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For as much as the world has gone to Hell, for as confusing as 'normal life' has proven to be, there's one constant in Domino's life which always helps put her mind at ease…
Hunting.
It's dark in the Kitchen because lately it seems that's the only thing in its forecast. The wind is getting more cold with each passing day. There's still all manner of strange creatures lurking about which -do not belong here.- And she's still got plenty of guns and more than enough bullets to go around.
There's no shortage of rooftops, either. She's just getting to the top of one building and taking a look around, a bag slung over one shoulder and a hunting rifle easily held within the other. To anyone else it would look shady as hell but these days what -doesn't- look shady as hell in the Kitchen?
The bag is set aside. Shoulders are rolled. She's still rocking the black road leathers, they're not so bad against the cold. "Alright, what's on the menu today…" she asks the world at large while looking around.
*
It's definitely getting colder, but Spider-Girl is not new at this. Her winter body suit has that extra bit of lining to make up for the cooling weather, but the black and white design is the same as usual. Coincidentally we find Anya stuck to the side of a water tower on the same roof where Domino is setting up shop, although the mercenary could be forgiven for not noticing the young woman considering Spider-Girl's oneness with the shadows here.
Anya sits on her heels with her feet flat against the vertical surface behind her. She watches the familiar mercenary for a moment, almost sure she had been seen for a second, and then speaks up, softly but in a friendly tone, "Well, I guess it depends on what you're in the mood for."
Willing herself to be seen, Spider-Girl is still a dark shape in the shadows, but there is contrast and it's easy to see the design on her suit.
*
To the albino's credit she doesn't jump out of her skin when finding out she isn't alone up here. The voice itself -should- be familiar..but it isn't ringing any bells. Domino wasn't exactly herself when the two had last bumped into one another.
The rifle falls back against her shoulder as she turns to look in the direction of the voice..then looks up..then sees the white pattern on an otherwise blacked out figure. "The logo gives you away. Try a dark grey."
A frown soon follows, along with a gradual tilting of her head as the wind further terrorizes her cropped black mop of hair. "You look kinda familiar."
-Kind- of familiar. Selective memory, tunnel vision..?
*
Spider-Girl's head tilts, aware that she startled Domino, but it seems like Anya knew the merc wouldn't shoot even before she did. Anya shrugs, grins and says, "I dunno, the logo works well enough for me." She puts a hand on the water tank and slowly makes her way down to the rooftop. She seems cheery enough even as she looks over Domino and her equipment.
"Kinda familiar, huh?" Anya's mask only covers the top half of her face, and she looks bemused. She doesn't find it 'funny' so much as 'odd'. "We met last week. Um, in Central Park, sort of. Daredevil was there. And that big guy you came with. Never caught his name. I'm Spider-Girl though. Nice to meet you when we're not being swarmed." She doesn't get close enough to shake hands.
*
It takes the pale woman a moment to start fitting the pieces together. The way this gal is able to hang off the side of the water tower should be a big clue. The logo. 'Spider-Girl.'
Oh yeah. The webbing.
Domino snaps her half-gloved fingers once as the proverbial lightbulb comes to life. "You were the exit strategy. Don't know what you did back there or how but that was a good trick. Also disgusting." Also, wait. "-That- was Daredevil? The guy in the goofy red getup that likes to call this craphole his part of the city? Well damn."
The part she doesn't say is 'wish we would have left his ass behind.'
The rifle is set down next to a foot, her hands loosely draped upon the barrel. Either it isn't loaded or she has faith in its mechanical safety, what she's doing here is far from safe.
"Tell me something, kiddo. Where the hell do you people find your costumes? Cotton leaves a lot to be desired and leather barely moves, I've no idea how Devilboy makes it work. You seem to get around just fine, though. Haven't seen you take a bad hit yet, either."
*
"Yeah, I hope you weren't too gunked up," Anya says, shifting her stance, slightly embarrassed. "It dissolves after a couple hours but it can be a real mess in the meantime. Trust me, I had no end of problems when I was first figuring that all out."
Picking at the collar of her costume, Anya smiles, "I can't speak for anyone else, but I had to learn to sew as a kid." She emphasizes the word 'kid', maybe implying she isn't a 'kiddo' anymore. Of course, everything is relative.
"It was trickier at first, but damn… when spandex came out a few years ago? Game changer. Seriously."
