[FURY] Catch a thief (Dog1.0)

scott

Dog:

The streets of old Sea-town. East of SafeCo

Tin-girl swears she left her h-bike running for like, "30-seconds, tops", when she came back into the joint to drop off her gear. Long enough for the red-rotted bastard to mount up and somehow get the fire sequence right. It ain't easy piloting an h-bike unless you been schooled in it.

You catch glimpses of him around each bend... then the next. Vertical impellers shoot up red tails from puddles of last night’s rain. Guy rides wheeled bikes. You can tell he's a good rider, but doesn't get the slip of the h-bikes around the corners and keeps clipping curbs... makes Tin-girl wince each time.

"That's my damn bike, you rot-ass bitch!"

He keeps looking back at you during those moments, guy’s long ponytail flaps around like mad in the wind like it's daring you to catch him.

Tin-girl holds on, one arm around your middle and the other grips her revolver white-knuckle tight. She raises it from time to time, but with the speed and the turns and the wind. There's just no way.

"This is just great! I ain't even got juice in my tank, Dog, running on fumes here!" calls Sounder from your six. This guy's costing you time, the others are back at the joint prepping for the job as you chase this joker through the city... you and Tin, Sounder... who else is with you?

Where are you supposed to be right now, Dog? No chance you just let him go and get on with your life is there? I mean... you don't exactly have a spare h-bike gathering dust in the garage.

What do you do?

halcy

SOAK. THIS. PUDDLE-SPLASHING. ROT-PICKING. PUNK.

NOBODY steals an Arrow's bike and lives. What are we without 'em? Who's gonna respect us if he gets away with this? People will laugh. Laugh at Tin-Girl! Laugh at me!

Tin-Girl's bike is the prettiest, too, it's full of her love. Runs smooth and doesn't have the shimmy mine does when you open 'er up all the way. It'll be sad if we have to lose it.

The big red lenses over my eyes keep the bloody water out and make the world look as angry as I am, whippin past me fast like my blood. I gotta keep my body between Rot-Pick's splash and Tin-Girl's face 'cause she's eye-bare and squinting. During a straight I push the revolver down. "It's a waste! We gonna do this close!"

Since Sounder's behind me and sucking fumes I raise up a hand and sign it out to her ::Sounder tell Rainey go:: Then I make eye contact with the girl on my 4, Hachiko, and I let her know ::Trees::

If I weren't so bloody mad I might send Hachiko to get him all by herself. She never gets bored waiting or chasing, she doesn't move or let up, whatever's needed. Patient. But I'm mad, and Tin-Girl needs this now. We're gonna harry him into the woods where his inexperience will get him bloody killed.

We're all supposed to be doing a guard detail right now, escorting some of Admiral's people while they brush close to the forest and get water, beat back the new growth that could ruin the scavenge that his hold claims around SafeCo [such as it is].

halcy

Rolling Act Under Fire; (Rolled: 2d6+1. Rolls: 6, 2. Total: 9)

scott

Dog
You glance over a shoulder at Tin-girl, little spots of red pepper her cheek, her eyes are red with anger, shame... you feel her hand around you, her fingers twist hard enough to hurt. It's all she can do right now. She lowers her gun.

Sounder let's off the throttle, leans over to shout a few words to Hachiko before kicking into a turn and heading back to the joint.

Hachiko's bike sings a chord in your ear as she slowly passes, she keeps it overtuned despite Tin-girl's protests and Hachiko grins a toothy grin as she passes. You can feel Tin-girl wince at the sound of that engine.

Let's see how quick you can catch this guy... roll to act under fire. (You already have.)

scott

Dog
Ahead the ruined streets give way to clumps of trees forcing their way up through sidewalks and parks, Trunks askew and growing at all angles... the way ahead is treacherous and here's no way you'd burn through here at full throttle... except he's not slowing down.

You can totally catch him here but that means forcing him off the road or into the trees, gonna trash the bike pretty bad... or you can lay off and try to catch him in the old growth where the trees grow true and the way is straighter. Maybe take him peaceful-like... or maybe let him get away.

What do you do?

halcy

I'm not letting him get away. When the path to his wreck is clear my lips peel over my teeth, showing the dull steel color of my sharp fake canines. Got em replaced in the Big Open, got told the people thought it was more fair if I had em.

