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Angela	Something was always wrong with Knifty. She didn't remember her parents and she had no real ambition to pull herself out of the Backstreets or even to pull herself out of the life or a Rat. She accepted that she was going to be the butt end of life's grand joke. She found peace in the violence directed at her. It wasn't safe but it was predictable. Her oldest companion. Even Rats found her disquieting and gave her a wide berth. She was too weird, too unstable, and too weak. In truth, she didn't think Lilian would let her be a part of an Association. She hoped for a meal, maybe, a day in a warm building. Somehow she was accepted, no questions asked. And since then she was afforded money, meals, safety, compassion, and comradery. And out of the locals, it was Pete and Finn who looked after her the most. And when the Stray Dogs kept hounding them, for the first time Knifty felt something about violence. As the Elites approach the Dog Bowl bowling alley, they'll find tucked away in a sidestreet Zulu hanging upside down from a streetlight. Zulu is one of the leaders of the Stray Dogs and is being held up by monofilament wire. A ball gag has been placed into his mouth and the words BAD BOY has been carved into his chest. Blood slowly drips from his body down to the street below. He is trying to scream but the noise is mostly muffled. Knifty is the janitor of the Association headquarters. She cleans pipes, unclogs toilets, and sweeps dust without complaint. More than that, she seems to enjoy it. She's passionate about it. She hunts down bugs and rodents that find their way into headquarters with an intense glee. She isn't outside. She must have snuck her way inside.
Angela	Meanwhile... Boris of the Thumb is in a meeting in a bowling alley. He has the face of a thug and has slicked back black hair. He is wearing shades. He is equipped with steel knuckles and otherwise looks unarmed but the fact that he is acting on behalf of the underboss, according to reports, suggests that he's tougher than he looks. His subordinate, Katriele, is a purple haired woman in glasses and is wearing a bandolier of grenades across her chest. Her Thumb coat is so big on her you can't even see her arms. They are using enkephalin crates as chairs. Neither them, nor their subordinates, have noticed the tiny Knifty slinking through pockets of shadow towards the fusebox. They aren't alone. Gyeong-mi of the Stray Dogs and a small number of his crew are there, some Kurokumo not part of Saya's fallen are there, some representatives of the Night Awls--another one of their subordinate syndicates--are also there, and there's Nemo and his team and members of the Zwei Association, including Walter (the one who sent Lulu and Mars out to the Library) and his subordinates. Outside of Walter, Nemo, and Boris...none of them are speaking. "Hey hey hey, I understand it's part of your 'protection money' but it looks like The Watch gave you bad goods! W Corp's got a claim to those enkephalin crates. Between you and me, sure it sounds fishy, but you're not gonna carelessly pick a fight with a Wing are ya? Especially not a desperate one!" Nemo's screen shows a big bright smile. "You can't afford a fight with W Corp, not when you're raring up for a turf war with Trídéag." "They're still smaller than some offices. They might have a Star and a Color in the making on their side, but the rest don't match up. Thumb's got the biggest investment here or do you wanna try to deal with the Index?" Boris asks. "Begging your respect, but the Thumb thinks it's best to snip this Association in the bud now rather than after its grown too big to handle." "BUDDY, you haven't seen 'em in action." Nemo says. "Trying to be a pal here and warn you that your cute stunts with these pups of yours, they got a Code. A Code they actually give a shit about. One says dispatch evil without hesitation and lots of orgs say that shit but I think these guys actually mean it! You should be spooked! Hand over those crates and you can at least deal with one spooky. Deal with two spookies, not three. Common sense to me!" "Your men haven't given us any information on the Distortion." Walter says. "They could've captured the one designated Weather Report, at least, but now word's come through she's officially Trídéag now. My superiors aren't going to accept open conflict with a fellow Association as a price for that. If we have to go to the Library for this information you can forget about the maps." Nemo laughs at the very idea but Walter presses on, ignoring him. "As things stand, The Library is being seen as valuable to keep around. The Wings are hungry to get at one another's secrets. It's going to be the center of a Cold Wing War. You're going to need any advantage you can get. Everyone wants control of the Library, even the fanatics of the Index." Boris sighs, rubbing at his face. "I guess the Mad Father thought he could play a prank on us... But I'm not in a position to trade away the collection money I'd need to talk to Kalo--"
Angela	That's when the power to the bowling alley is cut. "Baaaad boys...." Gyeong-mi screams as wires wrap around his legs and drag him out of the limited sight of the others. "Knifty remembers the Code... Dispatch evil without hesitation. Knifty remembers the Code... Guard them as they would guard you. Pete and Finn were so nice to Knifty, so nice... Pete would fish Knifty out when she got stuck in the toilet. Silly Finn would get hit so Knifty wouldn't get hit... I...I can do this... I can clean up like Miss Nelly said..." One by one the Stray Dogs get picked off in the dark by an unseen Knifty, but the whole site is a bedlam. Walter is trying to organize the Zwei into leaving the bowling alley, Nemo is unconcerned--his screen is a notable source of light--as he collects a bowling ball and makes his way to one of the lanes. Martina and Bada sit down at a table, hoping to wait this out until it's all over until Nemo shouts, "Hey! No slacking off! Gonna need you to set the pins, and fetch the balls there's no power!". Sighing, long-suffering, the two minions get to work as Nemo murmurs something to a personal radio. The Stray Dogs are in a panic, the other subsidiaries are hunting for Knifty, and Boris and Katriel are quietly scanning the darkness, a contingent of Soldato being sent out to the fusebox to restore light. Boris reaches up to his own radio and starts murmuring into it--no doubt calling for backup. He looks just exhausted by all this. It is unto this chaos that the rest of Trídéag arrives.
Riku Asakura	<J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma says, "Mr. Asakura, is it alright if I grab you? I think I'm faster." <J-IC-Scene> Riku Asakura says, "Oh... um.  Sure. It should be fine!" Reaching out for Rita's arm, Riku wasn't ready for what came next as a blur.  When they stop, it's over the bowling alley, which is currently in a panic, as Knifty is dealing with the bad boys who hurt her friends.  Along the way, there Riku was like a windsock, dangling behind Rita, who was indeed faster than he was.   Looking over the bowling alley, Riku didn't know exactly how to deal with this at first.  A lot was going on at once, and the lights were out.  However, one of theirs was down there and would likely cause a lot of problems, but they would also get hurt if they didn't rescue her.  Riku takes a breath and grips the Fusion Riser.   "Standing around doing nothing won't get us anywhere..." he jumps off the side of the building and transforms into Ultraman Geed Primitive.  He hits the ground in a three-point stance and runs towards the front of the establishment, growing to be about Dimo's size rather than larger.  Ultraman Geed opens the door and watches the chaos unfold before trying to wade towards where he last heard Knifty.
Madeleine Cadrasteia	Madeleine's among the first on the scene, due as much to having left earlier as to speed. On her way over, she mentally reviewed the Precepts - there may not be time to wait for Lilian's tactical assessment before action is necessary. Several stood out in her mind:     1: You are responsible to your comrades before anything else. Guard them as they would guard you.     2: Represent the Association with the dignity your comrades deserve. Give no one reason to doubt your honour.     4: Respect the rightful order of the City. Respect the Association more.     It's a good thing the hustle over to the bowling alley gives a little time to rotate these guiding principles. Knifty's safety is important here, per the first. She may be in violation of the second and possibly the fourth by acting alone on her own whims, but these things are in order for a reason, right? So Maddie makes a decision: she'll keep Knifty safe, but not add to the bloodshed beyond that until there's orders from the Director.     When Madeleine arrives at the dog bowl, it's already in darkness inside and out. She grimaces a little at the muffled-hollering Zulu suspended outside, but if he's anyone's job he falls to Odette to handle. Instead of letting him down straight away Maddie breaks a ground-floor window with the butt of her spear, and slips inside into the darkened room.     At home in near-total darkness - and not to mention able to see in it - as she is, Madeleine detects the Thumb soldatos heading for the fusebox and moves to intercept. As they near the electrical breakers, Maddie lets out a cheeky "Tsk-tsk!" and as they turn around, she decks one of them with a sucker punch. "Hands off that switch," she growls to the rest, knowing that if Knifty's caught out of cover with the lights on she's bound to get shot or stabbed or worse.
Odette Raskins	Madeleine's intuition about Zulu's state being Odette's job is right on the money, even though she isn't in a position to give him the whole treatment routine just yet. Knifty still needs to be tracked down, treated, and everything in between, but she can spare half of a minute to make sure he doesn't die from his injuries. "Hold still for a sec... It's going to sting for a second, but this should stop the bleeding... There." A medicated spray to disinfect and stop the bleeding, followed by a quick bandaging job to keep those wounds covered up and (hopefully) free from reinfection for at least a day. Another glance down at the amount of blood pooled under Zulu's feet, and then Odette looks over at Lilian. "Your call, Commander. Do we get him down now or later or...?" She leaves 'not' left unsaid. Whatever Lilian tells her, she'll go for, although the sympathetically uncertain look on her face does suggest she's leaning at least somewhat towards 'now'. Leaving the louder approach to Riku, Odette slinks over to where Madeleine's heading in from, prying a few more pieces of broken glass off the window to make it just a ltitle bit safer to head in before climbing through as well. Squinting to try and see a little better in that darkness, Odette slips on her AR glasses to have a slightly easier time seeing Stray Dogs inside by way of the health readouts. She's trying to avoid getting into a direct confrontation with any of them, of course, but she's keeping an eye out for anyone that's wounded. For all she knows, that might be her best shot at finding Knifty considering how long she's been operating alone out here already.
