Red Rover [IC]

[Gizmo]

"Right, the ear guy," Jack confirmed absently, still concentrating. "Gotta be able to get a feel for the stuff before I can make a sword out of it. Gets kinda muddled sometimes, though; I can recognize stuff I've felt before but it's still a little... abstract." The metamagi cracked his neck in each direction and rolled his shoulders. Seeing Bombshell finish changing, he fished around in his coat and withdrew his customary bandanna mask, a deep royal blue rather than the crimson he'd favoured when they'd first met, along with hit black wig. He had both on in short order, and set the jacket aside to reveal his sleeveless white shirt along with bare, athletic arms crisscrossed with a smattering of light scars, nearly all of which were too faint to be obvious in the dim light. It wasn't exactly a greatcoat and bodysuit, but once he pulled a rapier out of thin air, most people weren't looking at his clothes. "It's in the crates, anyway. There, there... there. A bunch of them. Somebody's moving something, and it's not pretty pictures."

[alderwitch]

"Well, let's just have a looksee, then. Better the enemy you know." Bombshell opinioned and, with Jack's help, would find one of the unmarked crates. "I don't think radiation poisoning is something we have to worry too much about. I could be wrong."

Bombshell's banter died away as the crate creaked open. Inside, resting in custom shaped foam was several pieces of an odd alien weapon.

"Ah, I haven't seen one of these since the war." Her tone and expression were reserved, no longer playful as she reached in carefully to begin snapping the pieces together with the calm practiced movements of a soldier. "Don't have the foggiest what powers these little blue powercells but Adolf's boys got their hands on five of these nasty little things. Took out fifteen bloody Cromwells before we took down the unit with just one of these blighters."

Bombshell popped the powercell into place and compressed the bar and it whined as it charged, "And they're live. Lovely."

Quickly she went to dismantle the gun, her expression sober and quite serious. "Sweetie, I think this might be where we call the cavalry. How many of these rifles are there?"

[Gizmo]

Jack took a step back from opened crate a craned his neck, scanning the rest of the room. "Couple dozen, at least. More than enough to make for a really bad day." The athletic masked man produced a utilitarian lighter from the pocket of his jeans, rolling it contemplatively about his hand. "I can toast these, but I'm guessing those fancy double As need some more delicate disposal, and it doesn't much help long term if somebody's got a supplier."

[alderwitch]

"Your guess is as good as mine. Last time we handed them over to the scientists and they whisked them off. I'm more of a point and click girl myself."

Unfortunately, Bombshell's back was to the door and her attention diverted as she was carefully replacing the gun back in it's case and shutting the lid. She did not notice or hear the door to their supply room open and shut again or the shuffle of booted feet attempting to be quiet in amongst the boxes. Jack, however, was not as oblivious.

[Gizmo]

Jack moved swiftly and quietly, grabbing Bombshell's shoulder and pulling her deeper into the store room, motioning for silence with his free hand. Whoever had followed them inside was being stealthy enough that they must know someone was inside, but since the swashbuckler wasn't sure if they'd been spotted yet, his instinct was to play it cool until they had a better idea who or what they were dealing with. Ducking behind a stack of crates would provide some cover either way, he reasoned, deftly pocketing one of the strange power cells as he went.

[alderwitch]

Bombshell looked startled but recovered swiftly, on the alert as she followed Jack back to slip behind one of the larger stacks of crates. Without her heels, Bombshell had to rise up on her tiptoes to look over the top of the stack, her body tucked up against Jack's side. She murmured, barely loud enough for Jack to catch it, standing as close as they were, "Well, hello, heavy weapons..."

Sweeping through the back room were men dressed in para-military style, dark BDU's and holding thankfully mundane if very large and nasty looking snub nose machine guns as they quickly quartered and searched the back area. They were good and well trained, but the two heroes were far better and the two patrols of two men each never seemed to spy out their hiding place as they made a relatively complete search of the area.

Bombshell arched her brows at Jack in silent question, her smile flashing bright under her mask as she pantomimed a quick one gloved hand into the other in mute suggestion of taking out the gunmen.

