legionworld | [OPEN] Getting to grips

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[OPEN] Getting to grips

Who| Rico Dredd, and anyone!
What| Rico's getting adjusted. Discovering sugar and telling people to move out of his way.
Where| Mess Hall, Observation Deck
When| Before Bodies for Rent
Warnings/Notes| Rico's an asshole. Warning for violence, fighting, blood, threats of bodily harm, and treating sugar like an addictive substance (i.e. drug talk). Will match formats.

[A: Mess Hall]

[It had taken a long time for Rico to get adjusted to his new surroundings. After the expected violent outburst after waking up, he was upset. Not because he was just faced with the knowledge that his entire universe was in danger, that Mega-City One was in danger. No. It was more that he was yanked out of his world by the scruff of his neck, and had a lot of schemes he'd spent time and effort setting up. A lot of fingers in a lot of different pies whose outcomes he was just waiting to realize.]

[But Hell, the only saving grace is that at least he might just get a kick out of all this. So he took the oath, if only for them to get off his back about it. Time would tell whether he felt like following it or not. But for now? The Mess Hall would be where he could get a feel for the social dynamics that run through this place. And he'll be damned if Rico Dredd never comes out on top. And he's hardly going to let a little thing like being dropped into a completely unfamiliar environment alone and without backup hold him back.]

[He strides into the mess hall with a natural arrogance, a swagger to his step that could be mistaken for confidence. Of course, with how packed it is, and how he isn't making any attempt to move out of anybody's way - fully expecting them to move for him - somebody might accidentally jostle him and his rather bulky and pointy eagle-shaped shoulder pad. If that happens?]

Hey!

[He barks out sharply in a gravel rough voice, in a tone that demands immediate attention. He cocks his head to the side, overhead lighting reflecting a glint off his black visor where his eyes should be. He crooks a finger, beckoning them to come closer as his mouth twitches up in the beginnings of a smile.]

You gonna apologize for that?

[B: Mess Hall]

[Rico is sitting at a table with his back to the wall, with a baton kept loosely in his lap, staring at an unopened packet of sugar in the palm of his hand. He knew that The Legion had different practices, different laws but this was really something else. He tears the packet open with delicately pinched fingers, spilling the white crystals onto the table, and sniffs. He takes off a glove, dips his finger in the pile, brings it up to his face for careful scrutiny, then licks it.]

Oh, what the drokk? [He murmurs under his breath as he pulls back, confusion and tentative excitement mixing in his voice.] They can't be serious.

[He starts picking up more packets, one by one, and ripping them all open. Soon, there's a veritable pile of sugar on the table. But if someone were to come a little later and perhaps want a sugar for their coffee or tea this morning...? Well too bad. It's all been confiscated. If you reach out for one, expect to be impeded by a black baton.]

Sorry. [He doesn't sound very sorry at all. Actually, he almost sounds a little gleeful. He's well aware he has very little authority here, but that's not going to stop him from pretending that he does. Also, he might have slipped a packet or two into his own pockets.] Restricted substances. Mind your own business and move along.

[C: Observation Deck]

[The Observation Deck. Rico leans forward against a railing, looking down at the view. It's mostly empty for now, and he enjoys the rare peace. No shouting citizens, no endless, pointless chatter, or explosions. He's been a Mega-City boy all his life, never been to space, and despite his best efforts not to be impressed, it still captures his attention like nothing else.]

[Rico feels the prickle of a stare bouncing off the back of his helmet, and working on an instinct that every Street Judge has - or at least, the ones that aren't dumb as dirt and still alive - he fingers the baton by his side and says out loud without turning around;]

You looking at me, creep?

[D: Wildcard option!]

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The psychological marks Rico is almost hitting have left Kubo silent and solemn, his paper slowing to momentarily hang in the air before fluttering to the ground.

But he doesn't look upset anymore. Because as close as Rico is to hitting those mental targets, Kubo's life has been too strange for even a Mega City 1 class to predict.

Father wanted to be there to raise him, but it wasn't his fault he couldn't. And Kubo doesn't want to see his father hurt - but Beetle is tough, hurt can be healed, and hurt is such a survivable thing to endure when he's seen his father dead. When he's cried a night into morning beside his dead body.

But talk of responsibility reaches the child who took on adult responsibility at twelve, hasn't considered himself a child since.