Idly, Spider-Girl turns when she sees half a dozen pigeons alight on their rooftop twenty feet away. She cocks her wrist back and lazily fires a kiwi sized bouncy-ball of webbing to scatter the birds. It's not a vicious or cruel move. Presumable she could have hit one if she wanted to, but it's just a warning shot to send them flapping into the cold night. Anywhere but here.
Turning back she grins, genuine warmth in her voice, "I could probably help you with an outfit if you wanted. Lighter and more flexible than all that leather." She takes a step closer, but still cautious. Apparently masked people have trust issues.
*
"You made that yourself?" Domino asks, not..entirely buying it. There is -no way- all of these people are making their own outfits, and she's pretty sure not all of them are made out of readily available materials!
Spandex… Okay, maybe they are readily available materials. Here she had been hoping for something a bit more ..useful and a bit less dancefloor-ish. Her search continues.
The following demonstration of webbing useage renews her interest, both in wondering how the Spider just accomplished that and also in learning more about the various tricks that other 'powered' people might have at their disposal. Everyone has their own 'thing,' it can be really weird sometimes!
"I'm not gonna shoot you," she suddenly declares. That cautious approach isn't missed! "Vampires, demons, loud neighbors, annoying children… You're fine. And if you're serious about that offer, I just might take you up on it." Preferrably sooner rather than later when this little Spider comes to realize she's not dealing with a nice lady.
"So your trick is sticky ziplines and laughing in the face of gravity. And being stupid..ridiculous strong," she adds as she suddenly recalls Fred being flung about like a ball on a string.
*
"Yes, really," Anya says, obviously aware that she needs to convince this woman of her sewing skills. "Mi abuela said I can burn all the bras I want as long as I know how to be a good wife," Spider-Girl says, her voice dripping with irony. She huffs a sigh and shrugs.
"Still, it's handy for patching things up after doing battle with an army of… um, demons, I guess?" She's deflecting The Horrible with humor, because what are the alternatives?
"Well I don't-" Anya stops short of saying, -I don't think you can /hit/ me- because that would be /rude/. Still, the assurance seems to have helped. And she also has assumed Domino is joking about the annoying neighbors and such. Obviously. Just kidding. Right?
"But yeah, I'm serious. I mean, I'm no fashion designer, but I can put measurements to needle and thread." She crosses the roof to a more conversational distance. "And I guess… my 'trick' is… doing whatever a spider does? I'm honestly not clear on how all this works."
*
"Yeah? And how's that working out for you?" Domino teases with what may be a knowing smirk. She doesn't have to be a hero type to know that the demands are quite similar between the two. All work and no play, no time to settle down and just 'have a life.' It doesn't happen. 'Normal' ran away screaming for these two some time ago.
"Well kudos to you for sticking to a theme. I don't know of any spider that can pull half of the things you did but if I find one in the basement it's gonna have some new problems." Teasing again! ..Probably…
With the idea of hunting shifted onto a back burner the albino gently props the rifle up against the brickwork balcony and turns to her bag, not seeming to mind that her back is turned on the heroic femme. Its contents are shuffled around for a moment, then a bottle emerges held within ghostly fingers.
She brought booze. Looks like rum. Don't talk to her about mixing alcohol and guns, she'll probably just laugh at you.
"Though I'll admit to having never seen a drunken spider. If you're good with some risk versus reward." It's an actual, honest offer to share some drinks. Because she's not a -complete- meanie. She claims the first drink then offers the bottle at arm's length. Go on, take it! Not gonna bite. Not until it hits the mouth, anyway.
*
It's hard to tell exactly with her mask, but Anya's body language says she just rolled her eyes. Apparently it's working out just 'fine'. Fine. Shrugging, she says, "Well, the theme stuck to me, to be honest. I just wish I could figure out how to make some kind of thread out of this gunk."
Anya puts her hands together and pulls them apart, revealing a long thin strand of webbing between them. Out of self-consciousness, or cageyness, she puts effort into hiding the spinnerets in her wrist, but a real eagle-eye might spot them. She lets the thread drop, drifting slowly in the still night, when Domino offers the rum.
Anya smiles and steps forward, taking the bottle in hand. "Two things first though. One, my people have been making rum for… I don't know. Four hundred years? I will never say no to rum." She takes a small swig and nods her approval.
