9239/Nice Night For A Walk

Nice Night For A Walk
Date of Scene:	18 September 2019
Location:	Avalon Heights, Avalon
Synopsis:	Brian, Faith, and Tim meet Swamp Thing
Cast of Characters:	Captain Britain, Red Robin, Faith Lehane, Swamp Thing

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Captain Britain has posed:
Blüdhaven was a funny place. On the one hand, it was something of an extension of Gotham, especially the eastern borough of Haven. Lying just across the Queens River, it was hardly any different from Old Gotham. Many crossed the South Hinkley Bridge on a daily basis, working in Gotham, but living in Haven. Some were further out in the western borough of Avalon, which took on something of a different feel. While still part of Blüdhaven, it had less skyscrapers, and more cemeteries; a lot more cemeteries.

Brian Braddock had made the Avalon borough his home, while commuting through Haven and Old Gotham, on his way to Manhattan and Empire State University. It was a trek, to be certain, but he couldn't exactly move the castle he had inherited. Well, he could. Another had proven it could be done. But it just wasn't economical at all. And besides, who wants to be second.

Tonight, he was out, going for a jog through Avalon Heights, not too far from his home in the nearby Caernarvon community. He was ever ready for patrol, though he was taking the night off. It was just about enjoying a nice jog. Morbid as it might be, some of the cemeteries were actually quite lovely. They had extensive gardens. He was wearing some branded Team GB Olympic gear. A grey t-shirt with the lion head logo, while navy blue pants, and red, white, and blue sneakers with a Union Jack motif.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake is out and and about in his normal attire. There has been some odd things going on in Bludhaven. He has fought a few things that were very odd. He has a few things hidden on his person to protect himself. The young man is more walking about looking about. He looks a bit like a tourist or not a local at least.

Faith Lehane has posed:
Cemetaries were peaceful at times. Quiet, no sounds of traffic or loud conversations from people on the street. One could sit and think or stroll around looking at the various monuments.

At least, for some people it was that way. Faith? For her it was going to work if she ended up in a cemetary.

She was walking down the street at the moment, in her work clothes. Black leather pants, a short red shirt that left her midriff bare and had a scooped neckline. A leather jacket over it all, with all her hidden little goodies inside. People looked at her strange if she was carrying a stake or hatchet out in view. Go figure.

There were some new plots down at the cemetary down the block and she needed to make sure no one was trying to get back out. Thus, her leisurely stroll that direction. She caught a glimpse of the jogging figure and a smirk appeared. "Oh this night is looking up already." She headed across the street on an intercept course, which had her stepping right onto the sidewalk in front of Tim, almost causing a collision. She looked at him and the smirk turned to a frown. "Watch where you're going!"

Because, of course to her, it was his fault he was walking where she wanted to be.

Captain Britain has posed:
Brian did not have a spider-sense. He did not have telepathy. He did not have a sub dermal tracking device implanted in Faith. And yet, somehow, he seemed to know it was her. Things had been too quiet and going too well. He was bound to run into her. Except this time, a tourist was kind enough to step in and take the charge. Still, he had better make sure that everything was all right. And so he jogged, cutting through the Cemetery with the lovely garden, heading over to the duo. "Are you two all right?" What was going to happen next? A giant swamp monster come out of the ground and start singing show tunes? Boy did he have to get out of Bludhaven, and soon. It was a bad influence on him.

Swamp Thing has posed:
    As this commotion continued out near the sidewalk, over on Mount Sinai a lone moss-covered figure stood in the darkness, looking down at two graves and two tombstones. The once-man had been standing there for some time, but in the darkness with him not breathing or even moving, it would be forgiven for a bystander to not realize a person was even there, or to look over and think that the plant looking like a humanoid was merely an optical illusion(people told themselves all sorts of comforting lies when wandering through the darkness.).

For Swamp Thing's part, he was purely focused on the two side by side plots of dirt as two red roses grew from his chest, directly where his heart would be, if he had one.

One, for Linda Holland, a woman that the creature remembered though never knew.

One for Alec Holland, the man who the creature never was. The thought was still sobering, when it occasionally came to his mind.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake looks to the woman "Oh excuse me." He says stopping and stepping back. He gives the woman a once over brow raising ever so slightly at the amount of stuff she is packing. As the big blond man comes over he says "Yea, just was not watching where I was going well enough. The one tidbit that might give a tell the young man is amore than normal, is how he steps to keep both of them in his sight, prepared in case this is a set up.

Faith Lehane has posed:
Well, that wasn't nearly as much excitement as she had hoped. The guy just apologized. Faith's frown remains a moment more then she nods. "Yeah. Okay." Dammit, she hated when the wind just died out of her sails and left her drifting.

Cue Blond god. "Scooby Snack! Long time, no see! B keeping you on a short leash? Or has she not broken those out of her play room yet?" she asked with a her signature smirk reappearing.