Sarracenia	Sarracenia is also already outside by the time Knifty radios them. Barely. She spent more time talking to Sonya than she realized. When Rita and Riku go blurring by, Sarra mmphs softly and pulls out another Bullet Bill power-up. She activates it, causing a small explosion as the car-sized bullet rockets very specifically along the road. It's nowhere near Rita speed, but it is at least car speed!      It doesn't quite last all the way there, exploding a short distance away from the bowling alley. Sarra runs the rest of the way, then huffs softly as she sees it's a bowling alley. "...do I have to be careful about damaging this, too...?" she mutters to herself.      When she sees Zulu, she winces. She reaches into her purse and leaps, and out comes the rose-hilted two handed sword she purchased some time back. In a spinning somersault she severs the monofilament without losing speed, then continues on. One of their own is in danger, and this guy is part of the crew that attacked them. No reason to stop, but no reason to leave him hanging there, either. She doesn't wait to hear what Lilian says on the matter.      Sarra follows Madeleine through the window, sword disappearing into her purse again as her Silver hammer forms in her hand. She is not able to see in the dark, so instead Sarra pulls out a fire flower and is clad in the fiery colors. She holds a fireball in her hand to illuminate...probably mostly herself, really. "Whatever ruffians are left in here, you have sent your stray attack dogs after Trideag for the last time! Surrender and we may show you some leniency!" she calls out into the darkness. "Or you could not surrender. Then we get to have a bit of fun teaching you a lesson!"      She starts forward, giant hammer in one hand and fireball in the other. Seeing a screen in the darkness, Sarra heads toward that. Stray Dogs that end up illuminated by her fireball torch receive a hammerblow to the midsection if she doesn't find them cowering.
Petra Soroka	"Sonetto. With me."     After securing the Stray Dogs in the grocery store, Sonetto falls in alongside Lilian without question, hurrying along with her in the direction that Madeleine indicates. With the brisk pace, and having just come off of a fight with several Syndicate members, Sonetto's exerted herself some already, but she catches her breath between sentences rather than gasping between words.     "Director; Sam's Groceries is secured and the employees are watching over the incapacitated Stray Dogs gang members. ... And, there are no major injuries to report of our allies that I saw, besides moderate bruising on both of Finn's upper arms, and light bruising on Odette. .... No heavy injuries to the head or risk of concussion, as far as I am ... aware."     Sonetto looks over at Lilian worriedly while moving in on the Dog Bowl, glasfeder tucked between her fingers hovering by her side, not being put away. "However, um... Knifty's last words before losing connection suggested a drive for revenge against the Syndicate that may lead her to engaging irresponsibly with the enemy. If she has become overwhelmed, I will make it my first priority to extract her."     Sonetto turns into the alleyway and grimaces at the sight of Zulu hanging upside-down. Hanging and carving into flesh is, absolutely, positively, not the kind of behavior she expected out of either Knifty or the organization as a whole; it's much more reminiscent of terrorist-- or Syndicate-- violence than it is of justice. There are lines that simply shouldn't be crossed, no matter how bad their enemies are! "Your call, Commander. Do we get him down now or later or...?"     "Hanging upside down will cause unconsciousness and brain damage within minutes, and accompanied by chest wounds, the blood loss will be rapidly fatal." It doesn't even seem to be in question to her that Lilian would agree with her course of action, stepping up and cutting Zulu down with a swipe of Terra all'Amore. He's deflected just slightly so he doesn't land on his neck and instantly die, but she doesn't make much of an effort to make his landing gentle, and then quickly zip-ties his wrists together after, even though he's surely in no state to go anywhere.     Sonetto purses her lips, more upset by this than she's letting on. "... It cannot be acceptable to behave in such a barbaric manner as to butcher our enemies in this way. This does not inspire trust in the image of the Association if anyone were to see it. Torture should only be utilized in necessary circumstances where a clear informational goal is defined and not to simply inflict pain out of a sadistic impulse. Revenge or not."     Sonetto doesn't linger in earshot of the Thumb's meeting for long. She's creeping around the bowling alley, keeping low below sight of the windows to look for a small side entrance or ladder that Knifty might've taken to sneak in herself, attempting to find her and hold her off until the rest of the Association can gather and form a plan of attack. She's a quarter of the way around the perimeter, nearing where the electrical lines hook into the building, when the power goes out, and that plan has to be thrown out. "Knifty remembers the Code... Dispatch evil without hesitation. Knifty remembers the Code... Guard them as they would guard you."     Sonetto clicks her tongue and levels Terra all'Amore at a fire escape door handle, smashing it with the pommel to force her way in relatively more subtly than Geed does. Her target is to slip around the corner where Gyeong-mi was dragged, getting sight on Knifty to keep her ally from going any more rogue.     "Knifty! Your duty is to your compatriots! That includes following coordinated plans to act in unison regardless of personal feelings!"
Rita Ma	Rita parts with Riku not long after their arrival- or, rather, he parts from her. She's a bit distracted, by something.           drip,             |             ®             |             ¬´                splat.      ... Her eyes track up, and she swallows as the light comes back to them. Right. Right, someone was saying something, and-- they were chasing after Knifty, and-- the words sort of sounded like...      "... cannot be acceptable... butcher our enemies..."      "N-- no. No, it isn't," she remembers to agree, and she means it, even if her objection to the mess might be a little different from Sonetto's.      "I didn't know she could-- is this Knifty's maid training?" Rita wonders out loud. But before anyone can ask her what the hell that means, the lights in the bowling alley go out, and her attention snaps over to the muddled action she can glimpse through its darkened windows.      "Oh, no... Knifty...!"      Her first course of action is politely opening a side-door for the Zwei- then casually tearing it off its hinges, so she doesn't have to keep holding it- and motioning for Morgan and his men. "Come on, get out! Um, please!" From what she sort-of-overheard and what she remembers, they aren't enemies of Trideag; anything to get uninvolved bodies out of the way is probably a sound plan.      And, second...      "Knifty, what are you doing??" she telepathically reaches out, eyes scanning the darkness of the rafters to try to track her friend's movements. "You're in a really bad position! Isn't this dangerous??"      If she got hurt because Rita encouraged her a little too much...
Lilian Rook	Lilian had arrived on the scene expecting to untie Knifty from a set of train tracks; metaphorically or literally. Her haste derives from burgeoning worry that she might already be beyond help, rather than any precognitive urgng towards such immediate action. Her reaction, when seeing Zulu dangling from the streetlamp, is to wrack her brains for all of Nelly's behaviour at HQ in past for an explanation.     §Get this one down and tie him to something else. Split up between the exits; nobody takes one alone.§     "Maids can do anything."     Lilian claps her hands to both sides of her face, groans, and quickly flips her internal and external dialogue again like a misbehaving USB. "Cut him down, anchor him to something, and split up. No less than two to a potential exit." Now she's late to say it after Sonetto. Annoying. "Never mind. Tú ródhéanach cheana féin." She snaps her fingers just for emphasis. No wanting to explain the basics of secure restraint technique to anyone on the spot, as soon as Sonetto has him retrieved and Odette has finished treating him, Lilian has Zulu tied to the base of the lamp instead, using the length of wire previously responsible for his dangling. It's entirely unreasonable, but she figures that in his position, she would crawl out of there if she had to.     As for the alley . . . At times like these, Lilian tends to briefly wish that she had psychometry in her already very full kit as well. So it goes this time, wishing she could know what the the hell happened here before the lights went out. She banishes the desire with the same justification as always, but surely these people were speaking of nothing insignificant, and surely the moment the breaker flipped must have been a sight to see.     '... It cannot be acceptable to behave in such a barbaric manner as to butcher our enemies in this way.'     "It isn't." Lilian replies, with immediacy and not feeling. "But her coming home alive is more important than this, for the moment. Make it your priority to extract her either way. Regardless of what the tactical situation is, she shouldn't be operating without a team."     'Torture should only be utilized in necessary circumstances where a clear informational goal is defined and not to simply inflict pain out of a sadistic impulse.'     Lilian doubletakes at Sonetto, but it's too late to say anything now. At least anything but "Nóiméad ansin." A wisp of inky blackness dissipates into the air where she stood.     Inside the alley, Lilian calls out into the dark. She isn't especially adapted to seeing in it, but creating light of her own is just asking to be an easy target while not seeing anyone else any better; and she's far from afraid of it besides. "My apologies, gentlemen. Your conversation will have to wait to wrap up; we're in the midst of an asset retrieval operation on the scene." she says, before speaking from somewhere completely different. "I'd kindly ask that nobody flee the scene at the moment; we aren't here on contract, so it'd send the wrong message, you know." Walter. "And I'd like to have a word with the ones who've been so adamant on trying to poach our talent."     She relocates again. Numbers, placement, weaponry, tactical intent, chain of command, and ideally names; that's what she's hoping to gather from triangulating surface thoughts inside. In a situation like this, subordinates will naturally think about their superiors, and everyone will be thinking about their secrets and how to defend themselves.
