BABY WE WERE BORN TO RUN

[maskormods]

WHO: EVERYONE
WHERE: THE STREETS OF THE CITY
WHEN: Duration of the event
WHAT: PRISONER TRANSPORT/RESCUE
WARNINGS: Violence and language likely
OOC NOTES: This is a starter log to help kick off the event. Feel free to use or post your own!

The transport process isn’t a fun one. Captured Metas are outfitted with power-nullifying handcuffs and collars, chained into the back of a heavily armored prison transport vehicle. Normally there’s a huge procession that goes alone with this: more back up vehicles, overhead support, government loyal metals in every vehicle. But this rush of new arrivals has pushed the system to its limits- there’s never been a need to accommodate more than a specific number of known Metas. It has the guards in the vehicles on edge, jumpy as they try to navigate through the City without the usual back up. And it’s a strain the resistance is more than ready to push to the breaking point.

In addition to transporting new arrivals to their reprogramming, there are the already-present Meta prisoners that must still be shuffled around, causing a mix of old and new in the vehicles. And irresistible targets for liberation for the resistance groups. When the transport is hit, which will the new Metas side with? Your captors you may still be able to gain a comfortable life working with? Or the rebellion fighting their way into the vehicle?

Comments

PERIDOT | AU- GOVERNMENT ENFORCER | OTA

[slapfight]

When the vehicle she's guarding is hit having just run over a resistance spike trap, Peridot is shoved forward by the edgy guards demanding she do something about this. The 'secret weapon' protecting this particular truck is all of four feet worth of green person, but she leaps out of the currently disabled vehicle like a force of nature, scowling at the popped tires.

Her badass credentials are thoroughly trounced when she turns back towards whatever resistance flunkies are trying to get through her, not recognizing any she might have known before she was reconditioned- even her form has shifted back to her default state, her visor no longer shaped like cutesy kamina glasses.

"Seriously?! Can't you clods just accept this is for your own good, and stop breaking our stuff??"

[monosaccharide]

Bubblegum slides out of the vehicle and ties her squishy pink hair back out of her face as she crouches to examine the damage. She's wearing a pink jumpsuit, comfortable pink sneakers, and her crown. Perfect casual wear for a mission like this.

"Peeps here are almost as bad as the Candy Peeps back home when it comes to taking care of themselves."

She frowns, tapping on her tablet, then glances over her shoulder at Peridot.

"The damage isn't too bad. I can fix it. Just keep that fighting biz away from me for a few minutes."

[slapfight]

"On it." Peridot shakes out her hands dramatically and produces five metal spheres from inside the belt she wears around her waist. Once her powers activate, they float in the air, spin, and then begin to assault the resistance- she doesn't have enough force to put them through people and not enough finesse to even kill, but this is effectively the worst came of dodgeball ever and anyone who comes near her is gonna get bruised up at best and maybe end up with a broken bone or two at worst.

"You don't know who you're dealing with," she yells, laughing maniacally as she clocks some poor bastard right in the groin on sheer luck and then nails another one in the solar plexus.

Flash / Bart Allen | AU Double Agent | OTA

[kid_flash_found]

Bart hated getting assigned to transport duty, but nobody would deny that the fastest meta alive was a perfect fit to the job. All he had to do was keep up and put on a good fight when the resistance showed up. (They had better show up, he'd managed to drop warnings and several of the proposed routes to various contacts when the opportunity arose.)

Still, he had to try to keep his job, which meant attempting to talk to some of the transfers, keeping them calm, all the while waiting for a chance to show he was still on what deep down he definitely considered the wrong side. Government wasn't meant to take over like this, but if anyone knew he wasn't all in, he'd be added to the human cargo in a heartbeat.

[bodilesswarrior]

They've done this dance many times. Barbara knows the reputation Aegis has garnered, by now; she can't afford to be gentle with Bart. That could harm him far, far more than anything her mech can dish out. She can't shield him from the whole resistance, either; she isn't the only person who knows, but the less people who do the better.