[Gizmo]

Jack gave Bombshell a deep, courteous bow, flourishing with one hand as a ribbon of gravimetric energy twisted from the power cell he'd borrowed an solidified into a black-purple rapier in his palm, spots of white light sifting about its surface. With acrobatic ease he vaulted himself over the crates with his free hand, landing with both feet directly into the closest solider. "Ha ha!" As the man toppled to the ground with a pained grunt, the swashbuckler added insult to injury by using him as a springboard to launch a broad slash that slid effortlessly thought the weapon of his partner, the front end of the gun clattering to the floor in time to be echoes by a devastating roundhouse to the face which dropped the second opponent.

Diving into a roll took him under the line of fire of the remaining duo, popping up in front of them before they had a chance to react. Another swipe disarmed then of their firearms. "Careful, guys, you'll put somebody's eye out with those!" A quick thrust sent a third paramilitary type to the floor, and brought the impossibly sharp tip directly in line with the throat of the final man. "Buddy, you got 'splaining to do," Jack drawled.

[alderwitch]

Bombshell pulled herself up to sit on one of the crates and watch as the men were handily taken care of, clapping softly as he pinned the last man between a crate and sword-point. "Oh, bravo! Although, you really could have saved one for me. I don't do damsel, you know."

She slid off the boxes and strolled forward, stepping over unconscious thugs easily to catch up to the interrogation. He swallowed nervously, his gaze glancing left and right in the hope of some aid but Jack had neatly dispatched them before they could even twitch a finger towards their radio. He looked over Jack's shoulder and said stiffly, "We're private security... here to protect the art."

Bombshell made a rude noise, picking up the sliced gun with careful fingertips, "Hired security with a TDI Vector? Oh, yes. We totally believe that one. Do you often have to turn sticky fingered thieves into a fine red mist?"

The paramilitary man glanced at her and then back to Jack with another audible swallow and started to sweat.

[Gizmo]

"Perdón, hermosa," Jack apologized calmly, his arm unnervingly steady as he continued to hold the tip of his black-purple energy blade mere millimeters from the remaining soldier's throat. "I get excitable, is all." As much as he didn't mind showing off in front of Bombshell, the truth was that the swordsman adopted a coolly professional technique when it came time to actually trade blows, and speed had been of the essence. "The lady's going to ask you some questions, pal; I probably don't have to explain why you ought to answer them, right?"

[alderwitch]

Talya slid up behind Jack, slipping her hand in his jacket pocket (and being awfully friendly in the process!) before her gloved fingers closed around the powercell he'd kept from earlier. She pulled it out and lifted the softly glowing device between gloved fingertips, "This... this is not from this planet. It's a graviton cell and those are, oh, about three hundred years ahead of any technology on this little planet. Roughly. Sometimes my math gets skewed but its close enough for government work. The point is, you don't have -just one- of these. You have, oh, what do you think, Jack? Twenty?"

She slanted a glance to the swordsman's face and then back to the sweating soldier. "Now, I have oodles of questions but time is sadly pressing, so I'll confine it to just two - who are your clients and when is the sale?"

The man cleared his throat and looked once at Jack's cold face before looking at Bombshell's mocking smile and squeaked out, "It's an auction - a big auction - tonight!"

Bombshell stilled behind Jack's shoulder, "Oh, well, that's not good."

[Gizmo]

"On the contrary, my dear," Jack countered with a spreading, feral grin, affecting the slightest hint of a posh accent as he showed teeth which gleamed in the dim light of the store room. "An auction means several unsavory types all concentrated in one place, in convenient stabbing range. That's just thoughtful." He shifted his stance to being the blacklight of the energy blade in a slow arc just in front of the man's neck. "Going to be here at the gallery, yeah? Bid on the trash paintings as a cover?"

[alderwitch]

The man nodded once, his gaze never leaving the tip of that blade even as Bombshell protested, "They're not trash... they're impressionists! Of course, one could really make the argument that it's one and the same."

