2013.06.13 - Desolation of Cumberbatch

'''SPOILER NOTE: Do not read this if you do not want a major spoiler for the Movie Star Trek: Into Darkness given. :SPOILER NOTE'''

It'd was going to be a simple, nice afternoon out. Just a movie and a meal, nothing to it. No stress, no fuss. Just a dash of Old Spice, a neatly ironed polo shirt, nice simple tan pants. No need to dress up for a Star Trek movie, it was just an outing between friends, right?

So why was it that even while John Harrison was getting punched repeatedly in the face by Kirk that Doug couldn't -quite- concentrate on the movie, instead half-watching Caitlin's expression while sharing a bucket of popcorn?

Because it was awesome to watch her react to Benedict Cumerbatch's presence, wasn't it?

Hmmm... Yeah, that's it! Who wouldn't enjoy watching someone enjoy herself?

A nice evening out with a friend, enjoying the company, eating popcorn, and quietly watching one of Cait's favorite (this summer so far at least) movies. For the redhead? Well, she's currently wearing a nice jean skirt, the likes of which was designed as more of a longer skirt on someone else, but for Cait it reaches down demurely to her knees. A cool, loose fitting tank top lightly falls over her upper body. The shade is a rich green - as it tucks neatly into the denim skirt. A brown leather belt loops across the skirt's belt loops, with a plain, simple metal band connecting it. A pair of sneakers, sans socks, adorns her feet.

As the scene unfolds, Kirk pounding out his frustrations on Harrison, Cait's eyes are almost glazed over. She /loves/ this part. Benedict's hair is all tousled, the curly locks bounding down into his eyes ever so. His stoic, unflinching face a picture of villainy - and yet, for some reason, Cait can only see just the hair, and the man and ..

The redhead's gaze flickers out of the corner of her eye to Doug, a soft flush creeping into her cheeks. Is it that noticeable she's very intently watching Benedict instead of Kirk? Her answer is to reach over and collect a few more kernels of popcorn and offer a soft, "Kirk is very upset." To Doug. As though - really she wasn't watching Benedict. Nope. Not Cait.

The blush -was- quite fetching, at least, on Caitlin, but Doug, at the moment, is more bemused than anything. Of -course- her attention was more on Harrison, and Doug grins as he turns his gaze back to the screen. Leaning over slightly, Doug whispers, "You think? A friend of mine avoided spoilers, so he was going 'wait a minute...' over this... and I was 'wait for it'..."

And as John Harrison is taken aboard the Enterprise, standing there in a cell waiting for Kirk and company to interrogate him, Doug grins, as Benedict Cumerbatch looms behind the cell force field, dark shadows obscuring his face and leaving nothing but an intense, steely blue gaze. Oh now this would be interesting, the blond mutant muses, shifting his gaze to catch Caitlin's expression, just as Harrison -disappears- from the screen.

With her attention split between the screen and Doug, Caitlin lets out a soft chuckle at that. "I avoided spoilers the first time I watched it, myself." She offers with a quiet sound to her voice, low enough to be carried over to Doug but few others. The IMAX is intense - and as Caitlin's gaze returns to the screen, her features growing intent again as she gazes on at the going-ons... something is a bit.. Off about the next part.

Caitlin's mouth parts, then closes again. She's got a great memory -especially- about Benedict, and this. This really can not be happening. "Ah. Doug?" She inquires suddenly, her voice not as soft as before. "I don't remember this part. Did they change it?" Caitlin's eyes widen considerably, her head swiveling up to cast a gaze towards the projector. "Not to sound a bit whiny but.. Where's Harrison?"

Doug's head swivels back to the screen. There Kirk and company were talking... to no one on the screen. "That's impossible," the blond says. "I've seen this a couple of times, and he's supposed to be right..."

And now the rest of the movie audience has caught on, complaints coming on up. People start flowing for the exits, heading to protest at the usher. A couple rows down in front, a tall man (had he been that tall before?) rises, and starts towards the exit in the crowd. And as he passes Doug, the blond does a double-take, nudging Caitlin. "Do you see him?"