Angela	Zulu isn't in immediate danger of dying (though as Sonetto points out, it's probably not GOOD for him to be hanging like this). The wounds aren't too deep, though the wire is digging quite painfully through his leg and is probably going to do serious damage if he isn't pulled down. Of course, this is The City--it's not impossible to find new legs. Like many in the City, a generous hand offered to someone in active conflict with you, is seen as something suspicious but he's all trussed up and all he can do is try to wiggle but the pain in his legs is discouraging him from doing much of that either. Sarracenia (and Sonetto) can easily cut him down and he isn't going to immediately try and hit her, but he isn't exactly thanking her either. He just uses the opportunity to try and get that wire off of him. If Odette's going to treat his wounds, she probably should hurry. Then again, he isn't being held up anymore. Maybe it'd be better to make oneself scarce... Regardless of what she chooses to do, she can get away before Zulu does anything about it as his legs are still in recovery. Lilian makes the concern moot when she just ties Zulu up to a lamp-post. He ceases his struggles upon seeing her. Her reputation is well known. Regardless, most of the wounded are Stray Dogs right now. The darkness is obscuring their forms but as she spots Gyeon-Mi during a helpfully supplied fireball, members of the Kurokumo spot Odette. "Hey!! That's a minion of the Mad Father! Get her! They took out Sayo!" Three katana wielding warriors rush Odette. They are, at least, intent on taking Odette prisoner, their sword swipes are distinctly avoiding vitals--and unlike some here, they seem accustomed to fighting in the dark. ''Knifty! Your duty is to your compatriots! That includes following coordinated plans to act in unison regardless of personal feelings!'' Knifty reconnects, but she's whispering. "Okay what do you want Knifty to do, pretty sunset hair lady?" Her reign of terror pauses for now. Without light it's hard to see Knifty, but Sonetto headed directly where she was last seen. She can hear Knifty breathing nearby above, amongst the rafters. The fireball briefly, if barely, illuminates her for Knifty to see. "Rita hugs so cozy you can't escape, so Knifty is emulating her with her wires... ehehe... Now Knifty grabs...!"
Angela	Sarracenia approaches Nemo. Nemo glances over to Sarracenia but doesn't take hostile action. "Oh hey laser lady!! Lovely to see the wonderful and beautiful Trídéag stepping up! Real glad to see you. Since we're making deals with each other, gonna warn you that W Corp was clued in to the Enkephalin here and is laying claim. They already hired the Shi Association to collect and they'll be here in just a jiffy." Rita of course can pick out Knifty easily. She's hanging onto the rafters by her feet as she's wrapping the wire around said rafter to keep Gyeong-mi held up there. In fact she can see lots of people muddling about in the bowling alley. There's a broad-shouldered man with an unlit cigar in his mouth sitting at the rear of the Thumb detachment. He has a complicated looking sword onto his lap. It looks like somebody combined a gun and an engine with a podao. Madeleine is accustomed to this sort of environment as well but uses the opportunity to intercept three Thumb Soldato. They dip their head in greeting whereupon Madeleine immediately socks one in the face, sending them sprawling and rubbing at their chin. One charges with the bayonet, going in for several piercing strikes with what's clearly augmented speed and strength while the other uses the power of having a rifle, taking shots out at Madeleine--taking care to avoid hitting their friend. They don't say anything. ''I'd kindly ask that nobody flee the scene at the moment.'' Walter stops and swears under his breath before looking around to try and figure out the source of Lilian's voice. "..Even so, our business here is concluded. Is there something you wanted to discuss, Director?" Reading surface thoughts it's easy to get an idea not of people's positions but what their intents are. In short order. Nemo: Well I'm getting paid either way. She really feels like someone I can bet on, gonna see how far this gravy train takes me~ Bada and Martina: God we hate him. Numerous Soldato, Kurokumo, Allen the guy leading the Night Awls: A combination of swears, panic, and a determination to prove themselves to the Thumb. The Thumb themselves seem pretty calm all told, if startled and tense. Katriel: Capo of the Thumb, about to call Lilian a bitch. Boris: Capo of the Thumb, acting Sottocapo on behalf of Kalo. He's worried that Katriel is going to call Lilian a bitch and force him to cut her tongue out. He wants to stabilize the situation and has called upon a fellow Capo, Lei Heng, for assistance in this whom has been expressly called from the east to assist in fighting Lilian specifically. Huh! Walter: Looks like this plan is a wash, I'll have to go to the Library directly. Walter's subordinates: Happy to see Lilian and hoping Lulu and Mars landed on their feet. Yujin, The Second South Section Director of the Shi Association is wondering if Lilian has spotted her yet since they're practically on top of each other right now. Other Shi Association members: They want the Enkephalin for W Corp. Lei Heng: Is excited to fight Lilian but is unhappy he can't see her so he's going to set off explosions.
Angela	"Hey bitch! We decide when we end our meetings, we're gonna--" Boris sighs. "Katriel... she's higher ranked than you... I warned you last time but I guess I was too lenient? Cut your own tongue out." Katriel grimaces, sticks her tongue out, and immediately severs it from the rest of her face. "Sorry about that, Director. I am unworthy to speak to you but have been given permission to act on behalf of Sottocapo Kalo." "Boris, I request permission to speak." "...Yeah...?" "i was explicitly asked for by Sottocapo Kalo to fight the Trídéag Director so I have permission to engage?" "I'd...rather you didn't but I am not in a position to say no--" Rita can see Lei Heng slide ammunition into his sword's chamber and swing it upward before sending an explosion erupting out of his blade into the rafters. They promptly caught fire, rapidly lighting up portions of the bowling alley. Lilian can definitely see... Yujin standing very close to her, sword ready to strike. She's a woman with black hair and a heavily scarred face. "Uh--we're just here for the Enkephalin. Truce?" She sees Lei Heng rushing towards Lilian and starts running from her position towards the enkephalin crates as do her Shi Association subordinates. Lei Heng wastes no time, rushing at Lilian, taking an energized swing at her with a big grin on his face.            __________________________________________________________                      |ARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING W|                      ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯|=|????? CLASS THREAT|=|¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯                                       ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯                                                       LEI HENG - THE TIANTUI STAR                                      __________________________________________________________                      |ING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARNING-WARN|                      ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
Madeleine Cadrasteia	Madeleine missed the memo (from the Soldato) that it's Stabbing Time. She nearly takes a bayonet to the gut, surprised by their capacity for fighting in the dark. They must eat their carrots! Or they have augments for fighting in the dark, it's probably augments. She dodges back, giving space enough for the rifle-armed Soldato to take a shot at her. In the dark, it punches a hole through one of Madeleine's decoys and ricochets into the wall. Taking advantage of her sudden disappearance, Madeleine repositions herself to put the bayonet wielder between herself and the rifleman, giving herself room to breath as the careful third Soldato won't take a shot at Madeleine (small) from the other side of Thumb Soldato (large).     Then the rafters go up in a burst of flames, and Madeleine gets her first good look at Knifty - or as good as is permitted by the billowing fire. Silhouetted against the spreading fire, Knifty looks genuinely dangerous, an impressive feat. But she's also *in* danger, and the matter of lighting is settled decisively. Madeleine disengages from the Soldato with another decoy substitution and scrambles up a nearby shoe rack (it's a bowling alley! they have lots of shoes!) to jump up into the rafters. Smoke inhalation be damned, she's getting Knifty out of there!     As the upper reaches of the building fill with smoke and spreading flame, Madeleine hops from one rafter to the next toward Knifty. She stays near the intersections of beams, so if the one she's on gives way underfoot she can hop quickly to another. When she gets to the same rafter as Knifty, she reaches down, offering a helping hand up. "Come on!" she shouts above the roaring fire. "You've made your statement! It's time to go!" She coughs a little. Smoke inhalation is quite a bit harder to forget the presence of than even serious physical injuries, so her regenerative ability isn't helping much here...