"And two, my grandma would say to never drink with strangers, so now you have to tell me your name." She grins and offers the bottle back. "Or you have dishonored mi abuela. And that would have dire consequences."
*
"Well how about that," the White One mutters when the Spider runs a silk line between her hands. Part of her wants to reach out and pick at it like a guitar string. It's probably for the best that it's released into the wild before she gets too close to it. If the spinnerts are noticed she isn't saying anything about them.
The bottle changes hands easily enough. What follows is a look of idle surprise. "I never gave you a name..?" Then she laughs and hangs her head forward, slowly shaking it. "Been that kinda month. Spider," she says while lifting her head back to Anya, "I'm Domino. Just as original, yes. Maybe next time we can all get the gift of creativity. Until then you'd probably make a killing during Halloween. I don't have anything nearly so interesting for show and tell."
*
"Domino," Anya says, trying out the sound of it, tilting her head. "Nice to meet you. Properly, I mean, since…" Her expression darkens slightly, almost certainly at the memory of their first meeting, surrounded by the minions of hell. The only way out of memories like that is avoidance, and she takes the bottle back, holding it in both hands until a shudder passes. Then she takes another small sip. Not too much though. She still has to swing home later.
"Show and tell's not such a big deal," she says, almost forcing a smile back on her face. Then she gestures with the bottle at Domino's rifle. "You any good with that thing? God knows there're assholes in this town who could be introduced to the business end of something serious like that. Then again, the number of bulletproof pendejos in this town is growing exponentially." Exponentially? Such a big word for such a little spider!
*
"Since..all of that," Domino flatly agrees as any sense of social pleasantry evaporates from her demeanor. Anya can have the bottle, she'll just lean back and let her head dip forward again while looking just a bit grim. On the bright side, now whenever someone tells her to go to Hell she can honestly say she tried that once and didn't like it.
The mood easily shifts once more, curiosity met with similar curiosity. It's not common for one of the -good- guys to ask about her marksmanship abilities. "I'm not too shabby," she admits while glossing the hell over the subject. A look of disgust follows, "Right? Hardly seems fair. If I can't solve my problems by punching holes through them then all I've got left is foul language. At least the more cuddly ones stepping through the portal haven't figured that trick out yet."
Here she pauses, giving Anya a peculiar look as if just now figuring something out. "Are you just making conversation here, or do you have something you'd like to be dealt with..?"
*
Anya takes a deep breath as they both let the awfulness of their original meeting fade to the background again. She takes a third sip and sets the bottle down by Domino's duffle bag. They were small, still, three shots that close together should have the lightweight latina at least a little tipsy, but she seems steady enough.
Chuckling in a knowing way, Anya nods at the mention of foul language and then her expression goes through a number of changes. Like she might say 'No, her question was innocuous', but then she remembers something, and it occurs to her to take advantage of the situation. This is fairly clear from the two or three false starts she gets through before finally speaking.
"Actually, I've been following a weird court case. This guy who calls himself the Rhino. And this other guy who calls himself the Vulture." Anya holds up her hand as if to stop questions, "I know. But I really can't say anything about costumed weirdos and unimaginative names, can I? Anyway, through the course of what looks like coincidence, they were released from the prison the same week. Last week. Only what I've found makes it look like not a coincidence. You know?"
*
It's a matter of idle curiosity which causes Domino to keep track of how much Anya happens to be drinking, not because she's mentally racking up the other lady's tab. "It's a curious thing, 'powered' people seem to hold their booze a lot better than the regular Joe," she quietly suggests.
Masked or not, the shifting of expressions also isn't missed. She's about to offer some words of 'encouragement' when Anya finally gets her thoughts sorted out.
As the Spider starts explaining the situation Dom gently lifts herself up and back onto the raised brick edge of the rooftop, seemingly comfortable with the idea that there's nothing keeping a good push from sending her backwards and several stories down.
The motion to keep her thoughts in check couldn't come at a better time. It's still not enough to keep the smirk off of her face. "I don't believe in coincidences, and I know that's a cliche response. With names like what those two are rocking you know they aren't A-List criminals. My first impression there is that someone pulled on some strings to get them released because he wants them to make some noise together, draw attention onto them and away from something bigger. Rampant property damage is a good way to bring the good guys running in droves."