He retrieves his paper with a few notes, slides his shamisen to his back and sets his mouth in a thin, determined line to answer -

- then -

"No, Fa - Beetle -" Kubo's seriousness dissolves. He's distracted now, slightly embarrassed. "YOU'RE my father, YOU'RE Ha-"

He waves his hand. "You know what, I'll explain later."

Just this moment, this is a little more urgent.

"You're right," Kubo says, retrieving his omnicom. This will de-escalate the violence. This will pacify the judge.

"This is Paperboy for Freelancer," he says into his omnicom, calling on the most directly authoritative person he can think of among the displaced Legionnaire. "I am reporting myself for inciting violence."

Edited 2017-07-24 05:16 (UTC)

"Well, plot twist."

Wash had already been on his way - Archangel's call and Arbitrator's note, as well as Kubo's aborted message, had all been public, and he definitely keeps an eye on the open channels just in case. He's been making his way to the mess hall for a while now, and figured it was easier just to fly above the crowd of people than to try to push his way through.

So he is the very picture of calm and - he hopes - authority as he lands next to Kubo, putting himself between Kubo and- oh son of a bitch Arbitrator is from America's world. Suddenly this makes a whole lot more sense and gets a whole lot more complicated at the same time. The judge is bleeding, Garrus is roughed up, and luckily Beetle and Kubo seem to have managed to avoid the actual physical fight. Still. What a clusterfuck.

He sends Kid Q a message - fight in mess hall - over - will provide details - and gives himself a moment to roll his eyes, invisible behind his visor. Time for a kangaroo court, if only to keep The Law over there from going even more ballistic.

"Paperboy," he says in his best Serious Goddamn Business voice, clasping his hands behind his back. "You have confessed to inciting violence, Legionnaire infraction-" He rattles off a small string of numbers and letters. It's not complete bullshit - it's part of the Legionnaire code of conduct, but it's a passage about reporting conduct unbecoming a Legionnaire to the brass for them to handle. He's not expecting The Incredible Chin to know the entire Legionnaire code of conduct just yet, and hopefully anyone else will appreciate the joke instead of calling him on it. "I can see that this is your normal storytelling hour and location. Was your story today particularly violent?"

"A bear demon died horribly, but that's not what I mean," Kubo began. "This man wanted to walk through my story. I didn't want to get out of his way. I knew he was from America's world. I knew he was going to be violent, and I baited him instead of de-escalating, like we train for. Archangel got hurt defending me."

The story poured out of him without any flair, going again all his storyteller instincts.

He puffed up his small chest, standing as much at the position of attention as he'd been taught.

"I am ready to accept punishment for my foolish actions."

Kubo's kind of stealing Wash's thunder, but fuck it, it's the info Wash was eventually going to need and he'll just improvise. This is what happens when you ask a storyteller to recap events.

Good for Kubo for sticking up for himself, though. He's absolutely getting a hug once Wash drops the act. "I see. Were any threats of violence made before you baited him?"

Rico doesn't budge against Beetle, not very impressed. Unless it was an outright tackle, he isn't moving.

But grud damn it. This was an idiot he was dealing with, and Rico should've known to gather more information before dealing with idiots. Mega City life should have prepared him for some truly bizarre stuff, but this was irritatingly unpredictable. Stuff he didn't quite have enough experience with, and he didn't like feeling there was a joke he was missing out on.

But on hearing Kubo report himself? His mood, actually, relaxes. Unexpected, but welcome. Of course Rico's attitude is as mercurial as the traffic on a zoomway, or a Judge's sentencing on a bad day, but he still moves to re-holster his daystick.

He'd had an inkling of what could be sympathy for the cits that bought into the Justice Departments rule to the point where they'd report themselves for every single possible action that they took. They never had the opportunity to know anything else. Most of the time it just clogged up the lines, and if what they were self-reporting wasn't a crime, they were usually charged with wasting Justice Department time. What a sick joke. But Kubo wasn't the same, not at drokking all.

In Rico's eyes, Wash isn't quite on the same level as him, but his attitude helps more than he thinks. Not a fellow Judge, but at least he seems to be on Rico's side. Which is the only reason he doesn't interrupt and snarl I ask the questions here.

Which he's content to do up till a certain point. He holds a palm out to Wash, signalling for him to stop as he tsks under his breath.

"Hold it. That's a leading question."

Well, shit. Time to double down and hope it works.