Odette Raskins	Odette breathes a sigh of relief at so many of the Associations members and leadership being on the same page about getting Zulu down after all. She gets a briefly distant look at Sonetto chiming in with her own knowledge, too, and that's eventually followed by a more somber nod at her assessment of Knifty's behavior. "Right... I-it really isn't. I mean, maybe her heart's in the... I don't know if it's in the right place or not, but it's going to hurt everyone more if this keeps going. Let's get her back so we can..." "Torture should only be utilized in necessary circumstances" "R... Right. Um." Odette's not sure how to react to that initially, but there's a clear discomfort with the idea even though she's definitely contributed to far worse, indirectly or otherwise. She probably just doesn't have the stomach for it. Thanks to Lilian securing Zulu, Odette doesn't have to worry about trying to get him tied up before treatment! She leaves a blood pack tied to his arm to steadly replace what he's lost hanging there, too, and then it's into the market to hopefully find Knifty without getting caught. --- Inside the market, Odette silently thanks Sarracenia for the fireball helping her actually spot anyone inside the market. Spotting a slowly worsening health readout from the corner of her eye, she glances over and spots... Gyeonn-Mi! That's not who she was looking for, but that probably means Knifty isn't too far away. A glance upwards confirms that, but before she can reach out to Knifty... Odette gets caught almost immediately by the Kurokomo. It just had to be the Kurokumo here, too! "Uh..? Mad Father? Is that what you're calling him?" She sounds genuinely confused for a split second, and then that quickly turns to mild panic as she realizes they talking about her in the 'get her' part of the equation. "Th... That's right! It's too.. You're not going to get me that easily!" She calls out, giving up on trying to maintain a low profile now that she's already been caught. Unlike the grocery store, Odette's more prepared for a fight this time around, too! Unlike the grocery store, she's also facing down three people instead of one, and she already knows that a 3 on 1 is not a winning proposition for her. Even a 1 on 1 would be tough for her! Recognizing that their slashes are aimed at disabling her rather than killing her is of little comfort, too, since those swipes still hurt just from the glancing cuts they manage upon catching her off guard, and so she starts to make a run for it! Not too fast, though, since keeping these three busy is more important than actually getting away right now. That's a smart tactical decision, she tells herself while trying not to let the bruises from getting grabbed at the market and the glancing cuts slow her down more than they already are. Being that this is a bowling alley, though, Odette's in a good spot to even the odds with her own expertise! Namely, by running for wherever she sees bowling balls and pins gathered up. Pins get hurled at the Kurokumo trio with pinpoint accuracy while bowling balls get dropped behind her as painful tripping hazards, and Odette doesn't break her stride one bit. Racks get vaulted over and toppled to buy her precious seconds to throw more things at them, too, and counters and tables get slid over or scrambled under as cover so she can fling chairs to continuously harass them and keep their focus on her.
Riku Asakura	Ultraman Geed ignites one hand with energy, trying to find a way through the mass of bodies.  He's fortunate that they decided not to jump him at the same time.  He's still a bit away from Knifty and Madeleine.  Fortunately for Geed, he can fly.   Flying over the heads of the Stray Dogs and lands near Madeleine.  Immediately, he deploys the GEED BARRIER to cover her flank and protect his allies from any attacks from the Stray Dogs, or any of the Thumbs that might want a fight with them.  He's concerned about the fight about to happen with Lilian and the Thumbs woman, who seems to have a... Well, let's call it an obsession with Lilian and fighting her.  Right now, he's more concerned with Knifty and getting everyone out safely.  Lilian can take care of herself, he believes.   "I got your back, Madeleine," Geed says reassuringly to her.
Sarracenia	'Oh hey laser lady!! Lovely to see the wonderful and beautiful Trídéag stepping up! Real glad to see you. Since we're making deals with each other, gonna warn you that W Corp was clued in to the Enkephalin here and is laying claim. They already hired the Shi Association to collect and they'll be here in just a jiffy.'      Sarra mmphs in annoyance at being called laser lady. "I care not if they take that nightmare fuel. We have more important things to worry about. Like our comrade." Sarra says, then peers at Nemo. "...so, why were you here amongst the Stray Dogs? You did not have a hand in siccing them on us, did you?"      The answer to that question may have to wait as the roof suddenly bursts into flames. Sarra likes fire, but today has been about -not- destroying things. So, she pulls out an ice flower to replace her fire powers. She starts tossing the ice bolts upward to try and put out the flames with frost. "Knifty! It is lovely to see you are alright! But, as they are saying, please come down now and let us handle the rest of these Dogs." Is Sarra saying Dogs like that on purpose? "You worried me quite a bit, you know! You were one of the first to welcome me into Trideag, after all!"      Sarra doesn't even seem worried or about to offer help to Lilian in regards to Lei Heng. And Lilian's response to the question is just as Sarra expected anyway. So, Sarra fights the fire while moving to cover one of the exits. Any Stray Dogs that try to slip past her are sure to receive a hammer blow or be half frozen in ice.      And she tries to watch the fight between Lilian and this mystery challenger. She fully expects whoever this is to be flattened in seconds. That scarred woman surprises her, though. Where was she hiding? Sarra looks around in the darkness a little more intently.
Timekeeper	"Okay what do you want Knifty to do, pretty sunset hair lady?"     Regardless of her personal (negative) feelings on Knifty at the moment, Sonetto keeps her tone even and reassuring while drawing her type-13. "Once that Syndicate member is properly restrained, I would like you to stay as closely above me in the rafters as we navigate towards the exit. Our current goal is to ensure that this strike against the Stray Dogs does not result in any of our own being killed or severely injured, now that they are sufficiently broken. Please assist however you may, but prioritize your safety and proximity to me above attacking any more gang members."     Drawing the type-13 in the dark inevitably makes Sonetto an oasis of light in the darkened alley, as if Terra all'Amore was a torch brandished against a cave rather than a weapon. The fuller glows hot orange, dimly lighting her face and hands and casting any of the assailants approaching her as unreadable silhouettes of hostility. As per Lilian's directions, she ascertains at least a handful more Trideag members in her proximity to make part of her core focus: Knifty and Odette, leaving Sonetto as still the only frontal combat-capable. "Since we're making deals with each other, gonna warn you that W Corp was clued in to the Enkephalin here and is laying claim."     "Ah," Sonetto nods, maybe surprisingly more understanding of Nemo's position than she'd be expected to be. Sure he was a bit stressful at the time, and now he's here with a bunch of evil Syndicate goons, but he's always been following proper channels! "Surely this is Enkephalin was acquired by improper means and is likely what W Corporation was searching for all along, and it was only a mistake that led them to suspect the Trideag Association."     Of course Sonetto's done her homework. She knows what the Shi Association is! But she sees absolutely no reason why they'd be in conflict right now, given that they're both Associations, even if she's not exactly fond of their kind of work. "Hey!! That's a minion of the Mad Father! Get her!"     That's the second time that name has come up today!! Sonetto isn't as privy to the Watch operations in the City as Vertin is, so she just doesn't know what that means. It doesn't matter either way, because she filters out that word recognition when the next sentence comes out.     Sonetto intercepts a katana arcing down towards Odette with Terra all'Amore, releasing the trigger and discharging a sudden burst of heat that severs through the opposing blade on impact. "You will not 'get' her! Cease your attempts to kidnap a member of the Trideag Association and you will be allowed to retreat! You are not currently targeted for pursuit."     Tracing a parallel path along the bowling lanes, Sonetto guides Knifty towards the exit that doesn't force them to cut through the middle of the melee. She assists Odette by drawing off all three of the Kurokumo assaulters, a feat she can only manage with Odette's thrown assistance, buying time with the impacts of bowling pins against their faces to let her sword's core recharge more.     "Odette, accompany me and Knifty to proceed towards that exit. The Director will handle herself, and with the leader of the Stray Dogs incapacitated, our only mission is to retreat."