Surely Caitlin couldn't mistake -that- lanky form, the now slicked back hair, the shaded visage...

Seated in the comfortable chairs of the IMAX experience, Caitlin's confused herself. Though really, the redhead's not angry - it isn't the ushers fault. Surely someone has gone through and spliced out Harrison's image from the film. That's got to take some -work-, not that it couldn't be done, but still, it's a fairly impressive display of hacking. And Caitlin can't help but wonder, if its just generalized to this theater?

As the restless crowd moves out to complain, Caitlin turns slightly in her chair to Doug, a slight furrowing of her brows given to the blonde. "That's.. well, whoever did that. That's impressive. I'm just surprised they didn't hack in a different image. Or some kind of personal signature. Usually someone will show-off their own weird sense of humour, versus just removing an image. Maybe they got interrupted." Caitlin's under the impression the film has been hacked in some manner, as she rises upwards - to follow Doug.

Collecting a small, leather purse where it was hanging on the arm of her chair, Caitlin's initially missing the tall, lanky, dark haired man rise upwards. She flips the strap about her neck and shoulder, checking to make certain her ticket is still in there - to either get her money back, or another ticket. Doug's voice causes the redhead to swivel slightly on her sneakers, gaze flickering towards the indicated fellow. And then. Caitlin's mouth parts open as a gasped out sound emerges. "Oh. Woa.."

Sadly, Caitlin's left to just -STAND- there, gawking. Like a crazed fan-girl. She doesn't even budge a bit, just -gawks-, and has her mouth parted open, eyes not even blinking for fear if they blink, he'll disappear. /THEN/ and only /THEN/ does the rational side of her mind start working, and her brows furrow together. "Benedict would -not- be here, this.. this is.." Deception. And Caitlin's stride brings her swiftly towards the man, "Excuse me sir." She states with a voice that is filled with a confident mixture of stern authority and she can't help it.. a bit of fan-girl lilting at the end of 'sir'.

He'd noticed Caitlin's disappointment, and briefly wanted to somehow apologize for the movie disturbance, but that there was a -Benedict Cumerbatch- lookalike right there, in the flesh, gave Doug pause. And while he was trying to figure out what to do, Caitlin braces the man first, for whatever reason, catching him by surprise.

The tall lanky man pauses, at first about to brush off the voice calling out to him. It's only that Caitlin's such a physically imposing presence that slows him down, and Doug bristles somewhat as he catches the man giving Caitlin a once-over. And when he speaks, the dark oak bass voice practically -sounds- dead on. "Whaddya --- ahem--- what can I do for you, miss?" 'Benedict' says, csteely blue eyes illuminated all the more as the movie theater lights come on, and ushers start explaining about 'technical difficulties.

Watching, Doug frowns. Something was a bit off, but... it did sound -right-, but...

Regardless of just how much of a freaking FAN-GIRL, Caitlin is about Benedict. She is also a very bright, very intelligent person. She catches the 'whaddya' at the beginning, even if its coughed over. She stands at her complete and imposing height of six foot four, shoulders back, posture rigid. Even if she really wants to melt at the knees, she doesn't even move an inch - and also, if Doug's noticing, doesn't even notice the once over. Or maybe. She just doesn't catch it.. Or honestly, there is no reaction at all to it, either she's purposely ignoring it, or honestly doesn't /catch/ it.

No, Caitlin's gaze flickers to the audience as they murmur and move out, calculating any potential problems that might exist if things turn bad, then back to 'Benedict'. And. Dammit. She finds her voice gone for a moment. It looks just LIKE him. Seriously. That could be John Harrison standing before her. And that's the thing that disturbs her the most. It isn't Benedict there. No. That's John Harrison, and /that/ causes Caitlin's gaze to flicker to the screen and then back to the man speaking.

Her chin raises defiantly just a bit, as Caitlin's checks to make sure Doug is nearby through a shift glance out of the corner of her eye, then her attention returns to the tall, dark haired man. "Excuse me, sir." Caitlin begins, repeating her first words. "But I think perhaps you might want to talk with authorities over the digitally altered film that you just destroyed to create your shape shifted image." And Caitlin's jumping the gun, and going head first into her hypothesis, but well. Sometimes you have to go for it, and then deal with what is really going on.