I nudge the tail of his stolen ride, baying wordless shouts at him. Bounce him to Hachiko, who does the same. Slide in between him and his drift into a turn under a diagonal tree and snarl; that's when he eats it. Tin-Girl's ride powers forward, rolls, scrapes to a halt in a thick mess of rubble and undergrowth and plant guts.

I stop my ride, put it on stand-by. "Tin-Girl, he's all yours. I'm gonna get the rope."

scott

Dog

The guy has to slow around an especially overgrown bend in the road on the way out of the city, he slips and skids sideways just enough for you to gun the engine and close, fast.

Hachiko comes out of nowhere and howling like mad, she clips the front impeller as she passes and the guys bike spins into you so you look him in the eye as you make your approach.

He guns the throttle and pulls desperately on the bars, your eyes meet for just a moment as you bare your fangs but with the bikes nose busted he cant get out of your way.

what do you do?

halcy

I laugh at him. If I was the only person on my bike I'd wheelie up and give him a face full of thrust. I'm not so I slow and swing my bike around him as we pass, slide off the momentum like the pro he isn't. Reach out a hand and take that ponytail of his. Gun it.

halcy

Attack Someone; (Rolled: 2d6+2. Rolls: 4, 5. Total: 11)

scott

Dog
He raises a hand, palm-outward to you like that's going to stop you or something, he opens his mouth to call out, "Wai..." and there's something off about his eyes in that moment... but you get a fist full of his long ponytail and wrench him off the bike as you gun the engine. Tin-girl cackles and leans around you to get a hand on the bars to steady the bike as you grab him.

The rotten fool's head snaps to the side and he tumbles from the bike to skid across the ruined concrete along the edge of the road. Hurts your shoulder... hurts him more.

Hachiko's howl echoes back as she turns 'round the trees and circles back to you.

The guy takes 1-harm from the grab, 1-harm from getting dragged. If you let go that's it... if you hold on and gun the throttle you probably kill the guy. Yeah, you nailed the roll and his life is in your hands.

What do you do?

halcy

I let go and circle him slowly once before setting my bike on standby and dismounting. It hovers in place with a little 'ping' and a hop when it needs to point straight again. Roll my shoulder out a couple of times, frowning.

"Wait for what, pus-bag? This just play to you?" I step up to him and settle a foot on one of his shoulders, lean my weight in.

Bikes aren't for play. Bikes keep us moving. Moving keeps us alive.

::Tin's Kill::

Rich

Dog

Hachiko nods, glances back over her shoulder, looking around, making sure there's nobody around.

"I gotta..." the man says amid groans, his hands on his neck as he lays in the mud on his back. "Please, I have to see the forest. Just once, please..."


Tin-Girl hops off the back of your bike, couple big steps to catch up with her bike. Takes her damaged bike down as gently as she can. Her bike crunches on some rough concrete before she gets it under control and she spits a curse or two. Once it's idling, she opens the saddlebag where she stores her tools, so neat and tidy and organized in a rough fabric keeper. Like some old-timey golfer picking through their clubs, she runs a hand over her different sized wrenches, "The bleeding thirty em em, yeah," she says as she slips one of the biggest wrenches out, stalks over.

The guy looks up, groans once more, "Please," he whines, "Just once..." He feebly pushes at your foot on his shoulder, but he's still pinned.

CRACK

Tin-Girl brings that rotting wrench, silver and pure in the sunlight, down on his left knee. He howls in pain, tries to double over, but you hold him fast.


"Gonna cut you," Tin-Girl seethes. "You wanna crawl to the forest, I don't give a piss. You're gonna rot from the inside out! Gonna breathe rain..." She pulls that pig-sticker from the back of her belt loop, drops on his broke knee and pulls up his shirt to look for a hunk of belly to slice.

He tries to resist, but he's about to pass out from the pain.


Tin-Girl seethes, "Dog, help me drag his raggedy ass to a puddle."


Hachiko slips off her bike now, shaking her head, trying to get your attention, Dog. Hachiko is not down for this, “Come on Tin, just end him. We got a job.” Tin-Girl's not listening.