Bombshell shrugged and then dropped to her knees to start rifling through the para military men's pockets. "We should find some place to put them so they don't get tripped over. Meanwhile, let me see if I can cover for the absence of these fine fellows."

She pulled the radio off of his belt and called in the all clear to whoever was coordinating things. Fortunately, Bombshell was much better than Han Solo when it came to making up military speak. She had, after all, years of experience in the spy game. That done, she smiled over her shoulder at him, "So, what's the plan, Jack?"

[Gizmo]

"I may not know art," Jack admitted philosophically, "but I know what I like." The sword in his hand dissipated without warning to be immediately replaced at the soldier's face by a swift fist, leaving the last remaining man in an unconscious pile. "Mostly I like punching bad guys," he clarified, flexing his hand briefly. "As for a plan... not to bring up a lady's experience, but I'm pretty sure you outrank me." There was a note of genuine deference in his tone, which was quickly spoiled as he smirked and wryly added, "Ma'am."

[alderwitch]

Talya straightened and tossed him an amused look over her shoulder, her dark mask outline her eyes and her gold hair falling over her shoulder. "Ma'am. Careful now, or I'll think you're looking to get kinky. I already have the leather catsuit."

She turned towards him, resting on foot on the gentleman he'd just knocked out, before turning him over with one booted heel. "I do like a man who knows what he likes. Now, let me think. We've got two of us and who knows how many criminals - and from what organizations due to walk in. Me, I've always been a recon-type of girl. Now, we don't know who's coming or what the ridiculous secret hand sign is to get in. Which is fine, we're already inside. Which, I think, means we hide in plain sight."

Talya turned a brilliant smile at him, "How do you feel about a game of dress-up? We already know what the wait staff looks like and if I know my arms dealers - they'll be breaking out the wine and cheese for the real guests for certain."

[Gizmo]

Jack let out a quick laugh, a surprisingly melodic sound. "Hey, I'm not the one who ought to watch the teasing," he countered, crossing his arms and leaning forward slightly. "Just 'cause I can't keep up with you doesn't mean I'm not ready and willing to try." Listening to her plan he nodded agreeably. "Works for me. Little depressing that the waiters dress better than I do, but s'not like I've never waited a table before."

[alderwitch]

"More recently for you than me, I think, but some things really don't change much. No one looks at the hired help." Talya agreed and turned around to find the extra waitstaff clothing, quickly pulling them on over her catsuit. The advantage of having a costume that was quite literally skin tight was that it was easy to dress up over it. That was part of the design, actually. It was a good deal easier to hide than the goo goo boots of yesteryear's costume, that was for sure.

Sinking her hands up into the heavy mass of gold hair, she began to quickly braid it up and out of the way, "So, we get a feel for who all we've got at the auction and a good head count because I really loathe runners and then we just line them up and knock them down? Simple, straight forward and plays to our strengths?"

[Gizmo]

"Our strengths being kicking butt and taking names?" Jack inquired with a smirk as he moved across the storeroom to retrieve a uniform for himself. Having been caught largely out of costume, he secreted his bandanna mask and wig back away into his coat pockets and tugged his shirt off over his head. The deeply tanned torso bore the lean musculature of man literally bred for agility and strength then trained to Olympic qualifications. An assortment of diverse scars somewhat marred the effect, however, pale testaments the steep learning curve of the vigilante's profession. Among the marks Talya noticed the faint remnants of a stab wound near his left hip, the subtle discolouration of a healed burn between his shoulder blades and the distinctive circular mark of bullet wound just under the right side of his collarbone, a memento of the Crime League's attempt to hold the Liberty Dome hostage.

[alderwitch]

"Those are some of them, yes. Also being sneaky and charming." Talya agreed, pausing in buttoning up the white shirt to watch him with interested green eyes. Her gaze flickered from scar to scar as if taking mental note. She had her own, of course, although less than one would think for an immortal and decidedly dangerous life as they all predated the war-time experience that had left her, well, what she was today.

