Scene #7814: A Fake Netbattler Goes To New York

Owner	Pose
Forte	There's lots of New Yorks. This one in particular has a Watch safehouse in it. It's a place where agents provocateur can lie low after their missions, heal and re-equip, and get back out to provocateur further, as agents do. The actual safehouse is in an abandoned and bricked-up subway tunnel deep below the city. It's accessed by a set of quantum-linked platforms (provided by a nomaian watch member), one platform in the safehouse, and the other in the private room of a Watch-sympathetic massage parlor aboveground, on a crowded street. In theory it's secure. In practice there's a visitor. "It really is very simple," says the visitor, to the receptionist (who isn't paid nearly enough for this). "You hand over everything the Watch knows about the individual known as Forte, and I'll refrain from tearing this place apart searching for the entrance. Everyone wins." "Incidentally," adds the visitor, who is an ever-smiling individual with shoulder-length cyan hair, and wearing a trenchcoat, "One of your clientele needs to update their cell phone's firmware. There's a remote code execution bug in the previous version. Additionally, after identifying this location, I've identified eighty three other security flaws in your operation and would be glad to share my report and instructions on how to rectify them - once you have provided me the information I require, of course." The silent alarm went out on Watch channels some time ago. You might want to deal with this guy, one way or another.
Shotaro Hidari	Shotaro Hidari, with bandages all across his arms, legs, and his ribs bandaged looked up from his bed to hear the silent alarm. For a moment, he thinks about closing his eyes and rolling over. However, the man could not leave well enough alone, so instead, he gets up and grabs his hat, placing it on his head. Moments he's leaving, his coat over his shoulders, while he's buttoning up his shirt. It would be NOW that he shows up leaning against the desk of the receptionist. He waves to her, indicating he'll take it from here. To which he eyes the visitor for a moment before speaking. "Shotaro Hidari," he introduces himself, he says, taking his hat off and making a light bow. The hat goes back on his head before he returns to his reclining position. He perhaps looks too hard like he's trying to make a pose, but right now he's also hurt so it could be he's looking to take a load off. "You're asking for a lot, and are asking for something nebulous in return. Given who I know we have in security doing our ops, I feel you're either bluffing or holding onto less information than you have...besides if you had all of that you'd be able to get the information yourself, right?" Shotaro says, once more eying the trenchcoated individual. "So what is this really about, and perhaps we can simply start this off on a better foot, yeah?"
Gareth	In Gareth's world-hopping safehouse-visiting spree, she just so happens to arrive at one located in a New York. Loitering at this one for a while provided her with a good opportunity to take a break before moving on to the next one, but the arrival of this visitor is enough reason for the knight to double back and head right on back to the massage parlor. "Unfortunately for you, sir, I have no idea who that is!" The knight announces as she approaches the visitor with a bright-eyed and vigor-filled stare. "And furthermore, I don't know what any of those words mean. What I do know, however, is that you're bothering the fine people of this back-fixing establishment with such thinly veiled threats. Please, step outside, and we might be able to resolve this without bothering the folks inside, hmm?" She really has no idea what he's talking about. Computers aren't her forte, so she'll have to leave that mumbo jumbo to Shotaro. "Otherwise, I'll have to perform my duty as a knight and remove you forcefully to preserve the peace. Violently, even, if you prefer non-veiled threats." She clarifies with a beaming smile in all her 5'3" glory. She's also not wearing anything indicating she's a knight. Instead, she's just wearing a regular light brown winter jacket with ear muffs well-suited for New York's shitty winters, a slightly less seasonal long skirt with stockings, and some slightly fuzzy snow boots beneath that. Not really knightly at all.