What do you do?

halcy

I gotta get my think on about this. I wanted to tether him behind a bike and drag his carcass until there wasn't any left but something about him is wrong. I don't like it, and I ain't so smart. Wish Rainey were here. I don't want Tin-Girl and Hachiko to fight, either.

I slide my machete out of its place at my hip. Oh, this thing. First time I saw it, it laid itself between my eyes. That sucked, but the flooder who put it there ended up worse. I think I pulled his jaw till it popped, choked him out, but that may have been another guy. That was a couple weeks I don't remember so good.

I reach down and find his ponytail again, pull hard enough to point his face to one side. Put the machete down and chop it off behind the tie-off, bite some scalp. It's not detail work.

"I think he's got sick. We gotta touch him less. You finish him or I've got it."

I get into Tin's face to lock eyes with her, see if she gets it. It'll take the time it takes, she can count my freckles and each toothmark on me, I don't care.

Rich

Dog

I think you're trying to Manipulate Tin-Girl here, right? Let's see some dice.

halcy

(Rolled: 2d6+1. Rolls: 1, 3. Total: 5)

Rich

Dog


Tin-Girl meets your eyes. She holds your gaze defiantly, hard and angry. "He stole my ride." She looks over at Hachiko, back to you, "I'm not a rotting joke. I want to blood him. Send a message. You gonna help me? Or do I gotta murder him all by myself?" She pats the wrench against her thigh with nervous energy.

"Pluh.... please." the man begs, his voice hoarse, sweat pouring off him. He's pissed himself, you smell the urine, and the sweat.


"We got work." Hachiko says again, her tone irritated.

What do you do?

halcy

"No Arrow's a joke. You go ahead, Hachiko. We'll catch up." I tuck the ponytail pelt into a pocket and reach down to grab him under his arm, machete still held in my other hand.

Rich

Dog


After a couple beats, Hachiko says, "I'll wait." Then, she says to your mechanics, "Hurry up, Tin."

"Just once.... the forest." he chokes out, his lower lip trembling.


Tin-Girl draws out the little knife she carries in the back of her belt. It's only a few inches long, but she keeps it sharp enough. The tip's broken from that time she tried to use it like a screw-driver in a pinch, but the edge is keen. She drops onto the guy's knees, pulls up his shirt.

You hear that knee of his crack, like a broken branch snap. He squeals in pain and starts blubbering nonsense, fighting your foot with a surge of strength. You stomp him down, right? Of course you do.

With a savage stab, Tin-Girl jams her knife into his gut. He twitches, twists his torso like he could pull away, but then she cuts him open like a beforetimes fish. About halfway across with her sawing, he passes out from the pain.


Tin-Girl stands up, her right hand soaked in dark red. She snarls, "Rotter got what he deserved. Don't nobody laugh at me." She kicks his body, and he doesn't react, still out cold. He'll bleed out, sure as day. Rot here in the high sun. "C'mon, Dog." Tin-Girl says, wiping at her nose with the back of her hand, leaving a crimson smear. "Let's get back."

What do you do?

Rich

Dog

I'm curious. This thing Tin-Girl did here, gutting this guy. Is this something she's ever done before? Did she just lose her mind for a minute, or is she really that stone cold?

Are you?

halcy

I go to my bike and pull a clean rag from my stuff and toss it to Tin-Girl. "Wipe off before you touch me or my bike."

This stuff has me confused and worried. What was Hachiko's deal? Are those two gonna fight later? Is Tin-Girl gonna get sick?

Tin-Girl's never done something like this before. I don't think she's gonna feel square with it in an hour or two. If she does that could be hard on the gang.



My bike pulls out of standby as the time-a-round times-around.

I dunno. Nana said I was missing something, once, 'missing a fear for the body'. Mine. Other people's. I don't really feel it. I know Hachiko and Tin-Girl feel a difference between gutting the guy hard and cutting him clean, and I know Nana would have liked the clean better but I don't feel a difference.

Rich

Dog


"What?" Tin-Girl says as she catches the rag. She looks down at her hand, blinks like it's just registering with her. "Yeah..." She ambles over to the her bike, wiping at her hand, smearing the blood worse. She ends up wrapping her handle with the rag.

Hachiko revs up her h-bike, flips down her goggles and zips off, she's done with this rot. Tin-Girl starts up, she wants to follow, taking it easy in case her ride's more broken than it looks.

Please go here.