Wash snaps a hand up, palm out, mirroring Rico's gesture. "Arbitrator, you are a part of this investigation and, as such, cannot remain neutral. I'll speak with you next; in the meantime, kindly let me do my job." Stern, authoritative, miraculously devoid of sarcasm, and he's going to start sounding like the Director if he's not careful. Ugh.

He immediately turns back to Kubo, signaling the close of that particular conversational tangent. Still, he'll rephrase - might as well keep WonderChin mollified for now. "Paperboy, please explain why you chose to bait Arbitrator."

"He crushed my origami, told me to apologise for being in his way, and said I was lucky he wasn't breaking my kneecaps," Kubo says, scowling, then breathing deep to school his features. "That made me angry, so I made fun of him." He paused, before going on - "I did it because I decided if he was going to be violent, he should be violent against a Legionnaire first, not one of the people who work here."

So yes, he'd baited the judge, knowing violence was likely the outcome, trusting that he'd be able to avoid the violence, or that he and his father would be about to handle it together. The motivation wasn't hugely honorable, not much short of entrapment.

... but he hadn't even had to make much fun before his plan worked. And now Archangel is bleeding in his defense.

He looks briefly, shamefaced, at Garrus. He owed Archangel a serious apology.

For a moment, Wash has to take a breath and remind himself that he's pretending to be The Law, because it sounds like Arbitrator has gone after Kubo for no goddamn reason and-

The moment passes, and he disguises it with a nod. "Thank you." He turns to Arbitrator, voice still. "Traditionally, Paperboy performs here in order to reduce congestion in hallways. Please explain why you chose to walk through an entire crowd of people instead of going around them."

Now, if Beeny had pulled that on him, he might have listened. Might. But Wash is an unknown to him, and more importantly, holds a presumed position of authority over him that he personally doesn't believe in. If they're not the Chief Judge, he'll take orders as advisement. And not to forget a certain disdain Rico has for sloppy. Leading questions have their place, but Wash made an interrogation mistake that wasn't intentional, and it's not something Rico will forget any time soon.

He's all loose, cocky confidence now, the only sign of his earlier, violent state being the drying blood near his mouth. He gives a heavy sigh, like he's indulging Wash by deigning to answer his questions.

"I have places to be." Rico drawls, a hand on his hip. "Moving congestion from one high-traffic area to another high-traffic area doesn't solve anything. This crowd needs to be dispersed for public safety. And I wasn't going to be violent, until the Juve here just admitted to provoking a Judge. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes."

"So trying to club a kid over the head is just fine because he pissed you off?" Garrus asks, stepping forward to join the conversation. Sorry Wash, he's fine with you taking point and he'll accept your authority, but he's not letting this crap fly. He's seen enough guys try to use the badge to pretend that they're the good guy that it's become a sore spot.

"Kubo didn't handle the situation well, I'm not going to argue that," Garrus starts, briefly glancing at Kubo before turning to address Wash, "but that doesn't change the fact that Rico threatened him with bodily harm before being provoked."

The last word was hit with a heavy dose of sarcasm, because in no sane world does being insulted by a child count as provocation for assault If you're that thin-skinned, you shouldn't have a weapon, much less a badge.

"I know I don't have much room to talk considering the situation, but Rico had every intention of making good on that threat based on what I saw."

Edited (Because I just keep noticing typos because I'm terrible.) 2017-07-26 13:01 (UTC)

The words hit Kubo harder than any had yet, even Rico's.

He thought he'd done right. He thought he'd done the best he could, with someone threatening him with harm, parading around in ways that said he'd threaten other people who couldn't defend themselves, who didn't have powers and unbreakable swords and a willingness to look terror and hate in the eye and stand up to it.

He didn't hear much else other than Garrus' declaration that he hadn't handled the situation well. Kubo clutched the strap holding his shamisen to his back, his determined expression fallen, looking to the ground. He'd gotten someone else hurt, and they regretted being hurt for his sake. How many others could say the same?

He could never have hoped to stand up against Rico on his own, anyway, without being hurt. If Garrus hadn't been the one hurt on his behalf, who else would it have been? His father? Wash?

Someone was always going to get hurt because of his choices. Whether to stay out late, or defend his pride against a bully.

He'd done wrong and gotten someone else hurt, again. If there was something else for him to hear, he didn't hear it.