*
Anya looks delighted at how thoroughly Domino gets where her thought process was going. "That is exactly what I was thinking. I want to know who pulled those strings. I haven't been able to find out much yet, but I /do/ know where they're gonna be tomorrow. The tricky part is needing them alive. And taking them down quickly enough to have a chance to question them before the white boys in blue show up."
Anya steps up and crouches on the ledge Domino is leaning against, just inches from their shoulders touching, though Anya is facing the street. She turns a wry grin on Domino, "So what do you say? Dinner and show on me in Brooklyn tomorrow night?"
*
Well, it isn't the most ideal gig in the world. 'Alive,' and no mention of getting paid beyond ..dinner, really? Well, that's something. She's still going to feign looking shocked however, placing fingertips against her sternum. "Well my goodness, is the friendly little Spider-Lady asking for my assistance in a criminal bust? Hang on, let me check my schedule."
The nearby pack is caught with the toe of a boot and brought closer so she can dump its contents out onto the roof. A cheap pair of binoculars, a couple small boxes full of extra rifle rounds, another bottle (whiskey this time.) The empty bag is given a few more shakes as if a schedule is going to magically appear and fall out into her hand, then she tosses the empty bag aside.
"Looks like tomorrow's open. When, where, and how many bullets can those two jokers take and still walk away?" she asks with a lopsided grin.
*
Anya laughs, enjoying the 'search' for a datebook. She also looks a little amused at Domino's pretend scandal, being asked to help the Spider. Apparently she has no inkling of Domino's reputation at large.
"Well ok!" Anya says, grinning. "I'll be on the apartment building behind the Brooklyn Credit Union tomorrow night. A little before midnight. Vulture I should be able to pretty much handle, but Rhino is thick skinned. One article said he shook off a barrage of police gunfire and then threw a car at the barricade. But maybe something that packs enough of a punch, to the back of his head, would be enough to ring his bell? I honestly wasn't sure how to deal with him. It's lucky I ran into you." She winks, waits for anything Domino has to add, and thwips dramatically into the night.
*
"Oh sure, take the easy one," Domino replies with a roll of the eyes. "Okay, great. So I probably won't be able to break the guy. That's a good start. Let's go from there."
She watches the Spider take off, shrugs, then reaches for both the rifle and the rum. -This- night is still plenty young and she hasn't shot anything yet. Two problems which can solve themselves!
She'll be back tomorrow, alright. Just think, a chance to cut loose, cause a scene, and NOT get in trouble! This oughta keep people nice and confused about her for a while.
*
THE NEXT NIGHT:
It's the middle of the night in Brooklyn and even on a Friday night there are quiet streets with no one around. Particularly in Brooklyn's bad excuse for a mini-financial district. Brooklyn Credit Union is small enough to be local, but big enough to handle a fair amount of cash, and the guys casing the joint must have figured the cop's response time would be a little slower for the small time gig.
Or well, at least one of them figured that. The gigantic, gray, man-shaped rhinoceros looks like he doesn't 'figure' much at all, what with the slack expression and all. But the older, bald man with big green wings has a calculating glare, and looks like he could do the thinking for both of them.
The Vulture and Rhino are in the alley behind the bank where Vulture is drawing a big target circle on the back wall of the bank in white chalk, speaking softly to Rhino. According to his body language, it looks like he's explaining something. For at least the fifth time. The only real noise is Rhino's deep grunts of assent. He's not capable of keeping his voice down.
"Dios," Spider-Girl mutters quietly to herself, watching the pair from above. "Who on Earth let these two out at the same time?" She's perched on the lip of an apartment building about four stories up from the alleyway where Vulture and Rhino believe themselves to be unobserved. Apparently she's in the camp that believes heroes should wait until the villains actually do something wrong, or at least worse than chalk vandalism, before swooping in.
*
"Dollars to donuts it has something to do with the mob," Domino thinks aloud while watching the two brutes beside the Spider. "Do you think either of them actually know who bailed them out? If they were smart you'll end up following the ol' money trail for a while. If they were -really- smart then these two won't have a clue." Shrug. "At least we can get this circus off of the streets. Seriously, who -chooses- to look like those guys? Talk about your low standards."
Huh. Is this why so many of the good guys are nonchalant wisecrackers? It really does help pass the time!