On the bright side, Bart is no slouch at protecting himself. And she doesn't go radio silent when she's inside the mech, which means she can warn him about, say, incoming projectiles even as he dodges one of her own punches.

"Duck." It's her real voice, unaltered, low and tired. No one else will hear it.

[kid_flash_found]

There's always a lot at stake when Bart faces off with the resistance, but at least he knows that Barbara isn't actually trying to eliminate him. Her warning has him dropping, rolling to one side to try and find out who did what, even as the projectiles slam into one of the armored transports in his stead. He can't reply, since he's got an open channel with his government team, but he can trust they're still working towards the same goals.

They're playing cat and mouse, most of the time, Bart isn't sure who is what role. Today, for example, he knows the real mission is buying the resistance some time to relieve the transports of as many of the new metas as possible. And possibly some of the older transfers. People who are too valuable to be left in government hands. But he has to actually do his job as security, at least well enough to look like he's trying.

Jonathan Walsh | AU Government enforcer | OTA

[drivesadesk]

He usually keeps his mask on at all times, but this crowd being transported is being especially rowdy. He hates it. While part of him wants to help them, feels a twinge of pity when they call out for help, remembers his complete terror when he himself was taken...he knows he can't do anything. He has to do this. He has no choice.

Turning toward the prisoners, in an effort to both scare and warn them, Jonathan pulls off his mask, revealing his numerous scars.

"Listen. I know you guys want to fight. You want to break out and do something big. But believe me when I tell you this will all go a lot better if you cooperate."

[darkpants_warmfeeling]

If there was any doubt left in Jacob’s mind that he has been pulled into a nightmare universe, seeing the face beneath that mask dispels them. He stares up at Jonathan’s scarred features, stunned, disbelieving.

“Jonathan?” He breathes, confused and angry. “What the hell did they do to you?”

[drivesadesk]

He briefly tries to remember whether he's met this person before, but quickly shoves that thought out of his mind. It's not important.

"It doesn't matter. If you don't put up a fight, they won't do it to you. And if you do put up a fight, it's not going to make a difference in the end."

Georgia (and Shaun) Mason | AU - resistance journalists

[choosetruth]

Recon - OTA

It's dangerous to be a journalist who refused to toe the government line. But on the bright side, none of the enforcers have ever bitten Georgia and turned her into an undead corpse so really, it could be worse.

Prisoner transports are always interesting and newsworthy. Especially interesting is seeing who's moved from prisoner to enforcer. Georgia's got a running tally, and she loves pointing it out to her readers. She keeps her distance for the most part, using long range cameras and microphones rather than risking getting too close, but she has to come in close sometimes. You can't be a good journalist if you're too afraid to get your hands messy. That means risking enforcers seeing her. She's armed and ready if she has to be. She doesn't want to fight, but she's not going to let herself be taken in if there's another option.

Good news? Her brother generally does want to fight. He gets bored easily.

Rescue - closed to Shaun and Jane Foster

Losing Jane was a hit to the resistance. So far they've been lucky. If she told them anything, it hasn't been enough to get anyone else arrested, at least as far as they can tell. Still, with the forces of the government stretched thin and prisoners on the move, there's an opportunity there. Jane's transport doesn't have as many guards as it would otherwise. It's not going to be easy, but, well, Shaun's got a lot of grenades. It's an opportunity they have to at least try and take.

Georgia turns to Shaun. "Ready?"

Rescue

[irwins]

There is something perhaps unsettlingly bright in Shaun's eyes as he looks back to Georgia and flashes her a grin. "Born ready." A pause and he amends, "Probably." Given that the circumstances of his birth are entirely a mystery, there's no knowing for sure.

Anyway, he's ready to blow something up and to retrieve Jane.

He palms one of his grenades, but pauses to lean in and press a kiss to Georgia's cheek. "Don't get caught. Don't get dead. See you on the other side." He lingers just a moment longer before he's off.

