5229/Freedom Two Ways

Freedom Two Ways
Date of Scene:	23 August 2018
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Zeitgeist (Julius), Sabretooth, Wonder Woman, Doctor Strange, Punisher, Sister Reinhardt, Kid

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Zeitgeist (Julius) has posed:
Police set up barricades as the mix of protests chiefly a Pro-Mutant Rights slowly begins. A mix of various races and colors, some shapes and colors of them not usually found in nature.

    Nearby, another protest takes shape, this one chiefly of twenty-something middle-income caucasians with signs that range from 'Unnatural Selection', 'Need Guns For Protection Against Genes', 'Earth is for Humans'. A single line of police officers currently keeping the two apart, though it's still the beginning of the rally so time will tell.

    The United Nations is the Ground Zero of these two protests, as it's currently in-session, there is a good amount of press already filming the scene.

Sabretooth has posed:
    Victor Creed moves through the crowd that is begining to watch the protests going on so he is not in either camp at the moment. The large man towers over most of those around him. He is wearing a long brown coat despite the August heat with his hands in his pockets for the time being. He lifts his head as if smelling the air as he takes stock of where people are and how many are on each side.

Wonder Woman has posed:
Since Diana holds an office in one of the UN buildings she was aware of the protests outside, her associates had spoken to her about it. Though it was a busy day and it took some time for her to get outside to actually witness it herself, and this is where she is now. Stepping out into the 'great outdoors' of Manhattan, dressed for business today and with her dark hair tied back behind her head, Diana is walking the perimeter of the protests and simply observing it all, looking to faces and listening to the voices and shouts.

When a member of the Press approaches her, she spends a moment to take her eyes from the 'event' to give the individual some of her time and answer some simple questions.

Doctor Strange has posed:
    Strange happens to be sitting on the side of the UN building, a sandwich held loosely in a red and white checkered wax paper. He holds the sandwich to his lips for a few moments as he squints his grey eyes towards the road before him. One hand drops and forms into an O shape and he looks through it, close to his eye and the Doctor rolls his eyes before he takes another bite. Allowing the human condition to continue in its own path for now. Like a good Sorcerer Supreme is supposed to.

Punisher has posed:
Looks like it's turning into another typical day in New York. Typical these days, at least. There was a time when this kinda shit wasn't in the news and everyone went on with their lives none the wiser. Now you can't miss it in the news, on the internet, no matter how hard you try. Problem is, when protests gather that's when trouble usually starts.

His usual 'punishing' get-up not exactly subtle, today Frank opts for a more casual dark blue hoodie and jeans. The hood pulled up to conceal his trimmed head and most of his face, he makes his way along the outskirts of the crowd, his eyes scanning as he passes. His hands are stuffed into the large pocket on the front of the hoodie, a short distance from the pistol that is tucked neatly under his belt. For now things seem alright.

Sister Reinhardt has posed:
    As for Suzanne, she's staying over with the pro-mutant group, but she's quietly strolling around. She adjusts a pair of glasses on her face as she looks around. "Yeah, this is going to end well." She says as she walks around the people there....and even near Diana. Suzanne gives a smile to Diana.....a warm smile.

Zeitgeist (Julius) has posed:
Lucius Primus is himself among the Pro-Mutant Rally. He's currently got over a shoulder, 'Freedoms for all.' and on the back 'Not just for you'. Based on the signage nearby him, it seems he might have brought a few people to support his position. They are definitely a mix of economic and genetic backgrounds. The numbers of the Pro-Mutant Rights Supporters is about 1,000, while the Anti-Mutant (Pro-Human) is slowly growing to about half that for the moment.

    About two dozen of the Pro-Mutant crowd are obvious mutants, either having non-natural skin tones, extra limbs, extra eyes, perhaps a few glowing ones. A few even are in various devices to allow them movement.

    The volume level and emotions are steadily increasing. The police remain calm and simply keep an unemotional barricade between the two groups for the time being.

Sabretooth has posed:
    Victor laughs softly to himself as he watches the tensions mount. As he smiles, his sharpened cainines can be seen for a moment as he makes his way closer to the front of the onlookers set. "Bunch of idiots," he growls to himself. "Everyone just scrapping and fighting over crumbs." He glances around trying to see if he recognizes anyone special among the crowd. He seems some familar faces, but more from exposure than interactions.