Forte	"Ah. I see... you believe I am bluffing. You do not believe that I have identified a full eighty three security flaws in your safehouse." The smiling man nods. He reaches into his trenchcoat, and pulls out a sheaf of paper, which he starts flipping through. "Let's see. Flaw number fifty-one, let's start with that one - the cover operation is using significantly less electric draw than would be required for the clientele observed to be coming and going. I would recommend running an extra hair dryer during peak hours of operation in order to mask the lower-than-expected power consumption. Flaw eighty is the presence of lead shielding - not a tell, by any means, but something that stands out when looking at a spectrographic scan for confirmation." "And of course flaw three is a variation week over week in the dietary restrictions of meals ordered via popular delivery services - order histories being trivially difficult to access via social engineering. One does not simply become halal one week and then order the cheese pork and veal special the next. It's more indicative of multiple personnel being rotated through than the typical order history of a salon with a static roster of employees." The sheaf of papers is placed on the desk. "I suppose I should introduce myself at this point, now that my credentials are established. My name is Juno.EXE, I am an autonomous netnavi whose function is finding and exploiting security flaws proactively. I am afraid that I am quite unshakable - if I do not get the information I require here, I can undoubtedly find more safehouses and operations until I do." The smile grows. It doesn't quite reach his eyes. "So I will repeat my demand - I require information on Forte, where you are keeping him, and what measures you are taking to keep him there. I understand he is useful for your purposes of murdering popes and the like, but I am afraid that is coming to an end soon, whether or not you furnish me with what I require."
Shotaro Hidari	Despite the information produced and placed down in front of them, Shotaro keeps his cool despite both his wounds and the threat. He looks over what is provided, flipping through it...well more like that Philip is looking at it, while Shotaro picks up enough. It's a threat, and at least going to be a monetary issue for their assets in the short term, but a potential issue in the long term. "Let me clarify myself. You have given your name and a vague ask of 'information'. What is your purpose in seeking this information? What are you attempting to do?" Shotaro continues, stepping off from the wall and walking around Juno, who continues to give them that very creepy smile. However, Shotaro knows his deal of...well let's call them 'contacts'. "If Forte is part of this group like you claim he is, why would we rat him out? If you have that much data, you also know how burnable those assets are. Inconvenient, but not insurmountable...more to the point, making yourself too much of a problem would likely get too much attention you wouldn't want." "However, you haven't gone to either organization that might have issues with how we do things either. You're also not classified as a virus buster, combat, or tracking. Meaning, that it's not likely you're hunting Forte down as a bounty hunter or law enforcement.." he says, before turning back towards Juno. "Also my friend here is likely more than capable if things get rowdy, but I'm not about to get rowdy with someone who came wanting to talk first. So, tell me why besides vague threats that I should sell out one of my comrades? If you have done enough homework, you'd know it's not something you ask and gets very easily here.." "Be honest with me and I can at least talk to him to see if he's willing to talk to you."
Gareth	Some of the words being said are things even Gareth understands. The number of flaws is certainly dizzying to think about, but hearing about them... Actually doesn't really tell her a whole lot more than what she already knew. "So what you're saying is..." She squints at the smiling man for several moments, stroking her chin for a while before finally snapping her fingers. "There's a lot of them!" She deduces, then crosses her arms while Juno.EX keeps going about... Something about food? That's where she seems to have finally had enough. "You don't eat the same food every day of every week, do you? No! A balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle means you have to try different things, even if you might not like it all." She sounds rather certain of herself, even possibly thinking she's just laid down some wisdom on the visitor, but his insistence on getting information on Forte and threatening to bust up the safehouses has her stepping towards him again until she's a scant few inches away from wherever her head might be in comparison to his. "And I will repeat mine, sir. If you do not leave peacefully, I will be forced to remove you from here for threatening these fine people and besmirching this Forte person with such baseless accusations." Indeed, Gareth looks like she's about ready to get a little hands-on with the matter, but she holds back when Shotaro speaks up about trying to talk this out further. She glances over at him and keeps her hands at her sides, but she doesn't back away from Juno.EXE just yet.
Forte	Juno's eyes blink when Shotaro gets a read on him. "Ah. I see. You are also an individual capable of analysis..." "... You are correct - I am not here in an attempt to arrest or capture Forte. I would have approached this differently if I had. I am simply attempting to rescue and assist him - free him from your clutches and whatever measure of control you have over him - and I would thank you to drop the pretense that he is one of your comrades, and I have reliable intel stating otherwise." "As far as why I am here, my interest in the matter... call it brotherly love. And - while I appreciate the insistence on a peaceful pretense, I am not about to leave empty handed," he adds, to Gareth. "After all, I may not look it..." Juno.EXE pulls off the trenchcoat. Underneath, there's a battle-ready netnavi body, with arms that look like they mean business - even if they're disconnected and floating free from his body. "But I am, in the literal sense, Forte's brother."