Looking back to the Spider, Dom suddenly asks "Alright, look. I'm not -completely- disconnected from the rest of the world. You're related to that Spider-Man guy who's always getting bashed in the papers, right?" Not that she's looking particularly judgemental. She doesn't look like the sort to take the news as gosphel.
*
"'Dollars to-' People actually say that?" Anya asks, chuckling. "My instincts say organized crime of some sort too. Just not sure which flavor yet. The gray is definitely mob material, but that other guy is too sharp. They don't usually like working with people smarter than them. I heard he built that wing-rig himself. But I'm with you. I have /no/ idea why he'd make it bright green."
Anya shifts over the lip of the building so her feet are flat against the wall with the top half of her body still above the roof. "Either way, I'm hoping there's some kind of cash drop for their payment at least. Might be able to pull some clues off that."
Anya sighs and nods her understanding, and then shakes her head. "Yeah, I don't get it either. There's like… three or four of us? Really similar mutations. But I've never met any of them. I've been trying to track down more info, but so far all I've got is that I'm pretty sure there are two spider guys, and at least one other girl. But I don't have anything solid."
"-/not/ that difficult-" comes the strident old-man voice from down below. It's the first time they've been able to hear his voice, and the Vulture's body language say everything about how frustrated he is with his doltish partner for tonight. The next sentence comes loud and clear, "Just back up to there. Run at /that/, and hit it, with your /head/. Got it?"
The big gray one shrugs it off, saying, "Well why didn't you just say that the first time?" When Rhino turns away to walk across the width of the alleyway, Vulture mimes strangling the enormous Rhino-man, arms and wings reaching out in a murderous dumb show. When Rhino turns, the Vulture turns it into a right-this-way bowing gesture.
Then, like a cartoon bull, Rhino actually scrapes and stamps each foot, braces himself, and runs straight at the wall in question. And then through it. With little to no impedance. Vulture lets out a tiny triumphant shout, and then starts coughing on the concrete dust blowing everywhere. No sign of Rhino through all the dust, green bills, and crumbling walls. No one could possibly get a shot on him from way up on the apartment building roof. They'd be shooting blind! No one's that lucky, right?
*
Domino blinks. Shrugs. "I guess..? Pretty sure I still count as a person. Depending upon who you ask," she adds while looking back to the two baddies with a slow shake of her head. "May as well print a bullseye on his back."
"Yeah, that's an idea," she absently replies. Already her mind is going in another direction when 'cash drop' is mentioned. Cluuuuuues..yeeeeeah…
"Well, you guys have easily got that market cornered with all bases covered. I can imagine there would be some power overlap here and there, it's bound to happen, but I'm surprised you guys aren't all in the same family here. ..Or born in a lab together. Shouldn't be -that- difficult to touch base with the others?"
Oh, wait..wait… "Here we go. Is that…" she trails off, staring onward in disbelief as Rhino paws at the ground prior to the charge. "Is he -really- going to—"
Holy crap. Tonight she may well learn how to counter the likes of Cain, because Rhino seems to have a very similar power set!
Now..there is at least one person who may well be lucky enough to make a shot right now. The only thing is she doesn't really know that she has any powers just yet. She doesn't even try. It'd be silly! Waste of ammo. Instead she picks up the small Ithaca twelve gauge and asks Anya "Got an express drop handy?"
*
Anya has no idea that she's just tipped off Domino to a payday, like a spider to the fly. Glancing down, Anya is equally incredulous at the villain's 'entrance' to the credit union.
Glancing back at Domino's question, Anya grins and nods. "I always take the quick way. Here," she says, stepping up to Domino. She slips an arm around the taller woman's waist like a dancer about to begin, and then she steps them off the roof without so much as a blink. "Jumping in 3," she says with a wink as the wind of their fall flutters their hair.
Without warning again, Spider-Girl fires a webline to slow their fall in an arc. At the upside of the arc, once they've slowed enough, Anya drops them the last few feet to the ground. "Hey Vulture!" Anya calls, following up with some very colorful cussing in Spanish. "Give up, talk, and we go easy on you," Anya says.
It seems Vulture is not interested in talking. Instead he sweeps a wing around in a hard, angular movement. As he leaps into flight half a dozen razor sharp green feather shoot directly at Anya and Domino.
From inside, Rhino grunts, "Huh? What's going on out there?" He can be heard stumbling closer to the opening he made in the wall, still waving dust and smoke out of his eyes.