Wonder Woman has posed:
Diana is continuing to speak to the reporter who's recording her words on their Stark-phone, she seems to be smiling though at least a little so the interview is clearly somewaht casual. When the Reporter finishes up, they shake hands and Diana turns to look back toward the protests, knowing full well how a heated situation like this could get ugly in a second. Her eyes glance to the side to take note of Suzanne smiling her way, and Diana offers the other a friendly wave. Its then that she notes Stephen Strange, enjoying a sandwich... This makes Diana grin and softly shake her head, at least he's here to help watch over things as well? Or is this one of those things he wouldn't get involved in if violence erupted? She's unsure of that. Either way, the Themysciran Ambassadoar starts to slowly stroll and let her eyes look over people. She's unware of who Frank Castle is, so even if she were to see him in the crowd he'd just be another face amongst the rest.

Kid has posed:
    Welp, somedays are not what one expects. And this day Kid and his accompanying parole officer Orion, was not one they were expecting. They were on their way to the UN building to try and speak with a consultant for gorilla city when they stumbled upon the protest. Kid himself - due to Orion urging, had been remaining as just a gorilla.
    Hoping to not draw too much attention they walk around the pro-mutant protesters - cause let be honest, let likely to stand out with them! And soon make it to the side closest to the entrench. But with all the comotion, not many were being let in and out, so for now they stay there. Kid himself scans the crowd. A few faces like Frank, Strange and Suzanne he has seen in passing or closer interaction, but other like Diana, Lucius and Victor he has not. The building tension made Kid hair stand up, but for now he just tries to calmly watch to see what will happen

Doctor Strange has posed:
    With his butt glued to the side of the large UN building, Strange is certainly not hiding, but he's in a place no one would look for another human, and certainly with his precarious perch, most people's brains wouldn't register that someone was seated there. He sighs to himself as the tension in the air becomes palpable and so with spectators eyes, Strange watches the situation unfold. Internally, Strange's self monologue is debating on whether or not he should break his Sorcerer's oath and help those who he can, which is usually what he does, but he's always avoided the mutant issue.

Punisher has posed:
Continuing to make his way around the crowd, Frank can't help but get the feeling that things are going to get out of control soon. The steady increase in volume and the gradually-increasing size of the counter protest that is popping up. A small area in the back of his brain introduces a small level of paranoia at having a firearm this close to a public demonstration at the United Nations given the current political climate. A larger part still can't find the means of giving a damn. That part always seems to win.

Positioning himself somewhere roughly between the two sides but still more towards the back, he steps up onto a bench and seats himself against the back rest so he can get a decent view of the crowd and keep an eye on things. He leans forward, resting his forearms against his legs and cocks his head to the side, looking at the crowd. Everyone here is a stranger to him so there's little hope in recognizing anyone. Except Kid. He's seen Kid.

Zeitgeist (Julius) has posed:
Lucius Primus seems to get a little nervous, as he narrows his eyes, looking across the way at the 'pro-human' protestors. He whispers to noone in particular, 'Someone is going to do something stupid...'

    A protestor whose words identify him 'Hey, someone forgot to leash the animals today.. Glad I brought something to keep myself safe..'

     A few dressed in black with Guy Fawke masks begin to pop up... One appears on the Pro-Human side and then another pops up on the Pro-Mutant side.

Sabretooth has posed:
    Victor pulls one hand out of his pocket flipping a penny along his fingers and over his claws. He is still grinning as he looks over the Pro Human side and the one that calls out something about leashing animals. "They tried that once. Didn't take," he says more to himself than to anyone in particular. He glances to either side, but everyone is watching the protestors. He flings the penny towards the temple of the Pro Human protester. "Didn't want to come all this way for nothing."

Sister Reinhardt has posed:
    Suzanne sticks somewhat close to Diana....but stays away from the reporters. The irony is, when people start donning masks, Suzanne is close enough to 'nudge' Diana, then gesture to what is going on.....