The pause was brief but noticeable and then her fingers finished with the stiff buttons, fastening them up and tucking them into the waistband of the pants. "You know, I snuck into the Freedom League Christmas party once just like this - as a waitress I mean. Years ago, of course, and I got caught - of course. Really, that was the point at the time. I suppose that was the last time I waited on tables. After that, of course, it all went to hell in a hand-basket. Let's hope this time goes a bit better, then?"

[Gizmo]

Jack shrugged, pushing his arm though a white sleeve as he donned his own disguise. "I just needed the money," he clarified wryly as he deftly buttoned the front of the shirt. "Jackie B's got biiills..." Adjusting the fastened cuffs over his wrists, the swordsman turned away from Bombshell to finish tucking it into his pants, then retrieved a thing black tie. Tossing it around his shoulders, he held each end for a moment, looking nonplussed. "...uh. Hrm."

[alderwitch]

"More used to clip ons?" Bombshell smiled up at him and stepped forward, tugging one end slightly down further than the other one. "As good as you are with those hands, this will be easy to pick up. And a skill that every man should have. And any woman who occasionally needs to pretend to be a man in the line of duty should have as well. Now, let's see if I can remember how to do this when it isn't around my neck."

Without her heels, Bombshell came up roughly to his nose and she stepped in close, her fingertips brushing along the sides of his neck lightly as she flipped up the collar. "Now... first you cross one end over the other." She murmured as she went to do just that, her slender fingers working over the fabric with practiced ease although she did have to stop and reverse her work once as she'd done the mirror version of what she'd meant to do. Laughing huskily, she went back to finish the knot and tighten it, flipping his collar back down. She paused, smoothing out the tie and turned that slight smile up to him, "There you go, sweetie. You'd be quite dashing, I think, in a tux."

[Gizmo]

With a wry shrug, Jack grinned. "Hey, when am I not dashing?" As the immortal cat burglar straightened the box tie, he boldly slipped a hand around her waist to sit on the small of her back. "In the interests of honestly, I should probably admit that I already knew how to tie a tie," the swashbuckler explained with a broad, roguish smirk. Encouraging Bombshell was almost certainly a bad idea, but if Jack avoided bad decisions, he'd never get anything done.

[alderwitch]

"If anyone can understand the value of a tiny lie for the greater good, it would be me." Bombshell teased, making no move to step back and tilting her face up to his, a smile curling the corners of her lips. She shook her head slightly to shake the blonde waves out of her face and blink at him with wide green eyes. Her hands came up to rest, palms flat against his chest. She tilted her head to the side and arched one brow in teasing challenge. "So, good on you for the set up, but will you exploit the opening once you've made it? You know what they say... no guts, no glory."

[Gizmo]

"Well," the swashbuckler began, his tone and expression softening slightly, "never let it be said that Jack of all Blades doesn't know how to push his luck." Leaving one hand on Bombshell's back, he used the other to gently hold her blonde tresses back while he leaned forward and kissed the mostly reformed thief. Having resolved to go all in, there was no trace of hesitation in the fencer's confident manner as he pulled her closer.

[alderwitch]

There was a flicker of surprise on Talya's face - genuine surprise - but no hesitation as she softened in his arms and let her hands slide slowly up his chest until her arms linked around his neck. Despite the teasing, baiting, and no small amount of blatant encouragement of this flirtation, she was still surprised that Jack leaned in to take it to the next level. Kissing Bombshell was a very different experience than flirting with the woman. She flirted, often outrageously, with almost anyone. It was after all, one of her best defensive tactics.

She did not, however, let almost anyone catch her.

The reason for that was quite clear when the kiss finally broke as her expression was open and unguarded, her posture relaxed. Her lips quirked in a teasing smile and after a moment's pause she murmured. "You're right. I yield the point. You are, indeed, dashing."

[Gizmo]

"Well, I try," Jack replied with a grin that was a little too natural to be called cocky. The fingers on the side of her face ran slowly through honey blonde hair, though his gaze never left her brilliant blue eyes. His remaining hand remained lightly on the small of Bombshell's back. "Sorry if I ruined the trill of the chase there," he told her softly, his voice slightly deepened. "I'm a pretty direct guy like that."