Gareth	"A rescue? Then... You're a friend of his!" Gareth lets out a relieved sigh at that, actually taking his words at face value while conveniently ignoring the weirder part about dropping pretenses. "That's a relief, then. I'm afraid I still don't actually know a thing about him, though, but I'm sure Sir Hid-er. Shotaro may be able to get you in touch if..." Wait. This guy's his brother! The threatening gesture goes right over the knight's head as she keeps beaming brightly, although she does look confused and intrigued by the weird stuff all over Juno.EXE's body. "Even better! No, no, I don't think you would be leaving empty-handed, now that we know where you're coming from with all this. A reunion between brothers is something to be celebrated, so it's just a matter of time!" Gareth chuckles as she circles around Juno.EX once, looking him over with all bright-eyed curiosity of a dog that's trying to comprehend what a mirror is. "Until then,... Oh. Right, since you're showing us this much, then I suppose it's only fair to show you my armor as well." And so, while completely failing to read the room, Gareth steps back to get her own armor on. With the power of Servant/Magic Ghost bullshit, thick steel armor materializes all around her, fitting into place snugly and transforming her from a relatively tiny tourist to a relatively tiny knight in shining gray armor. One hand goes up, and a giant lance appears in it. The other hand goes up, and a torso-covering kite shield appears in that hand. And then she looks over at Shotaro and Juno.EXE for validation. "Pretty cool, eh? Eh?"
Shotaro Hidari	"This isn't something we're doing..." Shotaro says, surprised by this sudden ramp-up in aggression. "We're also not in a good place for this.." he doesn't look at the building, but rather the outside. However, in his hand, he holds a USB-like stick, colored in purple colors. "However, I can't promise he'd want to see you. He seems very private and only engages with things on his terms." However, things are turning aggressive, and he's not exactly happy with being the good cop right now, because the BAD cop part of this duo was more aggressively wanting to throw hands. He eyes Gareth a moment but knows this isn't going to go peacefully. "Philip," he says, which Philip sighs, "Take it easy.." his partner says, as the Belt appears over his waist. The button is pressed, as a single word is bellowed out of the USB stick. A green USB stick appears first, pressed into a slot on the belt which gets it to say its name. CYCLONE The purple USB stick comes down, which is slotted into the belt and too, says its name. JOKER CYCLONE JOKER A wind tears through the establishment, as the armor, appears to be blown into the Kamen Rider. W stands before Juno, "If you're going to cause problems here...then first be prepared to count up your sins." he says, motioning towards Juno with a finger. However, he does not immediately engage, "I encourage you to either stand down and we can talk about this...because it's a misunderstanding, or let's take this somewhere without a lot of people around us." He eyes Gareth, trying not to sigh.
Forte	Juno.EXE nods to Gareth. "Indeed, that is a high percentile rating of coolness. Suitably impressive and intimidating, if I was not intending to be undeterred from my goals, I promise you. "But - Very well, then. While I do not intend to leave empty handed, I have no desire to destroy the city and endanger bystanders, either. There's a park nearby with suitable amounts of empty space." This appears to be the point at which words end and fists begin, though. "There is no misunderstanding. You have Forte captive, and are controlling him in some fashion, and he is in pain. It is possible you personally are misinformed of the situation, but cryptographically impossible that I am." The treeline of the park provides some cover from observers, as well - and the people who do spot them seem inclined to just give the trio of dueling elites some space and look the other way. "With the risk of collateral damage dealt with, I am afraid I must proceed to beat the information out of you now. Autonavi slot in - Gutspunch G, execute." With that, the floating arms form giant fists, and fly at Shotaro and Gareth in turn!
Shotaro Hidari	The fist hits square on, sending Shotaro sprawling out as sparks rip dangerously through the Kamen Rider suit. He goes rolling, taking more time to get back to his feet, as W finally gets his footing again and eyeing the Navi. He's going to have to rely on Gareth, but he can't let her handle everything. He rushes forward, trying to duck under one of the giant fists, and rolls right up to Juno. His hands come down, aiming to try and strike the Navi across the chest, before aiming a foot to try and knock them down to the ground. His foot follows up, but it won't be that easy, W knows. "I'm telling you, that is not what is going on, and if there IS something going on I'd want to know about it."
