarice." she rubs the bridge of her nose,"I don't know... maybe I ought to talk to your father. If /he/ says it's okay for you to fight in the ring... I'll let you fight. In the least if you're going to think it's cool to pick fights we should probably at least make damned sure you're not going to end up dead for training neglect."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Talk to her /father/. "Whoa there Mols, sure Mister Creed takes care of me, but he's not my /father/." She wonders what he'd say if anyone said that in front of him. Probably just laugh it off and give them a clap on the shoulder. She shakes her head, giving Mol's a one armed squeeze before -Blink!-ing open another portal to... Somewhere dark. Vanishing inside she comes back with two camping chairs, which she sets out for them to sit on, closing the portal behind her.<br><br>"Might as well say you're my Mom or something..." She quips with a somewhat less than sure laugh, still plopping into a chair the teen seems settled in for the foreseeable. "Nice try though... Threatening to talk to him. Because I can just see you going 'So, I've had Blink in Madripoor, and she wanted to fight... Shall we let her?'" She giggles to herself, watching the other woman try to play 'Mister Creed Chicken' with her...<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Parent's aren't always set by genetics, sweetheart. Nothing about what you've said about him suggests to me that he's doing it because he wants to fuck you... so looks like you have a father. Congratulations." she offloads the shotgun onto the pile of stuff, only to snag the cooler so she can bring over a soda, and some vodka, to go with the camping chairs. The soda offered out before she settles into the opposite. There's no words contradicting her quip,"I might leave out the 'your daughter took me to Madripoor', bit. But if I let you fight, without having some kind of nurse on hand, eventually, he'd work it out, and then? Well, I'd kill someone for doing that without me okaying it. So it's courtesy to at least discuss it beforehand."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Clarice's face goes such a deep shade of purple that her markings almost vanish as Molly starts making her comments. She has no idea where to look when it gets to the point about Victor not wanting to fuck her, in fact the teen nearly chokes on her soda!<br><br>"He...I..../Rose!/" She seems utterly scandalised, or at least, extremely embarassed by the very notion that the huge mutant might even /think/ about such a thing. So much so that it takes her a moment to fit all the pieces together of the rest of the discussion, the teen moves on so fast she could have portalled from one topic to the next; "Wait, /you/ would kill..." Green eyes narrow. "I'm in the same boat as Lucy now huh? I'm going to be Mothered by the scariest cyborg I know..." She mulls this over for a moment, then grins and gives Molly the thumbs up; "Cool!"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>Molly is quite content to drink her vodka and watch as Blink turns all kinds of interesting shades, only grimacing slightly at the use of that particular name,"Okay then. So fair to say at a minimum he considers you to be a little sister, then." she opts to go with placidly,"And why not? I have two very lovely and lethal daughters. The quiet one who will dismantle people on the molecular level, and the noisy one who can disperse their atoms across the event horizon of her portals." there's a point of the bottle Clarice's way,"Both perfectly capable of looking after themselves... but that doesn't mean that I wont cheerfully put a bullet or twenty in those who upset them."<br><br>She settles back, attention turning in the direction of the rafters again,"The way I see it, there's not much of a point in just surviving. For what? So I can grow old and die alone? I might as well at least... try to do something right."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>It does come as something of a shock that Molly considers her a daughter. She just sits there for several long minutes, looking at the soda and over to Molly, then the rafters and back to her soda. Clarice mulls, the creasing of her forehead giving tell to the intensity of her thinking. "I thought you said you didn't want kids?" She asks finally, apparently having one jagged piece that doesn't quite fit into the picture. "Not that I'm saying I /mind/... It's... Nice. To have someone caring about you, y'know?" And it is, there's an unguarded smile, just for Molly. One of those rare ones that hitherto only Victor had gotten to see, the young woman without the blase. Her entire face lights up from it, even her eyes seeming to glow brighter.<br><br>"So... Okay. We can tell..." A shot look, Clarice has the good grace to look sheepish. "We'll /ask/ Mister Creed about the fighting thing. And otherwise I'll help get you and your stuff set up, for the profits." The grin returns, though more genuine seeming. "I'm just glad I can get about on my own, would hate to lose touch because you went off to some far flung locale!"