Alert: Do the Ends Justify the Means? (Row)

For what seemed like the past month, Los Angeles had been a hotbed of violence. It had all started innocently enough and Corey had exploited the early tension while the police monitored the various demonstrations. A few well timed larcenies had earned him a decent bonus but now the atmosphere had changed. Truthfully, the city had been a powder keg and few had noticed the fuse burning down.

Murders were rarely committed in broad daylight. But rules were rarely absolute and now, while Jardin was enacting his early morning routine, he found a pair of hoodlums doing a poor job of shadowing him. They were obviously none too bright, likely mistaking his well tailored three-piece suit as being expensive, the signature of some unrecognized CFO or some such drivel. He had hoped the crowds might give the gang pause but the group seemed undeterred by their own danger. The police were stretched very thin of late.

No need to sacrifice his morning breakfast though and Corey hung the corner and entered a small, out of the way coffee house. It was one of those little places that sold baked goods on the side and had become a decent stopping point for one's morning commute. Standing at the counter, the otherwise unremarkable meta-human neglected to remove his sunglasses as he placed his order for a classic black coffee and a half dozen croissants. All the while, the trio that had tailed him lingered a moment in the entrance...

Emerl wondered into the giant grey city. It was huge as she noted with most of this Dirt World's residence. Everyone looked so different or maybe she was the one standing out. Her attire of tribal like top with her dress stood out in the sea of collared shirts and jeans. She did not wear shoes and she had mental bans with metal teeth that bit into her arms, legs, and collar. As much as she enjoyed her traditional attire she did not like having all these eyes on her.

With her cloak over her head, she wandered through the city taking notice of all the damage and distrust. People were scared and fearful. The streets were clear. Door slammed shut as she walked past the buildings. People scattered. Emerl folded her arms. It was not fun having everyone be afraid of you. Especially when you did nothing wrong.

She ran deeper into the city. It was so quiet. Smog clouded her sense of smell but she could pick out a few things. There was some water and maybe flowers to the east, blood and smoke scattered around her, and fresh bread. Her eyes widen at the idea of eating some warm bread. Her mission was set. After about an hour of following the smell, she came across a coffee shop. Her face and hands plastered over the glass and watch all the people drinking from white cups which had the smell of a vegetable... maybe a bean? It was so strong but the more important smell was still there. Finally her eyes locked onto them, the crescent shaped bread. It looked weird but tasty at the same time. Now the issue was how to get the bread with no money.

A discreet sideways glance form behind his reflective shades revealed the newcomer, an oddly dressed redhead barely visible around the trio of nondescript goons. It was unlikely they would start anything in public; they all shifted uncomfortably, each expecting one of the others to make the first move...amateurs. Still, all the better for him as the band of uniformly dressed hooligans tried and failed to not look like they were together. They would probably leave all together again once Corey did.

All the more reason to linger when he noticed where the small girl was looking. Setting the paper box and cup on a table, the thief leaned out the door, chuckling inwardly as his inept tail scrambled to follow him nowhere. He pretended not to notice as he addressed the cloaked figure. "You know, you can come inside. If you want to." The thugs had settled back to their hiding places as Corey held the door open. "You can have a croissant if you'd like." She did, after all, seem hungry and who was he to deny such convenient excuse to postpone an impending beatdown.

Looking through the window, many thoughts ran through her head. How could she get the food. Should she have the food with no money. Mauve was not here to make things work. These people of the Dirt world were so different. They feared her yet did not attack. They were weak except for a few. A few were strong... very strong. She was lucky when she ran into the alien. The alien was nice. The alien wanted her to do good things. Mauve would want her to do good, no matter how much bad she did in her past. It was not okay.

She lowered her head along the glass. Guilt starting to sink in. She needed to fine a better way. She needed to get credits. However, she soon found another surprise. A man in a weirder outfit opened the door. For some reason it made him look extremely... sharp, like a noble. Was this a noble or elite establishment? She pulled her arms to herself and started blushing. She bet she looked like a beggar. She wasn't. She knew she worked hard. Then she woke from her thoughts.

She started to raise her head but tugged on her hood to try and hid her face. At best she managed to keep her eyes hidden but if the man paid attention, he would see 2 bumps at the top of the hood. The man made a comment about coming inside. Emerl turned to the inside of the shop and then turned to the man. She did not belong. She did not have credits. She could not get any of the bread. So she took a step back. She planned to run away until he offered her some sort of food.