"You're not John Harrison," Doug interjects, at the same time, as he falls in next to Caitlin. Now that he'd had a chance to look, it looked like Benedict Cumerbatch, it sounded like Benedict Cumerbatch, but it... he, Doug was sure, as some mannerisms -somehow- reminded him of Caitlin's ... awkward ways, only male, he wasn't quite as -confident- sa he looked. All bluster and puffery.

"Wha--- hey, I'm not goin' nowhere!" 'Benedict' exclaims, his mouth slightly agape in a bit of shock. "I'm just here to... you know what? I'm not going to stand here and take that from you two." Swiveling on his heel, 'Benedict' attempts to turn, only to be grabbed by an arm by Doug. "Hold on, she's right. You -should- be talking to the auth---" Doug begins, before finding himself flying through the air, 'Harrison' having flung his arm rather casually and carelessly.

Oh dammmn. Go limp, Doug, go---

-CRASH-

... ... ... okay, so he looked like Harrison, he sounded like Harrison, and he...

"I AM KHAN!"

... apparently was as strong as Khan, was Doug's last semi-coherent thought as he struggles to get up...

Standing to one side of Doug, Caitlin's backing him up just not - actually behind him. Her posture is still rigid, arms to her sides, head slightly tilted, intense green gems watching 'Benedict' with an intensity that only gets more annoyed as the man speaks. Having Doug back her crazy idea up is also something that causes Caitlin to almost smile at. It's nice to know she isn't crazy, or spouting insanity. Okay sure, it /sounds/ absolutely insane, but then again - growing a foot and becoming a red-headed Amazon is insane sounding too, right? In this world? Who /knows/ what is crazy and what is truth.

A thought for another time it would seem, as the man begins to turn and Doug stops him, Caitlin's hand reaches outwards as well, only to fall to her side and then.. Doug goes flying. And that. That was the WRONG thing to do.

"Doug!" Caitlin's voice is filled with worry - as her gaze watches Doug's trajectory, wanting to dash forward and make sure but.. really. Right now. The immediately threat is more the annoying twit that is calling himself 'Khan'.

Hauling back her fist, the impressive redhead in a denim skirt, tank top, and figure of a model, narrows those calculating green gems upon 'Khan'. "Mister - that was the wrong thing to do. Doug had better be okay, but YOUR not going to be." She delivers an upper cut towards Benedict's chin. The power behind it is enough to cause her own muscles to grow, and the jean skirt to stretch just a tad - enough to break a normal man's jaw, but not kill them. Not yet anyway.

The steely harsh blue-eyed gaze shifts towards Caitlin as she calls out Doug's name, taking a step back as she practically seems to -explode- at him, all power and righteousness, before he wills himself to stand his ground and...

A solid thump meets his chin, sending him staggering backwards.

"B-but... I'm supposed to be Khan," 'Harrison' says, rubbing his jaw. "How're you able to hurt him?"

Frustration builds up in his face, lean angular features darkening as he brings a fist back against the theater wall, and sending plaster and dust and wood shattering. 'Harrison' brings his hand back, and then looks at his hand, and at the girl looming before him. "... Oh, I see. You're a -meta- too, aren't you?"

And all six foot four of Caitlin stands her ground, eyes blazing with indignity as the man moves to crumble the theater's wall, and speaks about Caitlin being a 'meta too'. Though really, Caitlin's still worried about Doug.. who knows if he's hurt too badly, and all she can see is that horrible man hitting Doug. The thought sends her blood to boil more. Her redheaded temper rising and staying bubbling mad. As 'Khan' takes a step back, Caitlin's swift to take a step forward. Those green gems are as cold and calculated as ever right now. Her entire posture screams 'I'm going to pound you to sand'.

She'd love nothing better than to haul off and pound that man again, though instead, Caitlin's voice - the normal soft, quiet tones now filled with an authority and quality of pissed off that few have ever seen or witnessed. "Surrender to the authorities, or so help me, I don't care if you're Superman. I /will/ pound you into paste." Her hands are balled into tight fists, as the bottom hem of her skirt is now slightly ripped revealing a nice pair of black, stretched spandex shorts beneath. (Caitlin's learned to wear spandex in her outings anymore.)