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"I don't want kids." Molly grunts,"I had the capacity to do so surgically removed before I signed the consent papers for my first augment. But that doesn't mean I can't keep an eye out for a couple of young women whose parents aren't around any longer and have had enough to deal with already. I'll never have a child of my own, nor would I want to, but you are not a child, and neither's Lucy." <br><br>There's an arch of her brow at 'tell', and then snort,"Yes, ask. Likely he will say no, I know I would. Except for the fact that if I have to worry about running across you on someone else's turf, fighting by someone elses rules... I'd prefer it be where I get to set the rules."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"Well there's always those ones you so helpfully told me about in Mutant Town." The young woman smirks, stretching out in the camping chair with a languid look. Purposfully non-chalant in fact. She laughs impishly whilst watching Molly's reaction at that before taking another swig of her soda.<br><br>"So what else is new? Not that ninja's and bars aren't cool and everything, let alone tangling with Batman..." Mentally she adds his name to a list in her head - currently it only contained two people. But it was /her/ list, and one she'd deal with sooner or later. Probably. "You know all about what's been going on with me, namely nothing..." She seems a bit grumpy about that point, more so than just being bored. "So that leaves you to carry the conversation!"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"No. I told you that site got destroyed. I was there when the roof came down." Molly can't quite help the shudder at that, nothing like trying to stand still while rubble passes through your transparent ass. Literally. There's a snort from her,"Not every day in my life is... exciting, if you want to consider 'exciting' to be 'people tried to kill me today'. But... fair enough." she ponders thoughtfully,"That... Nightwing? Nighthawk? You mentioned earlier... do you know where to find him?" pause,"Not that I plan on doing anything /to/ him. And I don't want you to approach him. But that it might be a useful connection to utilize the other half of my 'get the Bat off my back' plan."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"I've got his number..." Clarice agrees carefully, that guarded expression coming back to her face, if only a little. Just goes to show that even mother figures aren't above the mutant's mild dose of paranoia - which likely just goes to make the cyborg think more highly of her. "I was meant to arrange to go on a patrol with him, or he was meant to message me... And hasn't. I don't really remember the specifics..." She just remembers the feeling, that elated high that you only get from a good fight well won.<br><br>"And there's bound to be another site set up by now Mols, you know that. Crime folk will do crime things, regardless whether they get caught or not." Not that getting caught was likely to happen to /her/, well, not by the police anyway. "What's your second half of the plan then? Sending a message? Faking your own death?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>Molly can't help but loft a brow. Got his number, there's some degree of impressed and amused on Molly's face all at the same time. She reaches up to her head to extract a microSD card from one of the slots under her hairline,"He wanted information about the fight club in Gotham. Which is apparently being utilized to try and... summon? Something... bad? Demonic. The terminology here gets weird for me. Anyways. This has some stills on it and information that I was willing to share before he started threatening my connections. These guys are targetting kids, so even if I think he's a judgmental asshole in black tights... I'm not adverse to at least giving him information that might assist him in putting a stop to it."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Blink reaches out, opening her hand for Molly to drop it into her palm should be so inclined. "Right, that sort of stuff has to be stopped." It's not a question, but an agreement. "And I'll make sure that he knows it's coming from you, because you wanted to help." She pauses, then adds with a bright smile; "Maybe he'll realise you're not so bad and stop being a dick." It's unclear if she's talking about Batman or Nightwing, but both of them seem equally likely. "The guy kept telling me to stay out of the fight, that it was safer if I blah blah blah...snore..." She smirks with a grin. "If he's like Batman light, I can only /imagine/ how dull a conversation with him is..."