She gasped, and turned back to the store at the the large plate. That bread belong to the man. Was that this "cresant?" This dirt world person was nice too. To think she would find another nice person so soon. She smiled and rushed inside. She could only have one. That was it. She could not be greedy. She was above that. She was above being desperate. She grabbed the one on top and took a small bite. It was so fluffy and buttery, obviously high quality food. She found an empty seat and continued taking bites out of the weirdly shaped bread without a care for anyone else in the room.

Corey let the door swing closed as he followed the girl back inside.  He did indeed notice the pair of...shapes hidden beneath the hood but made no mention of his.  She had no need to hide who or what she was from him but he doubted the redhead would necessarily enjoy being found out so quickly.  Instead, he followed her back to the table, taking a seat opposite her.  He set his sunglasses down so that the mirrored lenses offered a panoramic view of the rest of the shop before adding creamer and sugar to his coffee.  "Why 'acquire' a taste when it can taste good the first time," he mused.  It meant nothing but gave him an excuse to talk.

Ultimately, the thief was using the girl.  She did not no it but the goons were growing impatient and the way the girl ate, adorable as it might have been, had the added benefit of prolonging her presence.  "Good, huh?" he commented, sipping his coffee before he took his first role.  "Help yourself.  I'd buy two but they're cheaper by the half-dozen."

The gang of "Equalizers" were getting nervous. Though not especially bright by any stretch of the imagination, they were smart enough to tell that loitering was a bad idea. They were now trapped between irrational desire to commit harm and the prudence of cutting their losses for the time being. It was around that time a sharply dressed woman entered. Her fashion seemed on par with the thief's but she had a smart phone pinned to her ear, saying, "I guarantee the studio is not going to go for it...Because you're a nobody. You were in one thirty second commercial." She looked up long enough to order a latte before something sparked her ire. "No, you listen you talentless hack! You're not Matt frickin' Daemon. You hav-"

Corey noticed the gang shift their attention to the hi-powered woman, clearly a softer target. As she took her drink to go, the trio began to rise, follow their oblivious victim, forgetting the gray clad man who only watched, slyly. Passing the oddly dressed redhead, he mused aloud; "I'm gonna have to go after them aren't I?"

That was not to say she was not grateful to the stranger. She did not ignore his presence despite her focus on enjoying every bite of the weirdly shape bread. When the man spoke she stop and wiped some crumbs from her mouth. His speak was weird, even for a dirt world person. They all used new words despite speaking the same tongue but this guy used words she knew in a weird way. She tilted her head slightly to the side unsure was she tried to wrap her head around the sentence.

Acquire was no a word she would use, but she knew it meant to get or obtain. She did not know you could get a taste. What did it look like? What happened when you got this taste? Thinking more about it, she remembered hearing Mauve use the phrase acquired taste for something that tasted bad. Did he think the bread tasted bad? No, that did not make sense cause he then said it tasted good already. She droned softly and clicked her tongue, giving off a insect like tick. Then she turned back to her food.
"Food always good when hungry," then finished the rest of the bread.

When the man asked if she enjoyed enjoyed the food, she chuckled and nodded her head. She took a breathe ready to describe it's fluffy texture but decided to remain quiet. Noble people would laugh at her uneducated speech. She knew she sounded funny sometimes. The weird words of this world only made it worst. So she instead just turned her attention to the bread. She wanted another one badly but she remained in control. She had to behave among the elite. They had the best jobs and paid the most money after all. To her surprise, the man said she could help herself. It was an offer she could not refused. She grabbed to more, one in each hand and then traded taking bites. It was so much better when you had a lot of good food. She could not help but moan in delight. After finishing one, the man made a comment about going after someone.

The bumps in her hood twitched before she turned to the woman dressed sharply. Other people got up as the woman was leaving. Was she in danger? Was this elite going to help? That was nice of him, but what if he got hurt? He was a nice person who gave her free food.
"I... I help protect noble woman... payback for crowsaunt bread. Is okay?"

Corey glanced had the girl with a hint of uncertainty. Still, he quickly remembered the world he was in and said, "I suppose that would be fine. Just don't do anything crazy and run if you think you're in danger." The meta-human what he could take and was at less risk than she would be almost by default. Turning to the barista, who seemed genuinely perplex at the pair's exchange, and assured, "Don't touch these, we'll be back for them."