Lilian Rook	'Since we're making deals with each other, gonna warn you that W Corp was clued in to the Enkephalin here and is laying claim.'     Fascinating. That already tells Lilian more than psychometry would. And, added to her long list of 'unfortunately for everyone's, she actually likes that slimeball Nemo quite a bit. "No need. We've nowhere near such a need as to stoop to roughing up petty gangs and seeing what shakes loose." Lilian says, managing to insult W Corp, the Thumb, and Zwei, all at the same time. "And if we did, I still wouldn't do something so ridiculous as try to steal a Wing's lunch right off their fork."     'Hey bitch! We decide when we end our meetings, we're gonna--'     "Right now you're breathing because I've decided you can."     'Katriel... she's higher ranked than you... I warned you last time but I guess I was too lenient? Cut your own tongue out.'     Even Lilian hesitates right before her next sentence. Taken aback without context to fill the gap, Lilian settles for "Perhaps I was mistaken?" in cautious-interested tones. They're uncomfortably close to Katriel. "But I certainly don't recall ever joining the Thumb. What's this about rank, now?" Now she's across from Boris.     '..Even so, our business here is concluded. Is there something you wanted to discuss, Director?'     "Of course." Lilian says, bright enough to be cold. "I warmly suggest leaving the building now, but don't go too far. I'd hate for you to miss out on our discussion, seeing as your heart is set on the Library now." It's right by Walter's ear, then gone again. She isn't on Walter's chain of command, so being guttingly prescient and suggesting that everything is playing out as she expects is the next best thing rigt now.     'i was explicitly asked for by Sottocapo Kalo to fight the Trídéag Director so I have permission to engage?'     This time everyone can hear the sound of a double heel click, where Lilian settles down in the middle of the benches. None of the walking between it, but at least the sudden stop. While Elites scramble to retrieve Knifty, fight minions, and gather what information they can, Lilian holds to her silence in some strange hesitation which, over the course of seconds, gradually unfurls as a sense of obligation.     "What a baffling thing to be asked." Lilian says. She hasn't moved from the last sound she made. "If Kalo means to make an attempt on my life, this is an awfully roundabout and underprepared way of doing it. And this is a godawful place to lure me out to with the Stray Dogs, too. Aren't you worried I'll have my people do you in, ten to one?" The next noise is a click from her belt, and the quiet sound of her gloved thumb sliding down the hilt. "Actually, are you certain you aren't just being punished for bad behaviour?"     The flash in the rafters causes her to shield her eyes on reflex; she's been trained not to close them. Squinting against the harsh glare, left hand partway shielding her face from the heat just before she lowers it, Lilian catches sight of the Shi Fixer, and rolls tremendously well to keep her poker face. Already having been shocked by the explosion makes it a little easier.     'Uh--we're just here for the Enkephalin. Truce?'     "I was ignoring you this entire time, wasn't I?" Lilian half-lies; distinct from half-truth. "Nemo wouldn't be so amateurish as to actually have this negotiation hinge on what he can extort from the Thumb with words." She glances back over at the stranger, and in doing so, realizes they're out of time. "Don't get in my way."
Lilian Rook	Lilian's blade-- her own Type-13-- is loosed from the sheath, as a flash of gold two shades brighter than standard, and a painted trail of haze that carries the smell of burnt metal. She drops her center of gravity with just her knees, feet already in place, and twists her wrist on the scabbard, both at the very last second; the trajectory of her sword comes out from below, as if a draw could somehow ricochet, and the scabbard tumbles over the floor behind her.     It's disparity between her height and Lei Heng's, as well as the directly perpendicular directions of each swing. By exaggerating both, Lilian strikes the bottom of his blade at maximum speed, and sends the force directly over her head. The motion is a circle drawn with her shoulders, and the rest of her body slides sidelong to compensate, culiminating in a twist from both her wrists that uses the full length of her sword as a fulcrum, and drives Lei Heng's weapon as far from his center as mass as it can go with the point. It's all but impossible to notice the twitch of Lilian's pinky finger on the trigger, firing an incandescent line of heat and pressure backwards from her swing, straight into her opponent.     The fact that she doesn't leave it there means that, despite her talk, Lilian has either guessed or intuited that this guy isn't a run of the mill enforcer. The momentum pressing into Lei Heng's sword abruptly disappears, leaving it hanging void as Lilian's blade reverses back down into his torso with a jarring lack of inertia. She steps into his space and around his off-side in the same moment, impossibly fast in the most literal sense, slashing shoulder to hip and flickering back criscross, firing a second cutting wave of heat from the flat of her sword as she retreats back one step into a low guard.
Sarracenia	Of course, Sarra might miss the first few exchanges of the fight because...someone just cut their own tongue off just because they were ordered to! She goes pale and has to turn away. "Oh my g-god! What is wrong with...how could you...HRK!" Sarra covers her mouth to try and contain her lunch.
Rita Ma	Rita vanishes from her place in the brighter-lit doorway, and she reappears up in the rafters a split second later, with her sleeve unraveling into a tentacle that jerks Knifty away from Lei Heng's fire by her waist.      Another sleeve-tentacle flashes in an arc to shave off burning wood, returning the rafters to darkness; then with an anxious glance down, she releases Knifty to Sonetto's care.      Her hand on Knfty's shoulder takes longer to part than the tentacle does, though. "Knifty... I hope you didn't do any of this because you felt like you had to prove yourself." Little wavery expression- Rita can't possibly scold her. "And... we'll talk about staying with the team, and 'cutting messages into people's skin', later. But--"      "I'm proud of you for coming a long way. Thank you for looking after Pete and Finn. I mean it."      She does. She thinks she knows what it feels like, suddenly being someone who can 'look after' others. <J-IC-Scene> Lilian Rook says, "I'd like to know more about the other two, if you're able." <J-IC-Scene> Rita Ma says, "Mmm. I'll do my best."      Right. Deep breath. She's got to part, for now.      Rita drops, vanishes, and reappears right between Boris and Katriel- the smell of fresh tongue-blood makes pinpointing them easy. She's facing Boris, only vaguely wary in her posture; her back's turned to Katriel completely.      "I'm sorry, but I think I heard something about 'nipping Trideag in the bud'. If your friend had to lose her tongue for name-calling, is it fair for you to get away with that?" Her tone is politely even, but she clearly expects the answer to be a punch thrown at her face.      ... The conversation is, partly, a cover for one of her cloaked tentacles to pull the pin on one of the grenades on Katriel's bandolier. They're tough, right? They can survive that sort of thing, surely.
Angela	''You did not have a hand in siccing them on us, did you?'' "Pfffh! My goal is not to conquer the District, sister, why would I do something that STUPID. COME ON." Bada and Martina have set up a full set of pins and Nemo rolls a bowling ball down the way and gets...a STRIKE! He pumps his fist excitedly before he looks up and sees the roof is on fire. "Woops! Guess we better get out of here. Bada, Martina, we'll leave the rest to the Shi!" They seem content to just start making their way to the exit. "Glad to hear it!" Nemo is very happy with that answer. "When I heard about this opportunity I thought 'W Corp isn't picky at all and it'll buy all my new pals some time if they got ahold of this batch. Good luck with ...all this!" They leave without further issue. The Shi Association have to cut down some Soldato on the way to the Enkephalin. Boris does his job and punches the sword of one of the Shi Association members hard enough that it cracks before kicking her away, but he's clearly distracted by Lilian's presence. ''What's this about rank, now?'' "The Thumb has rules of etiquette." Boris tells Lilian. "Even if you're not part of the organization--and even if we are to fight to the death--we're expected to obey proper etiquette. You are a high ranking Fixer that's also the Director of an Association. Nobody lower than a Sottocapo has the authority to speak to you without permission from one--or yourself. Normally I wouldn't be talking to you either, but I'm authorized to act on our Sottocapo's behalf." He glances over to Lei Heng, suggesting that he has similar Lilian-specific permissions despite not exactly acting as how Boris would like right now. He even clucks his tongue in annoyance at the fires consuming the bowling alley. This was THEIR bowling alley after all and Lei Heng's wrecking it just so he can fight Lilian better!! ''Aren't you worried I'll have my people do you in, ten to one?'' Lei Heng, a maniac, considers the question. "I only see two of you." Well he certainly knows how to talk shit, though he does glance to Sonetto--considering--but ultimately decides to not ammend the statement just yet. Walter would definitely not stick around on Lilian's behalf just because she asked nicely--Lulu's rescue of Mars wasn't a good look considering how the Zwei treated a Color's kid--but her mention of the Library makes him startle, "How...?" He pauses. "...Fine. We'll remain on standby." They leave, of course, but will stay a block or two away instead of immediately leaving for their territory. ''I was ignoring you this entire time, wasn't I?'' Yujin grimaces and tells herself she needs to get better at hiding but she throws a a salute and rushes to join her companions rushing towards the enkephalin crates. Along the way, she gives a grateful nod to Sonetto. They may be hired killers but Yujin ... seems weirdly polite? "Thank you. If you need help once we've done our job, we'll do what we can. Pleasure to meet you, ma'am." She's not so sure it's a mistake but she doesn't want to fight Lilian. Seems risky for no purpose. Allen and the Night Awls who were engaged with Riku see him just leap to the rafters. The Night Awls aren't suicidal enough to follow him up there and with a soft curse from Allen, they start retreating back towards Boris. They weren't officially given any order to attack. The GEED BARRIER can deflect incidental attacks but rather than direct assault, he has to more worry about blocking the fiery debris and sparks than direct assaults towards Madeleine.