Wonder Woman has posed:
Diana is making her way toward where Stephen is, she's intending to speak with him clearly since its been awhile since he got her caught inside of a tv and apart of an episode of Star Trek... (don't ask). AS she draws closer to him she shows him a friendly smile and then nods once. "Enjoying a break from your stuffy old home, I see?" She asks in her smokey voice with a teasing edge to the words she greets him with. Diana's hands fold in front of her lap together and she's currently unaware of escalating tension in the crowds. "How is Wong?" She asks. "I miss our banter on all things magical. Such as the ice cream store at the end of your block." Diana does then glance back to the protests after speaking to Strange and then she looks to Suzanne again to share a look with the other.

Kid has posed:
    Kid snorts and lets out a low unahppy grow. SO help the human who tries to put a leash on him. He stands on his hunches. Cage the beast and you get bit to say the least...especially when he can feel the anger and tension
    Orion looks to Kid and says "Hush now boy, this ain't play time. Something is going on" the old parol officer has seen a few riotes go bad. And this one had all the makings of one. When he saw the guys in mask begin to pop up on both sides...he knew this was bad. His hand instinctively move to his belt, but stay calm.

Doctor Strange has posed:
    As Diana approaches, Stephen finishes his sandwich and with a flick of his wrist, the paper his food came in disolves away into simple harmless moths that scatter into the wind. Stephen stands up, still on the side of the building, so he's looking up to look forward at Diana, so of course he walks down the walk towards the ground and casually makes the transition to standing normally, "Wong is doing well, though he has been distracted with the reappearance of the pied pipe lately. It has been eating into much of our time." Stephen then nods his chin in the direction of a subtle uproar, "Sounds like you're about to become a very busy woman again yourself."

Punisher has posed:
Following Kid with his eyes, Frank finally follows his gaze towards the commotion that increases as the two people wearing masks appear seemingly out of nowhere. "And there it is," he mutters under his breath as he lowers his head and closes his eyes. Tilting his head to the side, his neck cracks in a few places and he lets out a slow sigh. More or less convinced the catalyst is in place, he glances back up and pushes off from the bench, heavily stepping down onto the sidewalk.

He keeps his eyes on Kid, as he's seen what he's capable of in a tough situation, he just doesn't know much else about him. At this point it's a waiting game to see who strikes first. And then how the others react. "Shit," he mutters again as he likes the situation less and less with each passing moment. He is pacing slightly as his eyes dart from one side to the other waiting to see what happens.

Zeitgeist (Julius) has posed:
The man is hit by Creed's coin, he reels back, 'Whose the wiseguy? I'll flick something at you.' He looks to the others around him for support, 'you seen which of the punks shot that at me.' Creed is a standout for more then one reason, The slightly 'injured' fellow sneers 'Sasquash, come on.. let's get it on.' The police between the two make motions, 'Calm down, sir. Let's not escalate this.'

    The numbers of the black clad and masked fellows is increasing, effectively up to a dozen on both sides... One of them on the Pro-Human side pulls a sign out that reads 'Take Our Guns, if you dare.'

    On the Pro-Mutant Rights side, one of the same sort of fellows pulls a sign out, 'Fat, White, and Bald. At least, your Mom likes you.'

    The signs do get a bit more emotions from both sides. The groups surge at each other, the officers in between sandwiched, but their use of force is minimal as they pull their riot shields up and hold the line between the two groups.. sounds of hands deflected off the shields.. a few smaller pieces of non-sentient materials also bounce off.

    Lucius sighs as he pulls himself to the front of his own group, and grabs one of the blackly clad fellows whose appeared on the pro-mutant side, "Your gonna get people injured, don't do it, Anthony."

    The response is simply a shrugging off of Lucius.

Sabretooth has posed:
    Victor mock yawns at the "Injured" Party as the man calls for a fight. "I ain't going any where, but you probably respect those boys in blue, huh?" He fishes out another coin, raises it so the man can see, and tries to ping off one of the riot cops helmets to hit the jackass again.