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"You need to be careful, Clarice. When you deliver it, in whatever fashion you find appropriate, I want you to stay in contact with me and be prepared to open a portal back to me." Molly offers in a low voice,"It goes against... everything, I believe in to have you do this, but at the same time, if you have a good relationship with one of his army, it will perhaps be better received with less fucking about than if I delivered it." she offers firmly before tilting her hand to let the piece fall into her hand.<br><br>"Children fighting is where he and I disagree. He has his army. I don't want you guys anywhere near what I do. But listening to the Bat talked echoed his boy so strongly the child might as well have simply been playing a recording of the Bat. Which... is sad. To me. And it places you in the middle of things that.. you shouldn't be anywhere near. But I know how fast you can strike if you need to. And I'm confident in your ability to elude."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Blink laughs, bouncing the thing once, twice and then pocketing it into her jeans out of the way. Safe and secure until she can put it somewhere more long term. "No reason to try and hurt me Mols, and if he did I'd have no problem pointing out the error of his ways." That Blase grin is back in place all too readily; replaced shortly by that sheepish look. Apparently their earlier conversation had sunk in, because there's just a smidge of defference in her tone as she amends; "But it's okay. I'll go through Nightwing, make sure he gives it up the line. And I'll set the record straight about you too..." Her jaw firms, ready to argue this point if needs be; "Because if they're gonna go after /bad/ people, then they need to start being able to tell the good from the bad." She shakes her head and smirks; "Wonder what he's gonna say to /that/..."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"No, Clarice. Just give him the slice. Tell him that it's the information he wanted regarding Gotham's fight club, and then come home." Molly insists as she puts the cap back on the vodka, leaving it in her seat along with the Beretta as she gets to her feet to prowl over to her pile'o'crap and start digging through it in search of something,"In his mind, because I kill, I am bad. And he's right, I kill. I killed four people today." and she doesn't sound in the slightest bit concerned about it.<br><br>A coil of rope is taken from the pile to be slung over her shoulder and a pair of gloves pulled on as she scans the girders of the building,"The Robin stole my original fletchette, and has the impression that I plan on killing him... apparently. I told the Bat I don't kill children, and he asked me whether that meant that if he was older that I'd be okay with killing him. And the truth of that is... yes, I would be."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>"Just because you're ready to kill to protect yourself, or get the job done, doesn't make you /bad/." Clarice frowns, and then, being a typical teen, she takes the obvious route of this argument, and flips it on it's head; "I've had to do it. And I'd do it again if needs be, you know that." She taps her nose, then points at Molly; "So before you go all 'dark and brooding' Mother of mine, remember that if /you/ are bad and evil. Then so am I." She takes a swig of her soda, reaches over to snag the vodka in an apparent plan to add it to the bottle she has.<br><br>"So think on that before you go throwing things about in your head and making yourself feel bad. Counts for both of us..." A beat; "And Mister Creed too." Her thumb begins to unscrew the vodka, still talking and watching Molly as she wanders about with her rope and gloves. "Unless you do think I'm bad and evil, in which case I think we need to have a discussion about what evil really looks like..."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"Doesn't change that in his view it's wrong, and after all, he's the one they call a hero." Molly snorts,"And I don't brood." mother of mine gets a feral kind of smile though,"And I'll never feel bad about dead ninja's. A little too much like the Yakuza for my liking. And they weren't trying to play patty-cake, either. One of them tried to stab this blond girl near the entrance, broke his blade on her... I didn't catch all of it, but whatever she did... I don't think he was coming back. And that Patches guy? Sword magnet. Didn't even blink. Meanwhile some of the others there, including Thor... were too busy playing nice." there's a snort,"At least I know the one's I put down wont be trying to murder anyone else in this lifetime."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Clarice frowns, watching Molly as she walks and talks. "You're feeling guilty though. You're not trying to convice me are you?" It's easier to see it in someone else, but she'd been in a similiar place. More than once of late. "He's got to you huh?" She says it, even knowing it's likely to bite and make Molly bristle. Sometimes something just has to be said, and Clarice knows only one way to say it. Bluntly.