He darts off in a path that'll bring him waiting for the transport. Grenades are tricky things, but he's gotten good with explosives. And improvising. He steps out into the road right in front of the transport vehicle, grenade in hand. He watches as it slams on the brakes, grins at the drivers as he pulls the pin and drops the grenade at his feet.

At the same time he phases himself out so that the explosion that follows, tears up the road and the front of the car, but passes harmlessly through his intangible body, and with that he heads for the back of the transport.

Rescue

[bifroster]

Jane knew that there was going to be a rescue attempt, which was why she was in the back of the transport with other metas. Not because the government knew about the resistance’s plans, but because she insisted that having a fellow meta there who could be a positive representative for the government would help keep everyone else calm. Not that she believed anything she had said to convince them to let her travel with them.

As soon as the doors were closed, Jane pressed a button on a small device, and anything listening in on them was shut off. Nothing but static on those other ends.

She kept the conversation to light small talk, assuring them that they would not be harmed, that this was just protocol for everyone’s safety. At the same time, she was passing around a series of notes explaining that she was with the resistance and they were getting out of here.

“What about you?” one of those being transported asked.

At that, Jane smiled. “I do important work. I hate that I’m going to have to go back to it after this. A coffee break would be nice.”

In other words, Shaun and Georgia didn’t know that she was a mole … and had to stay.

But they’re ready when the grenade hits the truck. Everyone springs into action, using their powers to help shield others, get them going, avoid government agents coming to recapture them, and get to the safety of the resistance.

Boba Fett | AU Reprogrammed Government Enforcer | OTA

[fettchquest]

It’s not a usual job.

The Empire generally isn’t understaffed. With their legions of ill-trained recruits meant to puff up their image of being a galactic superpower, usually quite the opposite. So it’s strange that Fett has been hired to do what is basically grunt-work: guarding a prisoner transport alone as it makes its way to a secure holding facility. The irregularity of it grates at him, a low-level buzz at the back of his mind.

There’s a high-priority target on-board. Yes, that’s what Vader had said, isn’t it? It’s not strange. It makes perfect sense why they’d want someone like him around. The buzzing warms some, but doesn’t dissipate.

Fortunately, there’s a much-needed distraction occupying the transport with him—one of the prisoners, struggling against their stuncuffs and shouting for justice, for freedom, for help. It’s a pathetic display. Fett walks up to the prisoner, regards them silently for a moment—and then drives a fist into their stomach, hard enough to knock the wind out of them.

The buzzing stops. Even the sound of the doubled over prisoner gasping for breath doesn’t disturb the blessed silence that fills its space.

Fett offers a single word of admonishment.

”Volume.”

[darkpants_warmfeeling]

“Leave them alone!”

Jacob knows it would have been smarter to keep his mouth shut. He knows there’s very little he can do for the prisoner, or anyone else in the transport. Like the rest of them, he’s bound, bruised, and power-nulled, completely helpless before their captors.

But it’s his duty to put himself at risk for the protection of others, no matter what universe he’s in. So he glares at the faceless helmet looming above him, and steels himself for what seems like an inevitable punishment for speaking up. At least if he’s getting hit, someone else won’t be.

[fettchquest]

There’s a reason Fett doesn’t prefer these types of job. Capturing and transporting one prisoner is easy enough. They resist, he knocks them down, and that’s the end of it. With multiple prisoners in the same transport, there’s solidarity. Conversation. It’s a headache to manage.

He turns his attention to the newly-protesting prisoner, stalking closer while the man behind him continues to gasp and sputter. Fett isn’t a sadist. He has no interest in causing pain for pain’s sake. But order must be maintained. And if this prisoner wants to take responsibility for the rest, then Fett is inclined to let him.

“I’d prefer to,” Fett says, habit stopping him just out of arms’ reach. “You could make both of our lives easier.” A hand rests on his blaster—not drawing it, just calling attention to its presence. His helmet jerks back towards the others. “Tell them there’s no point in resisting.”