Wonder Woman has posed:
Diana is showing Stephen a soft smirk to his initial response but his latter words make her look back toward the crowds to check on it all. It does appear to be getting a bit heated and this makes a more serious expression fall across her face. She stares with her red lips slightly parted and her blue eyes narrowed just a little. "There are a lot of Police present." Diana says in her thickly Greek accented voice. "I do not like to step in and get in their way unless they are being outnumbered or over powered. It is rude to what their duties are to this city to do so." But she also doesn't like to see any Police get injured when she might be able to help them... it is a tricky line to walk. Either way, Diana is also wearing a black skirt and a sleeveless white top, she's not exactly in her battle armor... Her shield isn't far though, her Embassy town car is parked just a short distance away.

Sister Reinhardt has posed:
    "Doctor Strange." Suzanne says with a smile. "I have to thank you for your help with the Asgardians." She says before looking back towards the protests. "While it IS best to let them do their job.....someone is definitely trying to incite a fight." She says adjusting her glasses....and she spots Victor Creed......

Kid has posed:
Kid paces back and forth, postering, appearing larger as his fur bristles. He notes Luciouse trying to keep the calm, and his eyes wander to Victor who seems fine with instigating. If it wasn't for the fact there was a good amount of calm folks here...Kid might be getting a bit more...wild. For now it seems he was more postering. When the crowds begin to surge towards one another he is about to join them- before Orion stops him. "Come on Jua, just...stay calm. Just sit" Kid growls. He wasn't calming. And the crowd was close to bursting....he could sense it.

Doctor Strange has posed:
    "I'm here to help, and the Asgardian's are good people, if a bit brash." The doctor says with a smirk before he looks back to Diana and frowns, "Have you seen the numbers? They would all appreciate any and all help. Go." The wizard recommends, trying to usher both women to help, but mostly Diana, as he has to keep his hands clean of this lest he lose his title and the benefits that come with it in this trying time. No, he can't step in. Not today.

Punisher has posed:
As the two groups surge towards one another, the adrenaline starts flowing through Frank. His pacing increases in speed almost to the point where he resembles a caged animal just waiting to be let loose.

The opportunity comes when a young woman wearing t-shirt with a peace sign on the back is hit in the face by one of the 'pro-human' protesters. Frank's eyes scan the group just in time to see her get punched and fall, disappearing into the crowd. The result is a heavy push from the 'pro-mutant' side that shoves back against the attacker.

Frank sprints into the crowd and ploughs through until he finds the attacker, shrugging off others who grab onto him as he introduces himself to the crowd. His lips peel back across his teeth as his fingers take hold of the man's shirt in a tight fist. He pulls himself towards the man so they're face-to-face. "You're gonna hit a lady?" He throws his fist up and connects with the side of the man's head, "Hit me!" Not wasting any time, he hurls another haymaker at the side of the man's head and yells in his face, saliva spewing out from between his teeth, "Hit me!"

Zeitgeist (Julius) has posed:
The man that Victor pinged the coin off of lands on his forehead again.. this time he saw where it came from. Him and his friends surge into the line of police, pushing just past them as the numbers are starting to cause the police line to break a bit..

    Frank's Haymakers stumbles the man, he attempts to swing at Castle, though he's definitely not as skilled combatant as Frank.

    The black clad and masked fellows start to toss handfuls of random objects found on the ground.. The Police maintain their line, though observers with telepathy or police radios will hear riot control measures being debated.

Lucius stays in front of the group, he literally holds his own side back.. facing the police he takes a few shield jabs as he reinforces the police line for his side, the jabs just because their isn't much more room for the police to manuever now.

    A man behind the barricade takes out a loud speaker, "The Rally has been suspended due to possible violence. Please leave the area immediately. Any use of force will be met with arrest and detainment. This is your only warning. Thank you."

Wonder Woman has posed:
As the call of the Rally's cancellation goes out, Diana is already at her vehicle and her assistant is standing beside her now holding out an ornately crafted round shield. "I should have been down here sooner." Diana says to her Assistant, a tall young woman who very well may be Amazonian herself, who nods once to the Princess and then offers her her sword. Diana shakes her head at the offered sword. "I will not need it." And just starts toward the crowds still wearing her heeled dress shoes to go along with the rest of her business attire she wears at the UN which is certainly an interesting contrast with that battle shield she now holds at her side.

Sister Reinhardt has posed:
    Suzanne sighs softly as the protects begin to heat up. "I'm going to call for a bit of help." She says as she slips her way into the UN bathroom.....then teleports through the wall to outside to where she changes into her Blue Lantern outfit and takes off into the sky. Once above the crowd, she uses her ring's power to separate the groups from each other....steadily pushing them apart with a wall.....

