Scene #3003: That Thing You Do

Owner	Pose
Dr. Vahzilok	Steel Canyon is a big, busy section of Paragon City. Lots of tall buildings, streets, and elevated areas surrounding a lower level straight through the center of the zone... The source of the 'Canyon' in Steel Canyon. As filled as Paragon City may be with villains, criminals, and even monsters, there's always THOSE GUYS who are trying to make it big but aren't really there yet. They either have just joined a gang or are still in the process of trying. They might simply not be cut-out for this line of 'work' too. One of these thugs is presently hanging out in an alleyway across from the southern Monorail Station, wearing a hockey mask and wielding a machette. He's a nobody. Just some goon looking for easy pickings. Civilians are easier targets, but he's desperate enough to make a name for himself that he might do something stupid. Like attack someone who is obviously a hero. Meanwhile, passing along on her way from the station, headed towards the Steel Canyon Medical Center, Faith Maccabe, a red-haired woman who is a physician at Vasilikos Laboratories, is unaware of the nearby threat. She just walks along at a brisk pace, with some papers in one arm, wearing her lab coat, completely unprepared for any crazy muggers with machettes.
Testament	The first real sign that anything's out of place is the raven. Completely black in color, with beady red eyes, and a thin silver collar around its neck. It wheels about in the sky, and then alights upon a ledge of a nearby building. It just STARES at the criminal with the machete, occasionally emitting a quiet 'awp'. Possibly unseen on the roof is the pale, dark-haired form of Testament, wind ruffling his hair and kilt. He pauses... then smirks. "...Is that so...?" His words probably aren't heard, being that he's so quiet. "Let's see where this goes...."
Dr. Vahzilok	Faith Maccabe is not really a fighter... But she's actually significantly above where a normal civilian would be. She's an Elite, and despite her focus being medicine, the many attempts by villains in the past to attack Vasilikos Laboratories has caused her to take self-defense courses, and try to utilize her medical skill to enhance her survival chances... So that she, in turn, can support and protect the others at the lab. Like Vasilikos Senior, whom she failed to shield. Despite her calm demeanor, she's still quite distraught over that. So when machette guy comes at her, not even skilled enough to make it into one of the gangs, it doesn't take much for her to react with violence. But she's also not aware she's being attacked until AFTER the guy comes at her, trying to grab the red-haired doctor and pull her into the alley to threaten. "Gimme' your money!" he threatens as he holds the blade under Faith's chin. She punches him in the face hard enough to send him reeling, but he doesn't let go of her. She knees him in the face, but his hockey mask protects him somewhat, even if he still hurts like hell. "Let me go!" she orders him. The man snarls, and raise his machette in preparation to chop his victim!
Testament	The low, malevolent chuckle may be enough to startle the machete-wielding criminal. But if not? The very odd, low warping-of-air sound probably will. Particularly when the air just in front of the pair distorts, as if it's being stretched to the limit of breaking. A skull appears, teeth clacking soundlessly in the air for a moment, and then a shape unfolds from the distortion in the air. It's the pale man with the dark hair and clothes. And if his appearance isn't enough to stop the hockey-mask-wearing man from cutting the women, Testament will reach out and try to grab the man around the wrist. Testament's magical and artificially-granted strength and speed should hopefully be enough to restrain the man's wrist. If it comes to that, mind. If the thug stops his swing, Testament will have no need to grab his wrist. Either way it appears Testment has something to say. "Bottom-feeding human..." he sneers at the hockey-masked criminal. "Your ilk don't belong out here. Go back to your rat-warren." His voice is weird... distorted like two people are speaking at once, and both are talking from somewhere roughly below his feet.
Dr. Vahzilok	The criminal is quite startled, releasing Dr. Maccabe and turning to look for the source of it! A hero appears in a very dark manner! He's frightened, of course, but also desperate. And this might just be his chance to make it big! If he can take out this hero...! But then Testament speaks in that odd voice of his, and any thoughts of super villainy flee the crimimal's head. And then his feet flee the scene as he turns and runs without further prompting. Too spooky 4 him. Maccabe is rubbing her own wrist as she frowns and looks after the violent mugger, and then back to Testament. Her frowns softens to a smile when she looks at him. She is used to working with heroes. Even 'dark' heroes. She appreciates all they have done for this city. How could she not? Dr. Vasilikos Senior devoted his life to helping them. And that means they have to be worth something very, very special. "Thank you. I'm not sure I could have fought him effectively on my own. I could have suffered serious injury or been killed. What's your name, hero?" His powers were interesting too, of course. Though she takes it for just a form of teleportation.
Testament	"Hmf. Cowardly bottom-feeder, too," Testament replies as the thug runs away. Apparently skulls and cackling is a little too much for a common thug. All the better, though. As the thug runs away, the raven from above swoops down and alights on Testament's shoulder. He leans in as if listening to something said. He turns his attention to the doctor as she speaks, and then replies to her question, "Testament." It's not his real name, but he doesn't remember his real name, so that's about all he can offer her. Indicating the raven on his shoulder, "And she is called 'Zio'."
Dr. Vahzilok	Faith inclines her head and says, "A pleasure to meet you, Testament and Zio. Thank you for the rescue." Then she looks down at the ground and all the papers she dropped when she was grabbed. Her frown returns and she sets about cleaning them up. Mutter mutter mutter. "A hockey-masked thug with a machette... That's a new one. I don't think he was part of any of the established gangs. I suppose some of the minor ones are still hanging on. Though after the war, it was heroes like you who cleaned up the streets. Now only the powerful gangs hang around, so I stopped even considering just random crazies could be lurking around." Finishing with her collection, she stands up straight, shuffling the papers in her arm and looks back to Testament. "That was an oversight on my part. One that might have been fatal. Again, thank you. This city would be lost without you and your fellow protectors of the peace." This is probably not the sort of treatment that Testament and Zio are used to getting. For someone to genuinely and honestly treat him as a champion, a hero, a good person who is simply accepted as being such without having to struggle against the whole world to prove it. There's no indication of deceit from Faith. She seriously is grateful for his presence and his actions, and looks up to him as someone special. That's not how Gears are treated, is it?