Jardin rose as he lead the way toward the door but as he turned the way the band had left, he was perplexed. He made for the nearest alley peering around the corner only to find the greasy space devoid of the four. He spun again, scanning the street. "Crap," he muttered.

Eyes darting, Jardin struggled to figure out how the four could just up and vanish. Then he spotted something he had simply glanced over. The paper cup that had carried the woman's latte had spilled its contents upon the sidewalk, nearby was a boot print, one that smelled of engine grease, not unlike one might find in an auto-shop. Yet there were not other prints, as though the person in soiled boots had appears, stood in place then vanished. Was teleportation possible? Probably and if such a technique was available to pair's prey, tracking them might be considerably more difficult.

The man gave Emerl a glance, the kind she normal get from wary Aurins. She imagined him not trusting her which was fine. She was a stranger who looked like a begger, at least compared to someone of his stature. It would have been disappointing to not be allowed to help but the man gave in. He seem worried for her which made her question her original judgement. Maybe he did not understand what she was. She smiled and moved to the door.

This was her first mission, even if it was unofficial. The man told the store keeper to leave the food and then lead the way. Emerl followed the man into an empty alley. Then the an muttered something as if he was disappointed. Emerl stepped to the side to get a better look at what was happening. The area was dull and void of healthy colors. The place reminded her of a dying slum. The smells however told a different story. Life was here recently. The sent of a bean drink drew her eyes to the ground. It was such a waste to spill food. She picked up the cup and moved it to her forehead, sensing a weak scent of a person. She remembered this scent though faintly. She smelled it in the store along with small whiffs of it while walking in this direction. It was only now with the cup did she make the connection.
"Noble lady... here?"

She had no way to being sure since she never tried to link the smell to the woman, but it was consistent so far. Focusing more on the air around her, she could tell more people were here recently. 4-5 people though she was sure of 4. One of which had a really bad smell on them. She could not describe it but looking down, she realized why the bad smell was so strong. A foot print lied on the ground with a weird gunky substance. Emerl touched it only to immediate regret it.
She whined, pressing down the top of her hood into her hair. The smell was strong and just nasty. It was something special to this world, something that radiated from those weird carriages with black bendy wheels that move on their own without horses after you break them.

"Smells... bad... too bad!" the girl rushed to the nearest wall and tried to wipe it off her hand. Her eyes watered as she slowly adjusted to the odor. Then she returned to he print wiping her eyes with her clean hand. Smelling the air again, she picked out something else. More bad smells related to those carriages. The smell of burning wheels, smoke from burning fuel. Reminiscences of it all lied behind the print. This is also where the scent that came from the cup suddenly became weaker. Not too weak though. Emerl walked out of the alley and held down the top of her hood. The bumps in the hood twitched as the girl smelled the area.

"People was here. Believe. Think. They left in horseless carriage. Carriage smells is everywhere, hard to make out alone. People scents different. People, many people smells mix like in area. All stop behind print. Think they went into Carriage and left area. Small scents still in air. Think... I think I can follow if we move quick."

"Carriage?" Jardin mused aloud at the girl's strange manner of speech. But if he understood her meaning, the woman had been shoved into a vehicle of some type and this strange looking meta could...smell it.

Having been watching her go about her peculiar work, Corey cocked an eyebrow. He had found his own skills limited but if she had the power to power to be an effective tracker, she might just prove useful after all. Don't let me hold you back," he said. "Lead the way." As she said, they had to move quickly.

On the way, Corey decided it would be a good idea for the pair to have some way to identify each other quickly. "I'm John," he lied. He was not prone to sharing his name easily and 'John Wolfe' had been among his most convenient aliases. Personally, he put little hard stock into names beyond their convenience so 'John' was as good an option as any. All the while, they drew closer to the out-of-the-way body shop the goons had set up as a 'secret base.'

Emerl nodded her head when the man repeated her word choice. It was her best guess given how weird everything was in the dirt world. It was something she would stand behind. Lucky for her, the man would trust her judgement. Right or wrong she would move on with her plan.