Punisher has posed:
Something about seeing the girl get hit and knocked down set something off in Frank. After he strikes the man for the second time, his opponent manages to swing out wildly and punshes Frank square in the jaw. He doesn't seem to notice, though, as he answers with another swing of his fist. Hitting him one more time, the man goes down and is swallowed by the surging crowd as hands reach out to grasp at Frank from the 'human' side while others press against him from behind.

Snapping out of his blind rage, he blinks a few times and looks around. The peace-sign-wearing girl who he had initially lept to the defense of is now staring at him with an expression riding the fence between shock and horror. Blood slowly glides down his stubble-covered chin from the hit he took. Realizing he let the ambiance get the better of him, he grunts and starts attempting to shove himself back through the crowd. He needs to get out.

Before he's able to make it out, a hand appears from the crowd and smashes a bottle over his head. Ducking, he raises his arm over his head to shield himself from any follow up attacks. He looks up in time to see the same bottle, now broken, swings at him. He quickly deflects the attack with his forearm and hoists his fist into the attacker's stomach and follows it with an elbow to the man's jaw.

When the bottle falls to the ground and shatters at his feet, Frank continues trying to push himself out of the crowd but the sheer amount of people surrounding him is making it difficult to move.

Zeitgeist (Julius) has posed:
The Mutants at the moment seem to have not taken out the big guns, nor have the literal guns come out on the other side. It's not turned into a bloodbath, it seems the two sides are just more interested in posturing with fists and words then open warfare.

    The blue lanterns ability slowly turns some of the less 'emotional' people from the fight. The police regain control of the lines and the guys who were originally bothering Creed have already turned and begun to get out of the area.

    Lucius takes a rock to the head from one of the blackly clad protestors (not even sure which side that was from). He woozily pulls back into the crowd... he vanishes within and his group quietly leaving with him.

Wonder Woman has posed:
Diana Prince enters the foray now and she marches her way toward the police in the center... Well, to be more accurate she walks at a casual pace but with her shield at her side and her eyes scanning over everyone. Someone rushes to her side and reaches for her, not out of attack but out of a plea to get her attention... Diana does look to the person but she keeps moving onward to the cops. She looks up to where the blue lantern had gone, but her eyes are soon to come back down as she steps toward one of the cop's who gets a plastic water bottle thrown at them (very deadly!) The water bottle bounces off of the Themysciran shield and flies down to the ground, a spray of clear liquid falling across the area around Diana. "This is going to be a long day." The Princess mutters to herself.

Kid has posed:
The escalating behavior was making things ever worse. And suddenly...Kid charges! Orion tries to stop him, but he is shoved aside with ease as Kid rushes both crowds. Needness to say this cause several people to scatter as Kid grabs a random fella and slams him into the ground with force. A few bystandards try to jump on Kid while many back up.

Sister Reinhardt has posed:
    "Typical, really. Just coming to a protest to make people lose hope." The Blue Lantern says as she starts to shoot projectiles out of the air...if she's able to spot them....

Punisher has posed:
It would seem a lot of the crowd up towards the front of the demonstration is easing up and many of the protestors on both sides are leaving. Or at least they aren't getting any more riled up. That isn't necessarily the case in the back where the police have less of a presence. The more Frank tries to shove his way out the way he came, he more resistance he meets and the further into the crowd he finds himself. His lip busted and bloodied and a light cut on the top of his head from the bottle, he looks like a mess and it's only been a minute or two.

He's stopped throwing punches and has given up trying to move against the flow and instead lets the momentum of the crowd take him where it will.

With a sigh and a growl that is likely obscured by the roar of the crowd, Frank turns only to find himself not far from Diana as she works her way to the authorities in the crowd. This just keeps getting better. His eyes drop to the shield she wields just in time to see a water bottle harmless collide with it and spray the area with liquid. This isn't where he needs to be. His appearance doesn't really make him look like an innocent protestor.