Gareth	Shotaro transforms, and Gareth whoops (respectfully) at the appearance of Kamen Rider W, the cool transformation apparently getting her fired up even as things get closer and closer to a fight. She follows along with Juno.EXE and W, puffing up just a bit more when the former confirms that she is totally cool. "This does seem like a good spot for a friendly duel, yes. But please, rest assured that we don't have your brother in captivity. I'd know if I had anyone in captivity!" Gareth announces with the utmost confidence, although that confused look returns to her face when he brings up the possibility of herself and Shotaro being misinformed. "... Well, it wouldn't be the first time I was fooled about something, but fret not! Shotaro here is an ace detective, and he wouldn't be so easily tricked into capturing someone without even realizing it!" Alas, even her attempts at convincing Juno.EX have to end eventually as the fight begins. Seeing that big robot fist coming right at her, Gareth shakes her shield arm off once before charging straight ahead, barely even slowing down at the impact of the fist that might very well be bigger than her entirely. "A fearsome attack indeed, but you'll have to do far better than that if you want to pierce my armor. Now let's see how your defenses fare against my own attacks!" She's really taking it all in stride as she pushes past the fist and starts zipping around Juno.EXE, dashing forward and sideways erratically to make her first blow more unpredictable. Once she's finally in range, however, her movement goes from tricky to straightforward, but with a whole lot of speed as she just aims to ram her lance into Juno center mass.
Forte	As Juno's arms return to their positions, W comes in with a kick - an unexpected one. Juno had thought the rider would stay down for longer after that. It's an opening that's immediately exploited by the other combatant - as Juno reorients from the kick, he's unable to properly put up his defenses to block Gareth's assault. "Your words - and your actions... Autonavi slot in. Barrier B, execute. Are spoken forcefully and confidently. I doubt either would be the case if you are lying." "Regardless - you are misinformed. And so, regretfully..." As the barrier snaps into place around Juno, he preps another attack. "Autonavi slot in, Ringzap R. Execute." This takes the form of electrified chakrams that appear in Juno's hands, that he launches at each of them - the voltage isn't fatal, but it is plenty painful.
Shotaro Hidari	The electrical field hits W, causing his body to convulse and spark from the damage. He drops to a knee...this isn't good and he's on the back food. Philip speaks, and half of W lights up as he speaks to Shotaro, "Shotaro, you're at a huge disadvantage like this, let the giant woman get personal with him, and switch out to trigger." Shotaro, breathing, can't find fault with that logic, right now trying to engage Juno with his specialty was a losing prospect. He pulls out Joker and pulls out another USB stick. Sliding it in and slotting it, the dark purple side is replaced with a bright blue. TRIGGER CYCLONE TRIGGER Standing back up, Shotaro instead tries to stay back and behind Gareth. Shots of wind fly from the gun, aiming to try and take shots, accurate ones mind you, at Juno as he speaks. "Ok, and that might be the case, but you're going to need to believe me that that's NOT how the Watch works. We're not an organization that operates like that!" He ducks behind cover, finally, "You're wanting information from us and wanting us to trust you...but other than your word we have no proof or any reason why YOU think that Forte is being controlled."
Gareth	"That's because we're not! What reason would we have to...?" Gareth starts, but stops. Even she's not THAT stupid to not understand at least that much. "... Nevertheless, we'd know if we were being misinformed. We'd have to have been informed first if that was the case!" She's confident about what she knows that she doesn't know, if nothing else. "But be honest with us. If this Forte was in such danger, why not seek us out in a more honest way first? If we truly meant him harm and to deceive you, coming as you did would only justify us deceiving you!" There's a pause, and then Gareth brings her shield back up as Juno brings out those electrified chakrams. "... Which we're not! Just in case you thought we were!" As with before, she makes little effort to actually evade his attacks as she smashes right into the one aimed at her, using her shield to absorb the bulk of that electric shock while keeping it extended away from her body. She still feels that unpleasant stinging running through her arms, but it's still not enough to slow her advance. This time around, however, she doesn't go for anything quite as flashy. She just speeds along, launching herself at Juno in a straight line. Although her path is straightforward, however, she seems to be moving even faster than before, as if she's building up momentum through this fight to really lay into him and use her entire armored mass as a weapon this time around!