She caught a shifting of the stranger and realized what he was doing, bringing her attention back to him but before she could say something, there was that warning. It wasn't a Tingle. It wasn't a claxon. No, for the slayer's it was a discomfort that there was something 'other' in the area. It felt a certain way if it was evil but when it was just different, the pain was less over powering. It still had her turning her head sharply toward the cemetary, trying to spot what might be setting it off.

Without another word to the pair, she started that direction even as she slipped a hand into her jacket. Her fingers curled around the handle of a silver knife but she didn't draw it as she used the Slayer Warning System to guide her toward the source.

Captain Britain has posed:
Brian rolled his eyes at the nickname Faith had given him. He'd prefer that she call him Brian, but it seemed he had been saddled with 'Scooby Snack', and it was here to stay. Having tried to stonewall her with cold derision, he decided to take a different tactic today, "nope, she hasn't broken them out yet. Why don't you teach her?" Maybe if he played along, she'd get tired. She probably liked the rise she frequently got out of him. If he didn't let it happen, would she stop?

Though then her Slayer sense tingled, or whatever it was, and she was off. "Well, as long as you're all right." He had noted the careful movements of the other man, but was too curious about what had set Faith off, so followed after her. "Have a nice night." He said, wondering if Tim would follow too.

Swamp Thing has posed:
    The thin stalks of the roses snapped in the cool night breeze and the roses fell as intended, landing upon the ground with the softest impact in the history of roses impacting along the ground. The figure stood there in a few more moments of deep contemplation, before finally turning, and following the little concrete path. Every step leaving behind damp moisture, his footfalls sounding like shifting earth with an occasional 'clacking' of his walking stick.

    A ways away from the cemetary, he saw the forms of two, maybe three in the distance. He wasn't sure why, but he was feeling a bit more sociable than he had in days past. So, on his way back to the Great Swamp, the Swamp Thing spoke with a rumbling voice that had all the timbre of a falling redwood during an earthquake.

    "HO, there! Visitors...from the...Red. How fares humanity...these days?"

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake will start to step away a moment from stepping into the shadows and following them, like his mentor would, but the voice, and words, there was something about it, the reference to the red, he is sure he has read about it in some of the files. He will move to follow like a not so bright tourist he is trying to pretend to be. for now he is using Brian as cover.

Faith Lehane has posed:
Faith doesn't seem to realize she is leading a parade. One blond god, aka Scooby Snack, who is towering over them all like some giant. One tourist, who has some skills in keeping himself under cover, which is a little weird. And one giant...okay, Faith has no words. That might be a first for her.

"Hello," she says simply, which is downright polite for Faith. "I...haven't seen you around here before. Not sure what the Red is." Asking about humanity? It's pretty obvious he isn't one but what the hell is it? "But humanity is doing alright I guess. More or less. Good days and bad days. How fares...not humanity?"

Captain Britain has posed:
Brian is an effective cover. There's a reason another person nicknamed him Adonis upon their first meeting. The man is positively stacked at 6'6" and a muscular 257 lb. Brian wasn't too far behind Faith either. Not that he was trying to chase her down or anything. She hadn't given him any reason to not trust her... tonight. The Ent-like creature was unusual, even for Bludhaven. "Hello... sir." He wasn't sure what to call it, but the voice sounded masculine at least. And his accent was very different from that of Faith. "How can we help?" He adds to what Faith had already said. Instinctively, he took a step ahead of her, protectively. It was in his nature. But he had not made any threatening moves.

Swamp Thing has posed:
    "How fares...'not humanity'? Not well. Fires...in rain forests. The earth's blood...drawn and spilled across the oceans. The Red...encroaches on The Green...more and more every day. At the growing risk...of its own genocide. The logic of such behavior is lost on me."

    This powerful 'ent-like' creature as it was put, apparently did not know the nature of small talk. Or if he ever did, it seems he's forgotten since then. He looks out across the city for a few moments with those horrible imitations of eyes, red translucent olives with yellow pits for pupils, until finally they trained themselves on the trio again. The figure, it seemed, was not afraid of Brian, and hardly noticed the one hiding in the back. But he focused on Faith.

    "A...Slayer. A second one? This world...is changing. The Green and The Rot...The Red...and the rest. The melting of the frozen north and south, the draining of the leylines. Tomorrow is...uncertain."

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake hmms and will move to near the edge of the shadows, he is keeping silent for now. At the mention of the slayer, his brow raises, he has met her recently with some other green folks. He listens and watches not bringing attention to himself.

Faith Lehane has posed:
"Yeah, seems the system is a little flawed on the whole Slayer thing," Faith responds, not really worrying about the tourist for now. Her attention is fully on the giant entity in front of her. It's a plant. Sort of. Alive, intelligent and with mobility. But what else was it? She did not remember this in her Slayer training, not that she ever finished it. But this was most certainly not in there.