Edited 2017-07-28 00:53 (UTC)

"Well you saw wrong." Rico says, long-suffering. If he could roll his eyes and have it show, he would. "What the hell do you know? Threatening perps with bodily harm before passing the sentence to ensure compliance if needed is standard practice, alien. Remind them of the positive things in their lives to keep off crime. I told the truth. Kid was lucky. I had no intention of breaking his kneecaps then. Don't know why you creeps take a good thing for granted."

It doesn't escape his notice that Kubo visibly wilts like a Cursed Earth sapling. Is that all it took in the end? Pathetic.

"Enough of this." Rico demands, impatient. He turns to Wash. "Pass your sentence."

Edited 2017-07-30 19:52 (UTC)

So The Mighty Chin waded into Kubo's show, threatened him with violence, got into a fight with someone defending Kubo, and still thinks he's in the right. Evidently Wash's initial assessment of giant clusterfuck is pretty damn accurate.

"Enough." He doesn't need to be loud when he can be sharp, and he cuts through the conversation completely, rounding on Rico. "You're new, Arbitrator, so you may not know that standard practice around here is to get the entire story before passing judgment." Stick that in your pipe and smoke it. "While Archangel spoke out of turn-" His tone makes the words an admonishment, and he's definitely sending Garrus an apology after this. "-he did provide me with needed information. To that end-"

He turns to face Kubo. "Paperboy, you will report to Kid Quantum's office within twenty-four hours to provide an explanation of events and receive your punishment. Beetle, as his guardian, I expect you to ensure that he does. You are both dismissed." It's completely backwards - they all know that Beetle will forget within the next thirty seconds and Kubo is responsible enough to make his way to Kid Q's himself - but it makes a good show for The Law, and that's what's important right now.

He turns to Garrus next. "Archangel, you are to report to medical. Upon completion of treatment, you are to report immediately to Kid Quantum's office for debriefing and punishment. If you fail to do so, I will see to it personally that your sentence is doubled." Yep, definitely sending him an apology later. "You are dismissed."

Finally, he turns back to The Law. "Arbiter, you are to report to Kid Quantum immediately for debrief. I will accompany you to forestall any further run-ins. Now let's go."

Rico takes Wash's 'sentencing' in with an air of restrained mirth. It's not a bad show at all, but to him it reeks like a juve putting on a bucket and kneepads. Still, it's just about the most respect he'll give in this situation.

"Very well, sir," he drawls, the last word delivered with so much amusement that he might as well not have said it in the first place. "If you're so inclined to be my tour guide..."

Without waiting for anybody else to react, he strides past them with head held high, slowing just a bit as he saunters past Garrus, staring him down with a smirk on his face, a flash of malice in his visor. He ignores the juve and fat man on the other side, not bothered with making an effort to intimidate them. The latter would be wasted effort, and the former will get his turn.

He'll get plenty of opportunity to do that later, he's sure.

And if not, he'll make sure.

"Understood." Garrus replies, a slight edge of annoyance in his voice at being told that he'd spoken out of turn.

The rest of it though, had gone down as expected, except maybe for Rico going quietly. Considering how self-righteously he'd faced everything else here, he'd half-thought that he'd make an issue out of it when things turned against him. Maybe that same, unwavering belief that he actually was the embodiment of justice was letting him walk out of here with his head held high - confident that this would turn out his way. It would certainly explain the smugness plastered across Rico's bloodied face.

Garrus meets Rico's eyes as the latter swaggers past, but doesn't react more than a slight twitch of his mandibles. If Rico was trying to piss him off, it was working, but Garrus wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.

This wasn't over though. He could feel it.

Once Rico had moved past, Garrus turned to Kubo and Beetle. He looked Kubo over, scanning him for any sign of injury, and finding none, his expression softened a bit.

Good. At least one thing had gone right, here.

This whole thing has...not quite gone over Beetle's head, in the sense he's very aware that he's out of his league. And yet, there's something about the way he straightens, paying close attention to Freelancer, that almost suggests familiarity-

-hard to tell with him, though, as ever. Regardless, Kubo will find a set of hands gently placed on his shoulders, a brief reassuring squeeze given at his reactions to all this. Moving a little around isn't a bad thing, right?

Once the orders are given, another hand raises to give a salute- "Yes, sir!" And Kubo's shoulders are given another little squeeze before he's being not-quite-gently tugged away. Someone has just a little more storytelling to do...

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[OPEN] Getting to grips

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