Forte	"Mmm. Trust is a tricky thing, is it not," says Juno. The shots blast against the barrier, weakening it - and then Gareth's charge breaks straight through it. Juno's eyes open in surprise once again as she slams into him, putting him on the back foot as he stumbles. "I trust - my information. It's based on Forte's cryptographic signature - his internal private key. It's impossible for that to be faked. His private key was used to sign a distress call - so to speak. There are very few possibilities, as a result - the message is genuine and you are misinformed, or he has been otherwise compromised - which essentially prompts the same course of action. The only other possibility is that there are two identical Fortes with the same internal private key - which is absurd, of course." "And thus. Autonavi slot in - Landmine M, execute." The nearby ground of the park lights up briefly, in a flashing pattern. Somewhere in there, there's hidden land mines, if the attack name is any indication. "Thus, we are at an impasse."
Shotaro Hidari	"Did he say landmines..?" Shotaro says as half of W lights up. There is a beeping near him. "Oh," The twin Kamen Riders say in unison, before the explosion goes off, barely able to shield themselves from the worst of it. W rolls across the ground, looking worse for wear as he takes a lot longer to stand up this time. He's simply not going to last at this rate, and despite this, he's still trying to stop this fight. "Pal, we're in the Multiverse. There are potentially hundreds of identical signals that could be from alternates of Forte...in fact, the Forte we know says he does not know someone named Juno." Shots fire out again, trying to find any purchase in Juno, or at least trying to find a proper path. Some sort of plan...because right now this wasn't getting them anywhere. "In fact, I've been in contact with Forte this whole time. I never scanned you, he told me what I needed to know."
Gareth	"Is it truly impossible? You thought we were deceiving you at first, but we proved that wrong already! And..." Gareth really can't follow that talk of private keys and cryptographic signatures, but not for a lack of trying. She's picking up a few context clues, at least, and that part about identical Fortes is what all but confirms her suspicions. Maybe not necessarily suspicions, but at least it gives her something to work with. "I think I understand now... Hmhm! That's where you're wrong, Sir Dot EXE!" Gareth skids to a stop as the ground lights up, undoubtedly creating some kind of trap for herself and W. Before advancing again, however, she raises her lance to the sky, then brings it and her arm down in a deep bow. "My name is Gareth, Seventh Knight of the Round Table. I was killed hundreds of years ago, yet I stand here now thanks to being called here from the Throne of Heroes!" She explains, then couches the lance at her side while leaning into a crouch. "Clearly, I am not a skeleton, and I am not a ghost, but I am here in the flesh. That's the wonder of the multiverse, for we could very well find several versions of ourselves, and even engage ourselves in combat, conversation, or anything in between!" After proclaiming all that, Gareth starts sprinting. Land mines explode beneath her as she runs right through that field, weathering each explosion uncomfortable looking jerks and getting thrown around somewhat each time. It's clear she's making no effort to try and predict where they'll be, instead just going straight for Juno again without even a hint of subterfuge or trying to outthink his gambits. "Now do you understand, Sir Dot? It's not impossible for your Forte to have met a second one at all!" Her lance starts glowing as she gets closer, gathering into the tip once she launches herself into the air for a big fancy diving attack with bright blue lasers bursting out of the tip in a wide scattering pattern to try and open his defenses up just before another heavy thrust.
Forte	Wind shots ring out - Juno brings both beefy disconnected arms up to block, and keeps them up as Gareth comes in with her lance - it turns out to not be nearly enough, as the knight pierces right through the gap between them, scoring a solid hit on Juno's chest, leaving a sizable dent. Navis don't bleed, but if they did, Gareth's lance would be stained crimson when she draws it back. And in response... ... Nothing. Juno's guard stays up - reorienting to keep both combatants in view and himself in a defensible position and posture, but there's no further attack incoming. "... That..." "... Is a point. I cannot say if it is a probable point, but it is still a possibility I had not yet considered. That there could indeed be two Fortes." "I yield."