Having gathered his wits enough, if only knowing that he was going to be -sore- in the morning, Doug manages to stagger to his feet...

... just in time to see 'Khan' laugh at Caitlin, a cold and chilling low laugh, hawkish features hooded and menacing as he lifts a hand, inviting her to go ahead and take the next step...

And as soon as she does, well, 'Khan' was only too happy to assist her, moving with superhuman speed to try and tug her arm into a judo throw -through- the already-weakened wall into the next theater room...

It takes a hell of a lot of strength to throw Caitlin, a really huge amount. Considering she starts at three hundred pounds to begin with, and right now her density has increased a bit more from that... still... She's not experienced enough to deflect or stop the throw, no, Caitlin's just not got the skill required. She's never been trained by anyone. She's just raw power, and talent. No refinery. No experience. As a result, and considering just how pissed off Caitlin /is/..? Well, she falls right into 'Khan's trap.

The resulting image Doug will see..? Is Caitlin stepping forward, intent upon just pounding this insulting man into worm paste, when a powerful judo throw sends the red-head flying not just into the wall...

But -through- the wall. It will be complete chaos. Complete pandemonium. Caitlin's body goes crashing into the wall, which doesn't stop her weight or the power to send her flying. It just crumbles and crashes, and a huge hole is the answer, as Caitlin's form continues to travel the distance. Plaster. Wood. Concrete even. Everything will explode outwards, while Caitlin..? Her form will continue to fly through the air, until it comes to land /in/ the lap of some poor individual. Really, the poor person. Who would want to have a redhead come landing in their lap, her eyes shut closed, head lolling to one side, consciousness drifting in and out.. as a low, soft groan of pain echoes outwards from her..?

An evening at the movies. Surely that can pass without incident for Richard Rider? Even the Worldmind's finally taken notice of Rich's annoyance that the artificial intelligence's sniffy comments about his chosen entertainments have been getting more than a bit wearing. So, although the Worldmind is always 'there', in the back of his mind, at least it's silent this evening, having informed Rich a little too obviously that it would be devoting the lion's share of its processing power to scanning space for the next several hours.

While Rich appreciates the quiet in his brain, he has gotten a bit too used to having someone along for the ride to talk to - even if it's only to discuss what film to watch. Having stood for an inordinate amount of time looking at the posters for the new Star Trek movie, he finally decides that an evening of picking holes in the accuracy of a sci-fi movie is far too much like something his brother would do, and as a result bought a ticket for the first movie with a title that didn't sound like a chick flick.

Lounging in his seat, comfortably slouched, he has a huge soft drink just barely fitting in the holder at his right hand, and an even larger bag of popcorn in his lap, on which he's munching happily as the trailers roll.

It's certainly not the expected behaviour of the last known member of the Nova Corps, which probably explains why it doesn't last. As the wall to his left smashes inwards, Rich bolts upright in his seat, head snapping around toward the sudden explosion of debris and noise - while his right hand incongruously steadies his soft drink. THAT effort only buys the teetering cup a second more before the sudden arrival in his lap sends it shooting away to drench one of his fellow cinema-goers. His popcorn is equally crushed, but that's completely out of his mind in the course of...

"Blue Bl... OOOF!" |Emergency shield...| "GOT IT, thanks. What the... CAITLIN?!"

Rich looks down at the semi-conscious redhead in his lap in astonishment for a second, then snaps back to himself. "Cait? Caitlin? Can you hear me?" He's quickly and efficiently checking her over, shifting her to sit more upright. He can't see any obvious injuries along the lines of broken bones, so... Rich looks towards the wall she just arrived through. The lights are still dim for the trailers. "Suit me up, Worldmind. Full boost."

There's a flash of light, and Nova's standing up, still holding Caitlin in his arms. Whether she's quite with him or not, he remarks to her. "There's got to be a limit to how much trouble you can find. I'm just saying."