[germhating_hypochondriac]

Eddie's been frozen in fear since the cuffs were placed on his wrists.  He's a good little prisoner, staying quiet until he can't take the sound of the guy next to him gasping.  It's too close to the sound of his own 'asthma' (panic attacks) and he's on the verge of having an episode.  He can't even use his powers to help the guy feel better, not with the cuffs on.  He looks up at the guard and speaks in a near whisper, just loud enough to be heard.] 

Okay, we'll be quiet, dude.  But you hit him hard.  This guy needs a doctor and an x-ray.  He could be bleeding inside and need surgery and blood transfusions.  All that shit.

[fettchquest]

[The boy is so much smaller than the vehicle’s other occupants that Fett almost hadn’t noticed him next to the unruly prisoner. His helmet turns, regarding the boy coolly.]

If I'd wanted to kill him, [Fett says,] I would have.

[It isn’t unheard-of for the Empire to detain children. Fett can guess as to reasons: petty crime, relation to known dissidents, Force-sensitivity, conscription. Or something more serious. Fett had started killing when he was around this boy’s age; he knows better than anyone not to underestimate children’s potential for violence.

He crouches down to the boy’s level, less to be reassuring and more for a better look. After all, there’s nothing reassuring about being in the sights of that implacable black visor. The boy doesn’t look like a street urchin or petty criminal. He hadn’t sounded like one either.]

You don’t seem like the Empire’s usual fare...

[There's no question attached to the remark, but judging by the slight angling of his helmet, it's easy enough to tell that he's looking for an explanation.]

JACOB TAYLOR - MoM MEMORIES - OTA

[darkpants_warmfeeling]

TRANSPORT

Well, this is bullshit.

Jacob had been happy. It had been over. No more war, no more fighting, just a life of teaching and rebuilding and raising a family. Then, in a flash of cosmic power and a rush of returning memories, he was an imPort again.

Not an imPort arriving in Cape Canaveral, though. No, this time he had arrived in the City, a name out of history, a legend of violence and tragedy he’d only heard second-hand from the most experienced imPorts. Before he had time to process what was happening, he was surrounded by armed personnel, bound by power-dampening cuffs, and hustled none-to-gently into a transport for ‘processing’

This is the kind of world Jacob had always feared as an imPort, the world he had fought to prevent. A world where imPorts either ran rampant over defenseless people, or were corralled and brutalized by those who feared and exploited them. In the world of Cape Canaveral, Jacob had led a government-backed team that had tried to maintain balance and keep the peace. In this world, he’s stuffed into an armoured vehicle along with other people whose only crime is being imPorts, and driven off to an unknown fate.

The worst moment comes when Jacob gets a glimpse at the unit patch on one of the masked and armoured agents manhandling him into the vehicle. Sewn onto the shoulder of the man’s uniform is a familiar yet inverted symbol: a black tower instead of white, set against a red background instead of blue. Printed underneath is the name: ‘AEGIS UNIT.’

“Oh, you have got to be shitting me,” Jacob groans. Then the door slams, and the transport starts rolling.



RESCUE

This is more like it. Freed of his bonds by whichever Resistance members have intercepted the vehicle, Jacob stands up and stretches out both his muscles and powers once the fighting is done. He lights up with a corona of blue energy, feeling his biotic abilities return after being nullified, then turns to whoever has saved him.

“Thanks for the help,” he says with feeling. “I don’t know what they do to ‘processed’ imPorts, but I’m guessing it isn’t fun. We’ve got a place to run to, right?”

He hopes there’s somewhere they can go to get off the street. This transport may not have been well-guarded, but he doesn’t doubt that reinforcements will arrive soon.

rescue

[the_caped_crusader]

I can get you to other members of the resistance, but we have to hurry.