Shotaro Hidari	Kamen Rider W waits a moment, looking back towards Gareth for a moment before he looks back towards Juno and puts the weapon away. He does not immediately revert back to Shotaro, because he's likely going to collapse if he does. This has been way too stressful, and thankfully Philip has enough energy in the tank to keep him afloat. "If you want to talk about this in a more private setting, after we get some medical attention," We being everyone not the royal we, "You can come to my detective agency and we can talk the details..." he says, showing he's not about to keep fighting. "You can tell us what brought you here, and we can find out what's going on with your brother...and if our Forte is your brother, or if your brother is the Forte that transmitted the distress code." There is a pause, "And rescue them. There should be some medical stuff back at the place we were just at." "Trust is a heavy thing to give, and easily shattered...but I'm askin' you to trust me on this thing. I would never allow a family to be separated like that, alright?" Shotaro says both bosses of the detective agency come to his mind. What goes unsaid is that he would never let it happen again. "Besides, you showed a great deal of restraint and care around the civilians. That goes a long way with me."
Gareth	"That's right! Then... Oh." That went better than expected. With the attacks ceasing, Gareth lowers her lance and shield to her sides before letting them dematerialize as a show of good faith. "See? That wasn't so hard, was it? Now." She claps her armored gauntlets together, and the armor disappears as well, replacing itself with her coat and other comfy winter clothes once again. "As Mister Shotaro and I said. What might have happened is that there's a second Forte, or a third, or even someone with that crypto... Cuckened..." She looks towards Shotaro for an assist there. "The... key thing! Um." "Someone else might have the same thing without even being Forte, you know? I hear computers are always doing glitches, so it's not impossible!" She suggests, sounding eager enough even if she clearly has no idea what she's talking about. "And if this does involve your dear brother, it's as Shotaro said. We aren't the sort of people to let families be broken apart so easily, and I can tell you care a great deal about your true brother to go to such lengths to find him! But before we can sort all of this out, there's one thing you need to do for us first." Gareth gives Shotaro another look, as if trying to get him on the same page before turning to Juno.EXE with a stern look. "You need to apologize to that receptionist first."
Shotaro Hidari	Kamen Rider W might be staring at Gareth as if she has grown a second head. There is a pause before he speaks, "R-right.." The Philip side sighs.
Forte	"... That is acceptable. We shall talk further at your detective agency, then." Juno.EXE lowers his guard and stands down. He doesn't comment on the possibility of asynchronous cryptography being subject to extramarital fetishplay. "I should reiterate - I still am not certain how likely it is that there are two Fortes with matching private keys. But I am willing to forestall my actions until I have eliminated that possibility." If you'll give me the address of your detective agency, and a convenient date to meet you there, we'll continue this discussion further - and I'll bring my evidence of the distress call." "... Did you say you were in contact with your Forte?" he adds.
Shotaro Hidari	There is a brief moment before the W driver is pulled up, and the USB stick is pulled out of it. The armor seems to blow away like the wind, and After a few moments of NOT immediately collapsing, Shotaro takes a few uneasy steps towards Juno. He offers Juno.EXE his business card, as a Japanese business professional does. As for dates, well we'll just say he writes in COUGHINTOFIST as the date. Obviously, it is a date set in stone. "Yes, we are. I did tell you he was a comrade, not a captive."
Gareth	"It's more likely than us holding him captive! Today was the first time I've even heard his voice." Gareth confirms with a confident chuckle, hurrying over to Shotaro to lend her aid and make sure he doesn't fall over anyway. "Whatever's going on here, though, definitely isn't normal. Maybe it's even... A mystery!" She continues, looking between Juno and Shotaro excitedly as though this is the first time she's ever even heard of such a thing happening. Considering her eagerness about the whole situation and displays of grand intellect earlier, however? That's not impossible, either. "I'll be there, too. I could even bring snacks!"
Forte	"Then please do tell him that his father, Dr. Cossak, still loves him, and misses him," says Juno as he turns to leave.
Gareth	Gareth does as instructed, and the responses are... Worrying. She doesn't have the heart to tell Juno what she's heard, though, so she just gives him an awkward-looking thumbs up without trying to get his attention by actually saying anything. Once he's gone, she turns her attention right back to Shotaro. "Alright! This way, this way. Come on, don't be shy."
Shotaro Hidari	Shotaro isn't prideful enough to not take the help. He walks towards Gareth before he nearly collapses on her, and will need help getting to a hospital again. Underneath, wounds have surly reopened. Probably. It's Cantio's fault.