And does anyone find it weird that the bank alarm is /not/ going off? The smoke and dust should have triggered a fire alarm too. But the only sound is the fighting about to happen, and Rhino hawking loogies on the pavement.
*
There's enough time for Domino to look down and mutter an "Oh crap, here we go" before things get really interesting for a few incredibly fast seconds. Falling from great heights she's no stranger to. Having to completely rely upon someone who has webslingers on her wrists to keep them both from becoming a stain in the alley below, -that's- absolutely new! Really pretty unnerving, too. Also an -incredible- adrenalin rush.
When the two gals drop their directions split, Dom's forward roll shedding some of her momentum as a few of those razored feathers stick into the ground around her. When she pops back up, blessedly free of feathers, she just goes right ahead and takes the first shot at Rhino's leg.
"-She- might go easy on you. I won't!"
The lack of an alarm isn't missed. Aside from having just fired a gun it's surprisingly quiet around here. Did Rhino somehow manage to wreck the alarm on his way through? Or maybe Birdbrain figured something out before giving the order.
..Or is someone else setting this whole thing up somehow..?
Back to her feet, spent shotgun shell clacking across the floor, Dom calls out "You guys are in over your heads here, and not just because we're here."
She may have to practice the whole 'witty banter' thing later.
*
Rhino is coughing and laughing as he stumbles around in the mess. His laughter is cut through though when he takes the shotgun blast to the knee. He's not really injured, but the force of it shoved his foot back, dropping him to one knee. He turns it into a sprinter's start and comes up, lumbering towards Domino. "Just wait till I get my hands on you!"
Up in the air, Vulture is loosing volley after volley of feathers, which turn out to just be fancy, razor shot projectiles. Something in the wing suit's rig must help him aim, because when he focuses on Anya, she has to perform a full on gymnastics floor routine.
She fires off a series of fancy moves that probably have weird names, and then finally throws off Vulture's aim by radically changing her vector. She pulls on a webline and rockets through the alleyway, sending herself right in front of Rhino, tricking Vulture into a crossfire. Rhino gets a face full of feathers, but they don't seem to phase him. Anya, on the other hand, got knicked in the shoulder, barely a wound, but she sounds furious. "Are you /kidding/ me? Do you know how hard it is to darn /spandex/? My offer is off the table!"
You can fight Anya all day, but do /not/ muss that girl's clothes.
*
It's the second time today that Domino's muttering "Aw, crap." When Rhino comes rhino-ing on after her she's working out the math. There's an escape route here. Over, under, or around… Under's a bad idea. Over's a little high. Soooo—
She snaps another shot off into Rhino's side, trying to steer him with the impact more than cause any harm to him (because apparently THAT doesn't work worth a darn!) Then it's a leap, twist, and hope for the best! If she's really lucky she can smack him across the back of his head with her gun in passing, too.
Spider-Girl here has the right idea, Dom was considering trying to lead Rhino right into the path of those razor feather things. Just in case it happens to do any good. Which it doesn't. How is she supposed to stop this guy, again..? The Spider's the one with the immobilizing goop on tap and the albino's the one with the darn shotgun!
It only takes her a second to load up some birdshot. Should be a lot more effective, and at this range it -shouldn't- be lethal. Really! Swear to god. "Trade partners!" she calls out while trying to pelt Birdbrain with shot #3.
*
Rhino grunts at the shot to his side. Apparently he did feel that one. By sheer coincidence too, a fluke to weird to call anything but luck, Rhino turns his head the wrong way just when Domino is showing him the butt of her shotfun, pouring his own momentum into the hit. Stop hitting yourself, Rhino. It cracks him right on the bridge of his nose which turns out to be surprisingly sensitive. The lug's eyes water up, and he stumbles, trying to blink through the pain.
It turns out Domino definitely has the right idea about partners. Vulture is able to swoop and dodge most of what Anya throws at him, and when she does catch him with a line, his wings slice through it immediately.
While much of the birdshot ricochets off of Vulture's rig, the tiny birdshot is able to find so many more nooks and crannies to explore. The old man isn't mortally wounded, but he screeches in pain and falters in the air. It looks like he might be trying to find an exit.