Angela	The Soldato are fighting in the dark! But, well, Madeleine did just physically punch a guy who was right next to them in the jaw. They seem pleased to have shot through Madeleine but upon realizing it's a 'decoy' they swear and get back to looking. Of course, as fire bursts across the rafters, the fusebox is starting to become way less relevant, they send a call over to Boris and after getting permission, abandon their mission and start retreating back towards him and Katriel. GEED's defensive shielding further discourages them from continuing their attempts to take out a member of Trídéag. Odette runs! The Kurokumo give chase! She flings bowling pins at them, konking one in the head (one literally slices a pin in half jesus christ) and a third trips over the bowling ball. They're real mad now but by the time they catch up, Sonetto is there and a three on two in a burning building--is a proposition they're less invested in. They hesitate and, noticing the fire, start backing off--frustrated, but they aren't interested in dying here. Knifty was told to stay close to Sonetto but as they do a fighting retreat, she makes her way across the rafters along with Madeleine and Riku back towards the exit. --though Rita helps bring her back down so at least Madeleine and Riku won't have to deal with smoke fumes anymore. Knifty immediately hugs the tentacle, immediately forgetting the situation, and assures Rita, "Noooo. It was easy!" She promises her. "They kept hurting people who were nice to me so I hurt them back." She beams at the Thank You. Best day ever! She doesn't realize that Sonetto doesn't like her yet because she's a bit dumb. ''Is it fair for you to get away with that.'' "We're fighting over the same turf." Boris tells Rita. "Seeing you as a threat that has to be stopped first is a sign of respect." Boris seems to know his way around the Thumb's rules but as expected a punch does come, though it's for Rita's gut--trying to knock the wind out of her, apparently, rather than go for a concussion. Katriel reaches for a grenade--the very grenade Rita just pulled the pin of--and it explodes in her hand. She is thrown back, her hand a bloody mess. The rest of her is fine though! "...Nice trick." Boris says. Unlike the rest of the Thumb, he doesn't seem all that armed which suggests that he has the skill to make up for the lack of reach. His punches are fast and brutal, well-techniqued if not overly complicated. This whole situation means the Shi Association has an easy path with the Enkephalin. Yujin even says 'Thanks.' They are so happy for the easy job. Lei Heng, despite also being a capo, is the big problem. Katriel made her way to Capo through loyalty, Boris made it up there through skill and knowing the rules, Lei Heng chose his position. And he loves the path of violence much more than the rest. He's similar to Gebura in that he strikes with overwhelming force, but not quite. His initial strikes are bad, but it's his followups that are the real problem. Nobody likes an explosion that near their body. Nobody except this guy, anyway. Attempting to maneuver the blade has some success. Lilian pushes the blade up but he activates the explosion early as a result, sending a burst of flame and shrapnel at Lilian at close range--even if, certainly, less close than if she hadn't knocked the force of his sword off. He is caught off guard by that burst of heat and pressure and is caught dead-on by it, though he grits his teeth through it, only pushed back for a moment--Lilian's blade pushes for his torso-- He twists his body away, kicking at Lilian's sword hand, and slamming his sword down to protect himself from the second heat wave. He knows enough to adapt, going for a second explosive swing. "You're an ''artist''." He exclaims happily.
Riku Asakura	Geed declines to have fisticuffs with Allen and the Night Awls.  There were more important things at stake, like Knifty.  Flying out of their range and into the literal fire gets them off his tail.  He doesn't spare a look at the member of the Thumbs who takes her own tongue, though.  There is so much going on, and so much attention can be spared for things going south as they were.   Geed uses his shield to protect Knifty and Madeleine.  Eventually expanding that to include Sonetto and Oddette as well, once they meet back up with the two girls.  The shield drops once they start getting into fistcuffs again.   Geed uses his fists to punch people, attacking them away, trying to provide the best defense he can provide... which is a good offense.  He aims kicks and punches for those trying to get at any of his comrades in Trideag, as they make a fighting retreat back out of the building.  Other than Rita and Lilian, he tries to make sure he's the last one out of there.
Odette Raskins	A katana breaks! Is it shoddy craftsmanship? It might be, but Odette's pretty sure shoddy craftsmanship doesn't include melting and snapping. She had caught a glimpse of Sonetto further above when she brought out the type-13 already, and the shouts from above all but confirm that the valiant Sonetto has come to her aid once again! She'll have to save any potential swooning for later, though, since the Kurokumo are still right there and trying to wreck her limbs and non-vital areas. "The exit? Right away, Miss Sonetto! But will..?" Odette doesn't even have to finish that sentence to know the answer to the question in her head already. She knows just about everyone here's more than capable of fighting their way out if they had to, and Lilian's probably the last person she'd need to worry about, but the idea still doesn't sit well with her. Still, having to choose between that and having to deal not only with Kurokumo members aimed specifically at her in the middle of a growing fire is not a difficult choice to make at all. If anything, the fire might actually help her make that choice even faster! "We'll call it a draw, then!" She calls out to the Kurokumo as they make their exits, then looks around frantically to try and spot Sonetto and Knifty through the flames. "C-come on, Miss Sonetto! Knifty! We need to go before it gets any worse here!" She calls out, grimacing slightly when she sees the latter heading in a different direction at first, then breathing another sigh of relief when she sees which way Knifty is headed and the fact that Rita's with her as well.   She'll get burn cream ready once she's outside, too, but it'l have to be put on during the escape. Even if the Kurokumo and Stray Dogs aren't after them anymore, Odette's not keen on sticking around any longer than she has to.
Madeleine Cadrasteia	Madeleine, with Sonetto's assistance and Geed's cover, comes down from the rafters and accompanies Knifty out through the fire exit Sonetto came in through. Once they're outside the building, she turns to Knifty and takes one of the other fixer's hands in her own in a firm but caring squeeze.     "They kept hurting people who were nice to me so I hurt them back."     "The Director may be upset with you running ahead without support or permission. I want you to know that what's in your heart isn't wrong - but the world is." Her grip tightens a little, tone turning serious but still not upset. "Striving for our hearts' desires won't always go well." Her eyes, night and falling stars, are hard to read - but maybe that's helpful, here. "Don't let that stop you from wanting."     A grenade goes off inside, accompanying the blasts of Lei Heng's sword. "Stay with the others. I'm going to help Rita." And go she does, back into the burning building. Staying on the ground level this time, and carefully navigating around the Shi Association arrivals, Madeleine hustles toward the two-on-one between Rita and the Thumb representatives.     Instead of rushing in to engage, she throws a bolas at Katriel, aiming to bind her legs - anything to buy Rita time before the next grenade comes into play. The weighted-ended rope skims low to the floor, wrapping itself securely around the Thumb agent's ankles. Then Madeleine's into the fray; leaving Boris to Rita, she engages with the hopefully-still-entangled Katriel. She tries to get in close and grapple with Katriel, hoping the explosive expert's augments and techniques won't be enough to match her own strength.
Rita Ma	The burst of aerosolized blood about eight feet behind Rita and two to her right from the grenade going off should distract her- but being the one to pull the pin, she was braced for it. Her pupils dilate but stay focused.      The grenade's pressure front staggers her forward into the punch, but she draws her elbows down to guard her gut against it, twisting her body to try to slip inside Boris's reach. A striker like him doesn't make it easy, and she has to abort several of her little zips-in to back off and shoulder-roll a punch instead, but around the time she hurls one of the bowling alley's tables at him to break line-of-sight...      "The Thumb has rules of etiquette."      "... That's just kind of horrible, isn't it?"      As the airborne table splits into two halves and the forward-swung flame jet of Rita's Trideag sword- finally drawn- breaches through to test how Boris will defend, it illuminates her face in the dim bowling alley, expression queasily firm.      (She's taking him perfectly seriously, but there's a certain economy of information here, now that Madeleine's helping her. In front of so many eyes from so many factions, she shouldn't give away too much of how 'Rita' fights unless she has to. ... And putting her sword training to use is fun!)      "I didn't really ask for that kind of respect. And Ms. Rook didn't either. It feels like you made her cut out her own tongue for no reason, really."      The sword, she expects, will be a bad matchup for a bare-knuckled brawler, backed up by her slightly-amateurish form and top-notch speed and strength: parrying steel with forearms seems bad, grabbing it or retreating gets a flame-jet in response, and her reach with the blade exceeds his with his fists. She pushes the assault steadily, probing what he's got for an answer. What's an Acting Sottocapo of the Thumb made of?      "You don't think of that as a 'waste of obedience'? It seems more like it's meant to intimidate and scare people. Like you're holding yourselves hostage, or something. I don't like it."
Timekeeper	"Thank you. If you need help once we've done our job, we'll do what we can."     In the lull Sonetto has between the burning rafters warding the Kurokumo off and Odette's projectile assistance for the same, she gives Yujin a tense nod in return. Mentally, she makes a note of something to bring up to Lilian later-- surely there's a better way to establish relations between Associations than happening to come across each other mid-melee. Regardless of Yujin's apparent attitude-- not that Sonetto even knows her name-- there's no way to be certain of placing any trust in an organization of contract killers, but an Association that has no ties with one that should be a political equal is a much easier target in the future than one with rapport. "We'll call it a draw, then!"     Sonetto has adapted quickly to Odette's habit of just not ending her sentences, by becoming comfortable with bulldozing past her in a conversation when she starts rambling. As the Kurokumo clan draws back, Sonetto puts her hand on Odette's shoulder and lightly shoves her in the direction of the exit, cutting off her sentence to insist that she get a move on. Hurrying up the stairs away from the bowling lanes, she holds one sleeve over her mouth to filter the smoke and looks back over her shoulder to check that they're not being pursued by any of the various Syndicates before drawing out her pen again.     "Uguale raggio mi chiude in un centro di buio." The written script expands into a circle orbiting around the both of them, cursive strung from the ending of one letter to the beginning of the next like a ring. It contracts around them and fades, dulling the heat to a gentle warmth and deflecting any crumbling structure with flashes of light.     "Director Rook advised us earlier to not attempt witticisms towards our enemies without the strength to back them up," Sonetto faintly admonishes Odette while urging her towards the exit. Knifty leaving them is-- fine, when she glances over to see that she's still sticking with Trideag Fixers, and she and Odette still make the minimum of two.