<br><br>"He's not right, he's a blinkered /man/ that does things his way and sees no reason to do them any other." A beat, the vodka pours into the soda - but only a short pour, the mutant isn't trying to get drunk. "And he dresses up as a giant bat, fights with people that dress up as clowns, and birds and who the hell knows what else..." Giving her bottle an experimental sip, she sighs happily, securing the vodka bottle and dropping it back into Molly's abandoned camping chair. "Does that sound like someone with all their marbles to you?" Both eyebrows raise as she looks openly at the cyborg.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>There's a look cast from Molly before she elects to stick a foot in one of the spaces on the girder and starts climbing,"No sweetheart. There's many things in this life I regret, that's not one of them." she offers, picking her way carefully, testing rather than simply rabbiting up it,"But the nature of morality in this world is... disturbingly different from what I'm used to." there's a laugh as she's silent, taking a moment to gather herself before springing up to secure a handhold higher than the bulge of a ridge in the metal and pulling herself up before calling down,"And I already told you he's a judgmental prick. I'm not about to go saint Molly on you. I just acknowledge that in the eyes of some, I probably am evil. Not going to lose sleep over it. Just means that their lives have been sheltered enough... or they're delusional enough to think rehabilitation works."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Smirking, a -Blink!- announces a window opening up right next to where Molly clings, allowing them to carry on their conversation at talking level; "Probably best if we don't go shouting about in an empty warehouse." Blink's grin is down right smarmy now. "Not like the law will turn up, but who or what might, could well be worse. Whatcha doing up here anyway?" The girl is quite happy lounging in her chair, sipping vodka and soda whilst watching the woman clamber about like a monkey. Needlessly too it seems.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>Of course, her daughter's a smart ass. Not like Molly doesn't know that, or that it doesn't show in the curl of her lips before she clambers further up,"Most humans don't look /up/ Clarice. Someone comes in here, best I don't have everything on the ground where it's easy to find and be stolen. Besides... exercise." and maybe a little showing off. For all that she does fall silent to concentrate on her work, she does have the strength to keep her body weight aloft when she finally reaches the ridge of girders up at the ceiling, and once she's found a spot roughly over her pile of stuff, elects to tie off the rope while supported by her own legs.<br><br>She waits until she's got it tied off and then tests it by sliding down it back to the ground before huffing,"Come morning I'll have to see about changing in the American dollars for Madripoorian dollars. And then start shopping for a suitable location. In the interim... I'd rather not lose the rest of my stuff."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:326|Blink (326)}} has posed:'''<br>Blink sighs again, and just gives Molly a flat stare. "You want to hide your stuff? Why didn't you just ask me to put it in a safe place until you need it?" It realy is an up hill struggle some times to get her to realise all the possibilities. "I've got this great place, keep all my valuables there. Could easily had tossed your stuff in for the now." But the portal shuts with a -Blink!- leaving her to shake her head dispairingly.<br><br>"Quite limber for an old lady huh?" That had 'ribbing' all over it, and the grin on her face shows the joke for what it is. Still, fun as it is, she has things to do. So hopping up onto her feet, she pats her pocket. "Thanks for the drink, and the business deal." One arm opens, offering a hug to the cyborg. "I'd better get moving on this info for the Bat, the sooner we get that place shut down the better." Because, kids dammit!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1045|Molly (1045)}} has posed:'''<br>"No, sweetheart, I'm going to temporarily store my stuff up there, so that I can get at least some sleep before I have to go and get stuff handled, so that hopefully by time it gets dark tomorrow I can have a more permanent arrangement. I don't want it hidden. And I could still kick your ass, child, so don't make me take off my shoe." she just snorts, only to nod and accept the hug with a stiff one of her own,"Be careful, Clarice, and I mean it. Don't make me have to go shoot his army dead to pull you out of there. Just... be careful. Please."<br> <br>
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