At Domino's prompting, Anya leaps into a high arcing backflip, switching partners as suggested, but calling out, "We need him alive!" Focusing on Rhino now, two weblines shoot out and stick the giant's ankles. Hauling back, Anya yanks his feet out from under him and the Rhino goes down with a crash. This guy probably weighs a literal ton!
Anya and Rhino are in a race against time now to see if she can cocoon him faster than he can rip away the webs and get up again. So far it's looking good with the Rhino's right arm pinned to his side.
*
"Doing the best I can!" Domino yells back. She's not using the most precise of instruments here! It's a good thing she can think on her toes.
Anya may have the right idea yet again, if they do indeed need these two alive… Think like a hero, dammit! -Yes,- it's hard, but subduing targets with non-lethal takedowns had been included in her training. "Frickin' unarmed turkey shoot, is what this is…"
With another slug in the chamber she sprints out into the open, using the downed Rhino as a springboard with an extra push against the back of his head to try and help keep him down. She's in the air, as well as can be expected for someone who is just a darn good jumper and not a flyer. Then she shoots the building itself, right where the telephone wires link up with the neighboring building. With a *Snap!* the strut holding them taut breaks free and comes sweeping down, still caught by the wires.
Vulture has two obstacles heading his way. Something solid and moving at a decent speed, and a tangled mess of cables. If neither of those manage to remove him from the picture they should at least disrupt him long enough that she can smack him with something else! Maybe catch him by the belt with the grip of her shotgun and yank him down to the ground, because that'd just be -fun.-
*
Vulture deftly swoops to avoid the sparking powerlines that came down as well, already starting a villain laugh. "You'll have to do better than th-WHOOP!" He actually says 'whoop'. Because when someone grabs your belt and drops as dead weight, you yell 'whoop'. The butt of Domino's shotgun does indeed hook the Vulture's gear. This is all battle gear too, and not Vulture's first pass. This is a powersuit that has undergone serious testing and upgrades. So imagine his surprise when Domino's grab just happens to fluke the emergency release.
The older man slips free of his wing suit and lands in front of Domino, wide-eyed. Nearby, the suit lands itself, politely folding up to stay out of the way.
Meanwhile, the Rhino has been giving Spider-Girl a run for her money. She doesn't usually go up against people who can just rip through her webbing, and she was starting to get flustered. Until, that is, when Domino's electrical line slides over to where Anya is.
"Thanks, Dom!" And Anya kicks the insulated part of the line making it snake out and straight for Rhino's face. He grabs at it, but of course this is the wrong move, because he actually catches it. The transformer on the power pole shorts out as it dumps its full voltage into the science-experiment-gone-wrong. Rhino jitterbugs to the right and collapses in a heap.
Anya doesn't waste any time. Rhino isn't fully unconscious but he's tazed hard enough that she's able to get him in a full cocoon with no leverage for him to pull at the webs. When he's all trussed up, Spider-Girl delivers a vicious kick to the side of his head, sending Rhino into dreamland.
With him down, and Vulture at Domino's mercy, Anya stalks over to stand next to her albino friend. "Alright old man, spit it out. Who hired you?"
*
"-Gotcha!-"
That Vulture's wings can land themselves without an operator is just ..really kinda creepy, but that's beside the point. She nabbed herself a doofy villain! Another empty shell gets flicked off to the side as she levels the reloaded weapon at a suddenly very powerless baddie, unable to wipe the broad smirk off of her face. This really -is- fun!
"Playtime's over, pal."
Spider-Girl's the resourceful type as well, Dom's not even sure what she's calling out thanks for until there's the tell-tale pop and sizzle of a sparking transformer, resulting in one very twitchy Rhino. She winces slightly at the show, gives Anya a thumbs up, then looks back to Vulture with a quick nod of her head their way. "That coulda been you."
Just like that..the fight is over. The bank may need some help but its contents are going to be just fine. Some people in the albino's position may use this moment as a chance to reconsider their path in life, maybe..turn toward the path of good.
Not this gal. She's working out how to capitalize on this stuff. Being a mercenary seems like -just- the sort of calling she had been looking for!
One moment later and it's officially two against one. "And do try to hurry with the details, I've got places to be."
*
"I- I-" stammers Vulture. Or is he just sad old Adrian Toomes now? "I ain't talkin to you," he says, his native New Yorker accent thick. " I know my rights. I want my lawyer." Toomes spends the last gasp of his courage on this bluff.