The day was air was humid, and the streets were barren for Emerl's standards of a city. All of this was perfect for a simple follow the trail. However, there was some new challenges she discovered while following this trail. The scent was scattered. What little of it she could grasp was all over the road and sidewalk. It was like the scent fled the streets. Only pieces that got stuck on the building and small sections of shade were left to paint a trail or at least an easy trail. Emerl bounced around rubbing her finger along different objects. Each time she would release a one of two smells. If she found something resembling the trial, she would release a sweet fruity smell akin to bananas. If the spot lost the scent, then she would release a less desirable smell akin to sweat. Anyone paying attention would noticed trail of sweet smells with forks that lead to bad smells. However a being with a greater sense of smell would noticed that the girl was laying down a trail.

After an little over an hour, the man introduced himself.
"J-John..." Emerl paused as she practiced the pronunciation silently, "John Sir."
Emerl softly chuckled after realizing they had never introduced. It was probably a good thing. Had this exchange happened earlier, she would have fell into her old habits of giving an professional introduction for her guild. Things where different.
"I am Dorylus."
With that out the way, she continued following the trail.

Emerl would stop after a strong smell hit her like a brick wall. It was the same odor as the foot print. The girl grabbed on to the top of her hood while fighting to keep her head up.
"Smell... Close... Trail follows."
Emerl started running forward. She hoped the woman was at this source of the smell but deep down, she really hoped she was wrong. This smell was just so bad. She could not stand it. after another few minutes of running. They arrived at the source of the horrible smell. It was a weird store that Emerl did not understand much about but it just radiated with the bad smell.
"I think it's here." She had her hands pressing on her own hood and then backed away, "It smells like the print.

Jardin had no cause to doubt the girl. She had led him this far. And she seemed to have little understanding of automobiles so the connection to the motor oil from before went beyond coincidence... Still, she seemed reluctant to move forward, as though disgusted by the atmosphere. Likely a byproduct of her power.

If Dorylus' trail proved correct, Corey knew there would be a fight, so he slipped off his jacket, retrieving a fabric mask from an inside pocket to conceal his face and ensure any sort of unexpected hazard did not interfere with the task at hand. It looked delightfully makeshift. Unbuttoning his cuffs, the dark sleeves of his shirt rolled up, freeing a pair of cloth bracers lined with rows of steel darts - shuriken.

"I'll go take a look inside, you...hang back for a bit." He thought of it as friendly advice; he did not delight in the thought of her getting hurt in the likely brawl. He folded his jacket as he went, holding it under his arm as he approached the jointed garage door. There was a window set into it and the thief had only rise to the tips of his toes to peer inside. Sure enough, the well dress woman was in there, tied to a metal chair. The building was well soundproofed as she was visibly pleading with her four captors, words inaudible through the concrete walls. The other windows were blacked out, likely because they were easier to cover.

Glancing back to his companion, Corey gave a thumbs up, signalling that this was the right place. Turning, he moved toward the main door, obstructed by a set of blinds and a conspicuous "Closed" sign. It was locked but he could easily break in though one of the nearest windows. Also, this way would offer easy access to a myriad of weapons...

Emerl watched as the man removed his oddly impressive jacket and put on a weird mask. Then he  undid his cuffs and rolled up his sleeves which reveal metal bracers. The man had hidden weapons. Her eyes widen. Why did he hide his weapon? Nobles in Aurina and most warriors wore them with pride. The weapon itself would become as famous if not more than the wielder. When someone saw a these weapons, they would go to the smith who made them and that smith will get rich. That's what Mauve always said.

That was not the important part though. The important part was that he was going to fight. He told her to stay back but she just did not want too. If the noble woman saw that she was rescued by Kaiju then maybe more good things would happen. Besides Kaiju was not weak. She watched ready to help when needed. However the man just watched walked around. He was moving too slow. It was taking too long. So she decided to help him out. She cleared her throught and made the loudest Cicada sound she could muster. Just like the insect, it was much louder than any thing one would imagine coming from a small girl as herself. When the people came out, she was going to throw a rock at them, that she pulled from the ground and run off hoping they would chase. If they did not come out, then she would dig up a bigger rock and break their whole window.

Jardin instintively ducked under the window as the insectoid hiss filled the air. His hand was wrapped in his jacket already; he had planned to shatter the window and slip inside to launch a sudden ambush. Sadly, Dorylus' 'cry,' if you could call it that, had the opposite effect. The sound of cursing trembled though the wall of the storefront to investigate.