Wonder Woman has posed:
Diana continues to march down the line in her stylish clothing with her large metal shield at her side, dripping water off of its ornately designed surface. She reaches out into the ground and grabs a man who's about to throw anaother bottle and she yanks him over the guard rail and then sits him down onto his butt, takes the bottle from him and glares down at him. "Do not." She says to him in a stern voice. He just stares up at her, dumbfounded that Wonder Woman just touched him, spoke to him and gave him a direct warning. He quickly nods his head to her and stammers out an apology...

Diana rights herself and starts to walk again, her eyes go now... to Frank. She stares at him, right at his face, and she watches him because its a hot day out and he's in a hoodie, that alone is strange, but he has that tourhg grizzled look of someone who has been through a lot of hardship. As she continues to walk to the end of the protest line, while things calm, she continues to watch Castle, entirely unsure of his true identity, so unless he does anything her eyes will flick about to any other trouble makers.

Sister Reinhardt has posed:
    Suzanne continues to use her power to separate the two crowds and help the police out as best she can. She doesn't know what's going on on the ground at the moment, but she does hope the barriers keep the groups from escalating further. She does glance to Diana as she separates someone from the group. "Must be one of the instigators." She says to herself.

Kid has posed:
Kid tosses people off himself. A few unfortante folks flying up and landing in the crowd, thankfully caught by others. He seemed about to go further in untill some extra muscle in tersm of reinforcement come in. Both to strengthen the police lines...and to put a barrier between Kid and the other people. Needless to say he already broke a few bones.

Punisher has posed:
A number of people from the back of the crowd managed to follow Frank as he was 'urged' towards the center of the action. Something about his altercation with the men before got their attention and they decided instead of letting him leave, they'd follow. Fortunately for them, he comes to a sudden stop with his back facing them.

For a moment he locks eyes with Wonder Woman. A moment that seems to go on for a lot longer than it actually does. A bead of sweat drips from his eyebrow as he watches her move by. Then he's struck in the back of the head and lurches forward. "Motherfucker!" comes a voice from behind as Frank staggers ahead, disoriented from the blow. THe man takes another swing at Frank although he missis this time due to Frank lowering his head and moving forward a few steps. That's when the foul-mouthed attacker also sees Diana. His eyes go wide and he gasps a few other choice words and does his best to disappear into the crowd before she can wreck his life.

Wonder Woman has posed:
Diana's eyes do glance over to see Kid there and helping... she gives Kid a nod of appreciation for his efforts because its clear to see he's trying to be a force for de-escalation rather than the opposite. But her gaze returns when she hears the curse word shouted and she sees the attack to Frank break out... so she turns toward them and starts in that direction.

When the man looks, instead, to her and then turns to run for his freedom he's quick to find that he's indeed unable to get back to the crowd... because behind her shield was the lasso of Hestia... and its come to life in a brilliant bright golden glow.

The lasso SNAPS out from Diana's right hand and it whirls through the air in front of Frank, twisting its way around the fleeing man's legs, and is then promptly pulled hard back, to take the curser's feet off of the pavement and drop him down onto his stomach.

Diana starts to pull him toward her, dragging him right past Frank as he's likely clawing the ground for his life, because Wonder Woman has him now, all binded up and is pulling him toward her.

Punisher has posed:
The world around him swimming slightly after being struck in the back of the head out of nowhere, Frank staggers and drops to one knee. Holding his hand against his head, he closes his eyes and breathes in deeply, trying to steady himself and stay under control. Losing your shit in front of what may very well be the most powerful person on the damn planet isn't the best idea.

He manages to look up and over his shoulder in time to see the woman in question pull out her lasso and make an example out of the man who hit him. He feels pretty damn fortunate that she is going after the man she's currently dragging across the ground instead of him. It could just as easily be him wrapped up in that lasso if she'd have seen him 5 minutes before.

He watches her for a moment longer before he pulls himself to his feet and staggers backwards, bumping into a few people in the crowd and then he quickly disappears into the sea of protestors. Nice job of keeping the peace there, Frank.

Kid has posed:
The guards are shoved back at first by Kid's sheer strength. In this case - despite Kid potential instigator status, he was one actual animal neither side wanted to get involved with. The guards shove back and actually use a special type of spray tranq on him. Kid coughs and stumbles back looking out of it. Gorilla on a catnip high is the best way to put it!