Sarracenia	'Pfffh! My goal is not to conquer the District, sister, why would I do something that STUPID. COME ON.'      Sarra hmphs softly. "And yet, you continued to bowl even in the midst of an attack and a fire." she says as the trio leaves. She doesn't try to stop them since...well, there's no real proof of them doing anything. And unfortunately they haven't made her mad enough to smash them just for being jerks.      'Good luck with ...all this!'      Sarra mmphs again. "...thank you." she mutters.      Sarra's ice bolts seem to be having little effect on the fire, so instead she moves to join Geed and Madeleine in helping clear the path for Sonetto and Knifty. Once outside, she listens to Madeleine talking to Knifty. She nods in agreement with Madeleine. "It is a heroic trait to wish to protect your friends."      Madeleine heads back in, and Sarra blinks. "...well, I suppose we should help. Though, I doubt anyone in there can threaten Rita or Lilian." Sarra says as she also heads back in. She gives Odette a headpat and a green mushroom on the way back in. "Good work as always, Miss Odette." she says.      Helping Lilian is still out of the question, so she moves to reinforce Rita as well. With Madeleine aiming for Katriel, Sarra charges forward with her massive hammer and leaps. She spins through the air, sending a few ice bolts at him before aiming to smash him into the ground. "I hope you do not mind if I assist you, Miss Rita!"
Lilian Rook	'The Thumb has rules of etiquette.'     "And here I thought that concept was extinct in the City." Lilian say. The words may just be petty talk, filling empty air, but she means them. "Of course, it's little more than dressing up for what you actually do, and even then, someone uncharitable might only call that sort of thing 'your group's fixation'. Even if I think something like 'Finally. Would it really kill people to have a little class? To stand on literally anything?', the fact is that this style of etiquette can't be much different from a prescript, can it?" She lets herself stare at Katriel, oh-so terribly meaningfully. "Though I'm certain it has its utility as well. Those who can't understand common sense can at least be taught manners."     'How...?'     "Because I'm Lilian Isabelle Rook; though you'd be better off assuming that I'm the next best thing to God."     'I only see two of you.'     Lilian laughs, monosyllabic. "You're a funny guy aren't you?" Somehow she can't help but sound fond, despite also saying, "You look like a right cunt."     He's also not fucking around. Lilian was far from sure what to make of his overwrought contraption at first; she's seen people in the City overrely on tech to try and compensate for a lack of fundamental ability, or out of maniacal enthusiasm for the spectacle rather than the particulars, and she'd been dimly hoping Lei Heng to be one of those. The explosion is something she'd banked on, given the fact that the sword is being fed ammunition, but the shrapnel is more than she'd like; intuition more than precognition urges the specific way she turns her body away from it, ducking her head and letting her coat take the fragments rather than risking ceding ground to him.     She adjusts her idea of what to expect from his augmentations when he grunts and powers through taking the SN-13 mechanism straight to the chest, replacing her the third step queued up in her mind with the right angle to flash-burn his face, and the one after it takes form as a lethal thrust to his throat when he defends against it, but those are dropped and replaced yet again when his kick to the back of her hand sends the slash-release wide.     §Finger check. All clear. Glad I armoured these gloves. Core check. Cold. Ten seconds for enough charge to rely on. Skipping ahead will tip him off too much. He doesn't seem scared of taking one of his own shells; so don't rely on being inside his minimum range. The fragments are random and simultaneous, so parrying them is out. Tough to tell how strong he is, but he's definitely bigger than me. He's got a well-built body; I don't see any weaknesses. Look. That mechanism isn't as complicated as it looks, but I should try to damage it first; if it's a straight swordfight, I'll have less to think about.§     'You're an ''artist''.'     Lilian makes a startlingly aggressive step in, and turns the motion of bringing her blade back in line into an explosive pommel strike from the butt of her sword, aimed directly at her opponent's brow-bone. From the recoil back, she throws her right elbow at his throat, then suddenly drops both arms to her center, lowering her sword out of his reach and sweeping across his stomach line in the some motion she retreats again. "And you're not incompetent." passes her lips while she's busy thinking.
Lilian Rook	Like most Fixer garments, her coat is well-armoured enough that stray shrapnel from an out-of-position explosion won't get through. The few places it's been cut open betray the oddly old-fashioned ballistic plates she'd insisted on the carriers for anyways; and the hastily re-buttoned dress shirt beneath that. She evades the next swing by abruptly voiding even more space, watching Lei Heng's hand for prepatory motion rather than waiting for the boom, and taking off in a parallel direction; just a few feet, to dodge shrapnel and throw off his vision, primarily utilizing feint footwork more than supernatural powers. Flattening her stance so low that anyone else would be in danger of falling over from those zigzag motions at such an extreme angle, she skids under the blast wave, kicks aggressively towards Lei Heng again, and thrusts straight for his center mass.     Both hands close to her chest, where they can't be intercepted, Lilian trades the speed of a full extension for that security. It's more easily defended against this way, but that's a factor in her plan anyways; if he takes it with the flat of his very broad weapon, she can alter her grip and twist the point of her sword into the firing chamber, and if he deflects it away from him, she has enough heat built up again to slice through the ammo feed in kind.     Committing to those two actions, what happens after has to come thoughtlessly and automatically, without time to reassess and deliberate; the word "Cleasa." and the faded mechanical glow of her sword being entirely supplanted by glaring off-scarlet energy-- power of a kind that her Type-13 isn't designed to handle, fracturing the blade during the split second it appears to flicker between solid and shadow to slip through a second guard entirely.
Angela	''Sarracenia complains about Nemo bowling.'' Nemo technically started bowling before the fire, but he doesn't care enough to argue. He waves a hand at Sarracenia, confident she will step in front of more lasers which is always a wonderful plan in his books because it means fewer lasers for him and his clients to stand in front of. So long as the lasers are hitting Sarracenia and not Nemo, he'll like her just fine. The Kurokumo are falling back though one glowers at Odette as she spouts a one liner--they might have just turned around and went after Odette again just out of anger but Sonetto chides her and that seems to discourage them from changing from their plans. ''The Director may be upset with you running ahead without support or permission.'' "Up...upset...?" The rest of what Madeleine has to say pales in comparision to this. "...Did I do bad...?" Tears appear in her eyes. "I messed up???" She immediately starts bawling her eyes out as she's escorted out. She almost forgot to, because of this upsetting information!! She wants to clean up messes! Not be one!! But fortunately, Odette and Riku can guide her out without further issue. They can see the Zwei Association lingering a reasonable distance away from a bowling alley that happens to be burning to death. Between GEED's shields and Sarracenia's arcanum, they'll be able to get out without any significant burns or smoke inhalation, though for the latter it might pay to have a medical examination later.
Angela	''That's just kind of horrible isn't it?'' "I like having rules and structure." Boris says. He's not about to take his mind off of the Rita fighting him to look at the Lilian who isn't. "People compare the Index and the Thumb a lot but I feel people wouldn't if they actually lived under them." He pauses. "...But even if it's just a fixation, it's reliable. It's the chaos that gets you, ma'am." He then answers Rita, "If Katriel didn't want to live this way, she wouldn't have signed on. There's other Syndicates she could've picked." Katriel doesn't seem to be inclined to have a change of heart over Rita's sympathies, she doesn't even seem to understand them despite, somehow, being the one who is constantly running her mouth! Boris is of the mind that he has to keep the pressure on Rita. Her reach is larger than his so he stays on her, though this isn't going to work as a long term strategy. Eventually the burning building is going to settle the matter and he suspects that he'll fare less if the building collapses on top of him than Rita would. A table is thrown at him! He throws a punch to punch through it but his hand meets flame. He grimaces and snaps his hand back, shaking out his injured hand while looking at Rita's sword. "...Didn't expect a Star to rely on that." He murmurs. "...Well done." That action puts him on the backfoot, though there's a sense he's not exactly going all out himself either. He is keeping tabs on the situation and is seeing that it's foolish to try and keep this fight won. The bigger battles are yet to come. The sad truth is that the other team got the drop on them this time. The Stray Dogs may've been loyal, but they ain't worth it. "I don't know, way I see it--acts of contrition go a long way when dealing with people. You make sure people know their place with regards to you, and you let others know your place with them. Fits like clockwork. It doesn't seem like you sent your girl out this time. Worked out this time, but will it next time?" He backpedals away from the sword strikes, occassionally striking the underside with his fist to try and knock Rita off balance. Sarracenia jumping in while Boris is so focused on Rita gives Sarracenia the advantage. The ice bolts slam into his feet, briefly freezing them (with the heat, it's only going to be for a moment) but as the hammer comes down--Boris sees an opportunity to escape. He brings his arms up, blocking Sarracenia's hammer moments before it smashes his skull in. He grits his teeth--it's an impressive hammer! The ice shatters around his feet as he slides back, gritting his teeth before he flings Sarracenia back at Rita before turning and running towards Katriel. Discouraging further pursuit, a number of Soldato arrive, firing bullets at the two of them--but they're also retreating, their bayonets are mostly firing to discourage pursuit. Katriel, of course, has her own issues. Katriel is struggling to get another explosive, no doubt intending to throw it at Rita to help Boris out, only for Madeleine to wrap her ankles up and send her tumbling to the ground while she's already disoriented. She pops the pin and throws the grenade ''past'' Madeleine, but when it explodes it'll explode close enough for the fire and shrapnel to hit Madeleine in the back. Boris protects his face with his arm as he runs back, ducking down to heft Katriel up on one shoulder and run out the back. "Lei Heng! We're falling back!"