The other meta proved to have some sense, though. The three men from the coffee came rushing through the now unlocked door, the man in the lead catching stone below the eye that sent him stumbling back into his fellows. Looking up, the still dazed goon recognized the girl's unusual attire. "You..." he accused, ugly bruise already forming under his eye. Without a word, the trio lowered their ridiculous masks and began to rush forward. For a moment, Corey though to help her, but she seemed too confident in her demeanor. Perhaps she had some advantage that allowed her to oppose an aluminum bat and length of steel chain, both of which were clearly visible in the assailants' hands.

Exploiting his moment, the thief caught the door, slipping inside. He slipped out of his hard leather shoe, feet protected by his rubber soled tabi that helped to silence his steps as he padded toward the nearby tool rack. A pair of eighteen inch wrenches. "Noice," he said, giving the weapons a deft flip. Now he was as ready as he could be, having folded his jacket over counter as he headed for the garage.

"Please," came the woman's voice. "You don't have to do this. I'll do whatever you want just...let me go." The report of a slap, and Jardin peered through the side door as the fourth man, considerably larger than the others, paced around his victim like some stage predator.

The brute spoke now: "You think you can bribe us?" He spoke calmly, standing behind his prisoner as his large hands rested on her small shoulders. She visibly recoiled under his touch but the large man continued on. "You think we're worth so little that if you just wave money under our noses, it'll erase all your sins." This one sounded like the leader, charismatic to a certain sort of loser. They had set up a camera to broadcast their crime, probably on the internet.

He could have taunted the man, drawn his attention away from the woman but by now, the gap between his hands had shrunk around the woman's neck. He was going to strangle her, all the while deriding her on camera. Or he would have, had the gray clad ninja not taken that clap him across the temple with the weighted head of his stolen wrench. The brute went reeling but did not full. "Oh carp...a brick." No sooner had the words left his mouth that a fast moving backhand sent him flying across the garage.

Emerl ran making sure the group would follow her. She ducked into an alley and then activated her Dorlyuis form. Exo skeletons grew on the back of her hands and on her forearms. Then she slips her hand into her cestus and readies for the men to turn the corner. As the first one turns the corner, she gives him a fist full of steal and sends him flying down the street. The man with the manages to get his chain across her arms while the other man with the bat swings. Emerl Parries hitting the bat with the back of her free hand. While her exo skeleton breaks, she managed to knock the bat out of his hand. Then she lets out a loud grasshopper chirp and pulls the guy with the chain towards her. She then uses the small window to punch the man who use to have the bat with her Cestus and downing him in the process. Now all that was left was the man with the chain.

While Kaiju was almost effortlessly dispatching her own foes, Corey was in a much more awkward losing position. The bruise on his cheek had healed but he knew it would be a struggle to win this fight. The brute was already rushing him when the thief righted himself, flipping up to his feet. For his size, the Equalizer was fast and Corey had to throw himself to the side, pivoting a stance that presented his improvised weapons.

It quickly became clear that while his adversary was fast, he lacked agility, having struck the wall before he could turn to follow the nimble pest. Corey seized upon his chance, unleashing a flurry of blows, using the heavy wrench heads as striking weights against the brutes side. As durable as the man was, bruises were already forming under his skin and along the side of his head. The quick man darted back only once his target took another swing at him, evading by a hair's breadth.

"Is that all you got," the Equalizer mocked, thinking to goad Jardin into a misstep.

Corey, for his part did not take the bait. Keeping out of measure, he let the weighted clubs pull his arms down. "Honestly, yeah," he panted, jogging backward. "But lets be honest, Tons-o'-fun. You ain't doing too hot yourself."

The nickname must have hit harder than he expected; the brute growled and, turning, struck a large metal toolbox that went careening toward Corey. The thief reacted quickly and jumped against it. He seemed to wipe out as the rolling container's mass shifted under him but taking advantage, he allowed himself to flip, hurling one of his weapons forward with surprising force as he landed. The mass of flying steel stuck the man in the neck and the brute was left gagging on his hands and knees.

Taking advantage of the brief lull in the fight, Corey dashed for the woman, deft hands untying her in moments. "Go," he ordered. "Run and get help. I'm not equipped to deal with this guy." To illustrate his point, the thug was already recovering as Jardin pushed the woman toward the door.