When Toomes tries to stand up though, webbing flies past Domino, and Anya says, "No so fast Senior." Toomes is stuck to the pavement under net of webs. "You seem to have the wrong idea about us, Vulture," Anya says, grinning. She looks up at Domino. "He has entirely the wrong idea about us." Looking back down at Toomes she says, "Do you see any cops here? Do you think that gun is firing blanks? Warning shots? You tell us who hired you and how the payment was coming, or I leave you two alone with her."
Anya jerks her thumb at Domino, then turns to give Dom a quick, wry grin. Anya thinks she's bluffing this guy, and definitely has no idea that Domino could actually follow through on threat.
*
"Oh, wait, hold up! This guy knows his rights. Guess we'll just have to pack it up and call it a day, the system has defeated us once again," Domino calls out with a theatrical sigh. "I -hate- when they play that card!"
Then he's stuck to the ground. (That's still kinda freaky.) Dom smirks and lifts the scattergun up to rest against her shoulder, seeing as it isn't quite so necessary anymore. There's a soft *tsk* and a completely fake look of disappointment when she glances back to Anya. "So entirely wrong."
As the Spider starts laying out the threats Dom crouches down next to the De-Vultured Toomes, now just looking slightly detached from reality with the weapon resting across her knees. Like this is no big deal for her at all. Pale fingertips idly play across the side of the blued receiver as she makes eye contact with the downed baddie.
"Do you happen to know just how many orifaces within the human body are capable of accomodating the barrel of a twelve gauge? The answer may surprise you."
*
There's half a second where Toomes seems like he might try to hold out, and then he sag back onto the ground, his voice shaky when she speaks, eyeing Domino's gun. "Wh- Well… Shit, I'm /sorry/, ok? I didn't mean it like that, and, and-" he nods his head at the scattergun. "You don't need that, I'll talk," Toomes sniffs, and a tear rolls down his cheek.
In a short amount of time, Toomes lays out the information he has, clearly trying not to cry the whole time. They were hired through a lawyer's lawyer, and they have no idea who it tracks back to. The one law firm they got a name for doesn't exist after last week. But at least there's a cherry on top. Rhino and Vulture were supposed to drop the bricks of cash from the Credit Union in a nearby subway station, where they would find a duffel bag of laundered money as payment.
Anya smiles and folds her arms when Toomes cracks, and then she frowns. "Ah man, are you crying? Is he /crying/? That is just… way to suck the fun out, old man." His confession brightens her mood considerably. Then she sniffs and frowns again, "Aye, Dios, is that /pee/? Did you pee yourself?" 'Pee', not 'piss'. Nice work, Church-Girl.
She turns back to Domino and says, "Feel like getting paid?"
*
The smile which Domino gives to Toomes seems friendly and encouraging, though that underlying threat still remains. Go ahead, just give her a push! She'll be -happy- to push right back, with interest. The fact that the guy is crying over it will be something for her to laugh over later. Is this seriously what the villain situation is like around here? In her mind she's going easy on the guy!
"Yeah, he's..really crying," Domino confirms with another gentle sigh. "Chin up dude," she says while going so far as to tilt his head upward with the grip end of her shotgun. Nice and easy-like. "If you're gonna be a big ol' badass then you've gotta ditch the waterworks, that doesn't fly. I have entirely different protocols for interrogating kicked puppies, make up my mind."
Eugh. Well, that was kinda disgusting. She's happy to be back on her feet and giving the old guy some much-needed space. It's all worth the trouble when Anya drops the next four words onto Dom's ears. "Only always. The cash prize is never the wrong way to go."
*
"And I always like getting a new bag," Anya says with a grin. Apparently Vulture is content without any further contributions. "You wanna go grab it while I sit on these two? They might get ideas before the cops get here." So trusting! "We can meet up on that roof from the other night. Hopefully these two weren't just getting screwed on the deal." The sirens are already audible. Probably just a few minutes away at this point.
*
..Wow. Did she really just—?
-She did.-
With a smirk and a shotgun-salute Domino's on the case! Avoiding the cops, check. Tracking down a dead drop -cash payout- for a yet unspecified amount while being completely unsupervised is not the sort of thing she's going to turn down. EVER.
"Yeah, I got this."
Depending on how much is waiting she may just never show up at all. More likely, she'll take a healthy cut of it and meet up with the Spider as planned with whatever's left.