"They forgot about things like CPR. So one dies, triggers the next then oops, first one isn't dead after all. Second one still activated. Then she dies and here comes number three. B just needs to die for real next time and it'll be back to normal." Of course Buffy should be the one to die, not her. Faith is nothing if not self-focused.

"The Red encroaches on the Green. So...like people are encroaching on nature?" She isn't completely stupid, though she might play that role from time to time.

Captain Britain has posed:
"It's an imperfect system, I'll certainly concede that." Braddock Industries was ecologically friendly, but it was but one corporation. He wished Buffy were here. Dealing with someone who is so literal can be difficult, especially for a man like Brian, who often chooses his words carefully. He could converse with the Ent-like creature in something similar to its native parlance, but a woman like Buffy could introduce slang and bring a semblance of humanity out of the creature. She even managed to domesticate Spike. She could do anything. But there was a Slayer here, just... a different one.

And she was talking a lot of shop in front of the tourist, even if it was one who seemed to be more than what he chose to present. "How can we help?"

Swamp Thing has posed:
    "I am not certain...if you can."

    Even as he speaks he starts to walk, once again the sounds of his footfalls and the walking stick banging across the concrete as he aims to walk through their group, and off into the distance toward his home. Though he continues to speak as he makes his way through the night.

    "The body needs...the parts...to be whole. If one conquers the others, the whole loses and so does...the one. We shall speak again...if we are...fortunate. Our jobs can sometimes be dangerous."

    And then he was gone.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake looks over and hmms interesting wonder what he was doing here." He does make a mental note of where the creature was and noticing the two roses so very fresh he hmms softly yo himself. "You two see this like this normally?"

Faith Lehane has posed:
"No, got to say that was a first for me. Seen some pretty weird shit but that was high up there," Faith admits as she turns around, hands in the pcokets of her jacket. She still has her grip on handle of the silver knife, it's just now in the pocket instead of where it had been originally.

"And you, cutie patootie, are freaking out entirely too little to be your average tourist," Faith says, focusing directly on Tim now with a very intense stare, eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

Captain Britain has posed:
Brian had been given food for thought. Like Tim, he was analysing what he had seen and heard, contemplating it, and the ramifications. He would definitely see the Ent again. He was certain of that. But would it be a random encounter, or would he discover it on his own. He took note of the flowers, and anything mentioned on a headstone, if one were present. "Yeah, I read about such things in Tolkien, saw the films too, which don't do the books justice, but... that was a first for me as well." And Faith was right. Tim was taking it very much in stride. "My name's Brian, and this is Faith. What's your name, son?"

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake will look to the two, and says "Call me Tim, and I have seen a bit of an oddness in Blud haven when I have been here. This is probably the wierdest, but I have seen some very odddness

Faith Lehane has posed:
Although she's positive there is more to it than that, Faith isn't one to worry too much about such things. After all, they have a way of working themselves out.

If she's wrong, she could always stake him and say it had been an accident. Not that she'd do that. Killing people was wrong...

"You from around here, Tim? I'm just back in town. Been gone for a while. Like a bad penny, keep showing up here." She considers the graveyard and walks the direction the creature had come, with the guys. There are the pair of graves with markers, fresh red roses laying on each one. "Huh."

She glances back to the duo. "Seems we have a bit of a mystery on our hands. Sounds like a job for the Scoobies. Me? I'm out."

Captain Britain has posed:
"Nice to meet you Tim," Brian offered, and extended his hand to shake. Brian had a firm grip, but wasn't trying to crush the man's hand or anything. Just a firm, manly shake. Faith was right. This was a job for the Scoobies. And Brian would be following it up. But there wasn't a lot he could do besides note the graves, any gravestones, and pass on what he had found. Hopefully Giles had a book on such creatures. With Faith mentioning she was leaving, and Tim an as yet unknown, he too decided to stray. "Well, make sure you get home safe, Tim. This neighbourhood can be rough at times." And then with a knowing smile, he asked, "Faith, would you walk him home?" Yeah, Brian was mean. Or he though Faith might have a better chance of getting information out of Tim than Brian would. In any event, Brian turned and started heading back towards where he had originally been jogging... and just so happened to be the way the Ent like creature had gone.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake looks tot hem and says "I will be ok, my brother lives not to far from here, and I can get home pretty easy, but I have to admit I am curious the Scoobies?"

Faith Lehane has posed:
"I don't play bodyguard," Faith says with a roll of the eyes at Brian's suggestion. As he moves off, she yells, "Seeya later, Scooby Snack. I'll be sure to let B know you like leashes!" Which will drive Buffy crazy wondering why Faith might know something like that. Even if it isn't true.

She looks back to Tim. "Like Scooby Doo. He hangs with some folks who like to solve mysteries. Thus Scoobies. He's the only one that would be worth gnawing on a bit, so he's Scooby Snack." It makes sense in her head. Maybe not for other people. "Make sure you avoid dark shadowy spots and don't invite anyone in your house that you don't know." And with that, she's heading off further into the cemetary. She still has a couple of graves to check.