Angela	Lei Heng is still gripping that cigar in his teeth, but he hasn't had a moment to light it. ''You look like a right cunt.'' "Aren't the first to say that." He admits. The fact that he can control that weapon at all is frankly a miracle and he isn't the sort of person to not take advantatge of his miracles. "When you look like me it pays to have a sense of humor." He snaps back at the flashburn aimed at his face which, helpfully, lights his cigar and but it does scorch the sides of his face before he can completely pull away. Lilian goes to strike his his forehead but he slides back, tilting his head back to avoid that particular strike. Another pommel strike, a surface thought thinks, uses all the sword. No material wasted. He punches and grabs at her hand going for his throat, but Lilian drops her hands before he can get a good grip on it, firing another explosion to further propel him back to avoid the most critical swipe at his belly. "Would've been dead already if I was that weak. Was warned about you, but makes sense now that a hushen would fall for you. Everyone knows they are drawn to rare beauty." He goes for the deflection rather than the block--Lilian gets a swipe across the ammo feed, disgorging ammo onto the floor. It rolls away into flame and bursts, causing more miniature explosions and more fire to spread. As Lilian goes for the last strike, he does move to block--and the blade passes through and gets a nice carve on his chest, but he doesn't back away, electing to use the opportunity to stab the blade for Lilian's sword arm's shoulder--though a sudden burst of fire forces him back before he can follow up on that. "Well if you weren't clever they wouldn't have called me." Lei Heng admits mournfully as he pulls free the ammo. He shifts his stance subtly and rushes back at Lilian again-- --but falling timber crashes before him and interrupts his approach. He clucks his tongue, annoyed, pacing around intend to move across the debris rather than waste valuable energy punching through it but-- ''Lei Heng! We're falling back!'' "Hahh...How regretful... We only just started the viewing." Lei Heng laments, sheathing his blade. "Do not worry, virtuoso. We'll get another oportunity." He steps into the smoke and haze and vanishes from sight.
Madeleine Cadrasteia	Madeleine has less in her array of talents for dealing with explosives than with most other forms of attack - it's not often she has to fight a monster that also possesses and knows how to use bombs. Unfortunately this means the shockwave from the grenade knocks her off her feet, shrapnel embedding itself in her jacket and drawing spots of blood across her back, and by the time she rolls out of her sprawling and stands up Boris has Katriel and is on his way out. With the building coming down around her, it seems like it's time for Trídéag to leave as well.     When she emerges it is to a distraught, tearful Knifty. Oops.     "...Did I do bad...?"     "That's..." Madeleine pauses. "Maybe. Can't say yet how the Director'll handle this. But handling it's her job, not yours. Don't... punish yourself for something past the point that you've learned the lesson." If there's anything you can count on an Excrucian doing, it's embracing a certain amount of self-loathing. Surely this can only help!
Rita Ma	"...Didn't expect a Star to rely on that."      Shouldn't you use the tools you have? Just trying to run over everything with your abilities... it's like not watching where you're walking. Someday you're going to trip.      That's what goes through Rita's head, anyway. What comes out of her mouth is: "The more I hear what people expect from Stars, the less I like them."      "It's the chaos that gets you, ma'am."      "You make sure people know their place..."      "'Things' have a place. 'People' are just people," Rita says, smoothly subdued. She could sound vehement, but she doubts passion would convince a man like Boris, and she's heard enough people say words like those that they don't make her freshly angry.      He strikes the sword from below. She lets it fly up out of her grasp, and lunges low to punch Boris in the stomach instead, almost mirroring his form.      The impact- wham- skids her back several inches even dug-in, and likely puts him further.      "Everyone in charge says that about 'chaos'," she adds, as the sword lands in her hand. Return to ready stance. "They forget that there's a difference between order and control. 'Without me, this would all fall apart...' I bet it's nice to believe, because it justifies anything."      Off to the side, Katriel's second grenade goes off. Rita feels a small, bitter, spiteful whim. As Boris moves to pick her up, a cloaked tentacle reaches out and pulses a glowing energy against her lips.      The tongue is just a muscle. That's easy enough to heal.      ...      Boris leaves. Rita doesn't chase. As the chaos settles down, and she flashes a smile at Madeleine, she hears a familiar sobbing outside.
Lilian Rook	'I like having rules and structure.'     '...But even if it's just a fixation, it's reliable. It's the chaos that gets you, ma'am.'     §Don't agree with him out loud. Not with these people, and not here. Your standards haven't fallen so low you'll be swayed by a little decorum from gangsters, have they?§     'It doesn't seem like you sent your girl out this time. Worked out this time, but will it next time?'     "There won't be a next time." Lilian says. The words are cold and her voice is hot. Knifty being here proves his point and she knows it. She's done almost too well at promoting a sense of familial loyalty within the ranks and not enough at instilling discipline; she knows that. It's hard. Why is it hard? Only just now, and with these people, never before or with anyone else.     Of course she doesn't have time to think about it now. Lei Heng is keeping up with her much better than she'd like. Even if she's opened up a few injuries, he's the one getting used to her and not vice versa; Lilian is perfectly aware that if she doesn't finish things in the next exchange, two at best, she'll have to draw Night Mist instead and don the Lady in Black, which makes this 'like Lobotomy Corp' and not 'like the City'. And she'd rather not.     She feels a sudden spike of adrenaline when he ducks the pommel strike, and a wave of gratitude that she'd chosen to void the strike after the elbow rather than try to grab the side of his head as she'd briefly intended. She clenches her muscles against the stinging slow-spread of numbness through her arm where his fist hit, and shields herself with both arms and her blade from the backblast of his escape explosion, widening the tears in her coat-- and her eyes, a few degrees more sharply focused, when she lets down her hands.     The split second-guess at whether she'd hesitated and pulled back too much when he takes the slash to the chest is interrupted by Lilian twisting herself to the side at the last moment, arching away from the stab at her shoulder, so late that it rips through her clothing entirely. Not wanting to act too dramatically unless she absolutely has to, she improvises, kicking one of the fallen shells up off the ground and igniting it at face level, taking her distance in the same moment. There, she holds her guard with enough poise to mask her reluctant awareness of the tempo building up in her heartbeat and breathing; the metabolic heat and biological rhythm stoked up by combat.     'Was warned about you, but makes sense now that a hushen would fall for you. Everyone knows they are drawn to rare beauty.'     "You'll make me sound like a flirt." Lilian shoots back. Her focus is mostly on controlling her breathing; resisting the instinct that tells her to shift gears and go at this guy like she would someone Grade 1; whether out or denial or tactical relevance is increasingly difficult to tell. It's focus enough to forget that she is, in fact, an incorrigible one. "I'll take the compliment because it's simply a fact, but I'd hardly know what to say back. I don't know the first thing about you."     'Hahh...How regretful...'     "Serves you right for shooting off early." Lilian scoffs. "It was your idea to blow up the rafters. You like flashiness a little too much."     §Viewing? Like flowers? What is this guy's problem.§     'Do not worry, virtuoso. We'll get another oportunity.'     ". . ."
Lilian Rook	It's in all that smoke that Lilian exhales. When she lets down her guard, it feels like stopping short after a dead sprint; she can feel the unpleasant pounding in her chest for not respecting how far she is from her baseline. Glancing around the burning warehouse, Lilian next notices the burning in the back of her throat, and suppresses the urge to cough. "Everyone move out!" Lilian hits her radio, turning and talking as she walks.     "I'll send the signal for Pete's team to move! Sundew, get over there and help them transport captives; take the one outside with you! Asakura; supervise her!" Hurrying out of the smoke, Lilian takes a few moments just to breathe the air outside.     "Rita? Meet up with the other team at these coordinates please. Don't let Knifty run off. Everyone else, with her, and keep your eyes on Knifty. I have to talk to Zwei; I'll be back later. And Knifty, you're confined to quarters until midnight. We'll have a talk."