[ the voice is familiar, though he looks different. he's dressed in all black, a balaclava over his face, but it's not the batman costume, and while he can walk freely, he favors his right leg. around him though are a team of six clad in swat-like armor, and they move silently around them in formation, as ominous as he used to be. ]

We don't have much time. Let's go.

[darkpants_warmfeeling]

[Jacob doesn't recognize the man or his apparent personal tactical squad, but he recognizes the voice. He trusts the voice. So he nods, and pauses to stoop and help himself to the sidearm of a fallen guard before he is ready to head out.]

Right behind you. And let me tell you, it's damn good to see a familiar face. Mask. You know what I mean.

transport

[brushoff]

Dorian slips in before the door slams shut. And it is blatantly obvious that he is out of his comfort zone. He's wearing some clothes that are obviously designer. One hand grabs one of the handrails inside the armored van, another hand holds a small yet expensive looking video camera. As the van lurches to a start, he turns to one of the armed guards.

"Try to actually win if the transport gets hit. Do a good job and I'll put your face on a poster."

If the casual condescension didn't give away his allegiance, the government issued ID card clipped to his suitjacket lapel certainly does. As the guard makes a noise of acknowledgment and rolls his eyes, Dorian turns his attention to the rest of the Metas.

"Well, aren't you all a sorry looking lot. Still, the Porter never really had good taste--present company excluded, of course," he says as he gestures to himself with the hand holding the camera.

rescue

[khajidont]

"Jacob?"

Jaime had been on one of the other transport vehicles that had been liberated, though he wasn't the one doing any of the liberating; in the face of this absolute bafflement, he figured that it was wisest to just lay low and to see what happens. By now, he's realized that some people aren't the people he recognized, or at least, they're different versions of themselves, so it's with caution that he approaches the other man.

"Do you remember me?"

WILDCARDS AFTER THE RESCUE CUZ I CAN

[fauxmarth]

There's no way.

Is that...?

"J-Jacob-?!"

Keeping aloft had kept her out of the hands of the initial attack, but it wasn't going to save her forever. Not that she realizes that right now, because right now, she spots the shape of someone very dear to her...or at least, she thinks she does. It can be a bit dicey making those calls from a bird's eye, yet intuition counts for a lot in her mind.

"Jacob!" she calls, swooping low before landing mere yards away. Still clad in the winter clothes she'd been spirited away in, a sword at her hip that's distinctly not Falchion, she's still very plainly herself, wide-eyed and slack jawed, searching his shape to confirm it's him.

After all, since coming here? She's realized people don't...seem to be right. Not all of them, anyway.

ALSO a wildcard bc FIGHT ME

[siriusly]

Some time after the rescue, but not that long after, there's a whole lot of barking coming Jacob's way. A Mightyena in a dirty old bandana runs up to each lingering individual to give them a sniff, some getting more attention than others, before padding over to Jacob to give him the same once-over and demand attention.

"Aah, man..."

Manabu tromps out into view, rubbing the back of his head and grimacing.

"I guess we missed everything already? Everyone's safe?"

That's what he gets for busting his motorcycle the day before, he supposes.

transport

[obediences]

The metas working for the government are mostly identifiable by their uniforms, their crisp professionalism, a certain brusqueness to the way they bundle away the new arrivals— and right now? They're overworked, struggling to contain it all, working quicker than ever and perhaps cutting some corners. They're rougher, grabbing every arrival even if they haven't caused any trouble yet, carting them off for processing.

At the last second, one last agent hops into the armoured van carrying Jacob, pulls the doors shut behind them, and raps his knuckles against the wall to signify they're ready to go. The van starts moving. When he settles back on the bench, it turns out it's a familiar figure.

Luther. It's Luther Hargreeves, but an inverted version of him just like the Aegis tower is inverted: he's still tall with broad shoulders, but now he's lean and trim and dressed in a form-fitting uniform rather than baggy sweaters. He moves with brisk confidence, rather than trying to shrink away into the corner.

When Jacob looks at him, there's no light of recognition in those now-cold blue eyes.