The cause for Caitlin's can be seen stepping through the now crumbling hole in the theater wall, even as the theater starts emptying in a hurry, the patrons screaming and fleeing with alarcity. That tall, dark brooding presence, dressed in black and looming, piercing blue eyes fixed on Caitlin, before he nods in satisfication, starting to head towards the exits...

... only to be tackled from behind by Doug Ramsey, who has followed him through the hole.

Pulling quickly back, knowing by now the strength behind 'Khan'. "Caitlin?" he calls out, sparing half a glance towards the person who's holding her up in a suit. "Uh, hi... Little help here?"

Because Khan was looming, and even as the movie trailers play on, Doug takes a quick read of the body language, and boy, was -that- guy steamed.

A fairly inaudible mumble echoes from the redhead, as Caitlin finds herself jostled about, and odd words echoing into her ears. Something about world mind, suits, and a limit to how much trouble she can get into. Her arms find themselves tightening on instinct about the man's neck, more in support to not fall on her ass again, than anything else. Consciousness slowly winking back into being, as reality sinks in, and the situation once again returns to Caitlin's thoughts like a bolt of lightning. Eyes of emerald snap open as the redhead gazes at the helmeted form of Nova, thankfully (for Nova), she does recognize it, even if she only saw Richard in suit once before.

She isn't hurt -too- badly, all things considered, as Caitlin moves to extract herself from Richard's arms, "Th..thanks." She offers, slightly unsteady on her feet for only a moment, before 'Khan' appears in the hole she created, as well as Doug /tackling/ the man. As the people move to get clear of the chaos she caused, Caitlin's stepping back, letting the more seasoned professional deal with Khan. "Everyone out, quickly. Move towards the exits.." In a voice filled with authority and commanding presence. "Get outside the theater. Quickly!"

Nova's quick enough on the uptake to identify the guy stepping so menacingly through the vaguely Caitlin-shaped hole as someone who's up to no good. Which leaves him in a slightly difficult position. Clearly, anyone who can throw Caitlin through a wall needs putting down fast. Trouble is, Nova's got Caitlin herself in his arms. He can't get her out of the firing line and deal with whoever this guy is at the same time. Behind his helmet, his jaw tenses a bit as his eyes lock on to the approaching figure.

Doug's tackle surprises him, but gives him a couple of seconds' breathing space to notice that Caitlin's become a lot less limp in his arms than she was a moment ago. Automatically shifting his grip so he doesn't drop her - and incidentally confounding her efforts to get down for a moment or two, he looks quickly back at her, almost nose to nose. At this range she can see his relief that she's all right - and the sudden grin he's wearing. "All part of the service." He tells her, steadying her a bit as she gets her feet under her. "Stay safe. I'll be back." He adds quickly.

And then he's facing the bad guy once again. "Commit Collimated Beam, right hand." Nova instructs. |At your discretion.| "Hey!" He shouts, hoping to draw the man's attention. "You owe me a bag of popcorn and a large soft drink!" And a beam of gravitic energy spears toward the man.

Taking a few steps back as Khan advances, Doug glances back towards Caitlin and Nova, noticing absently the trailer playing in the background. Tsk, whatever, a hunt for treasure. "Okay, uh, Cait, your friend...?" he begins, as Caitlin finds her feet, and begins urging people out.

Whatever else the blonde ex-SHIELD agent was about to ask, was interrupted by Nova's bravado and gravitic energy. 'Khan' howls as gravitic energy sends him flying and crashing through several rows of seats, leaving a trial of shattered metal and foam in his wake.

"Hell... not bad, Nova," Doug replies, running a hand through his hair. Turning back towards Caitlin and Richard, who were framed towards the movie screen, Doug grins, stretching and rubbing his back. "Well, I'm guessing not even an engineered superhuman can handle -that-", he says, as the trailer keeps playing on. Looking up, Doug peers. "Ooooh, hobbits. I want to see that," he observes, and it plays on...

... and then the picture fuzzes slightly, as -something- in the movie trailer disappears, as a hobbit shrinks back from... whatever it had been.

And the figure behind Doug gradually expands, taking on repitilian feature, growing, growing, growing... and the blond mutant lowers his head, sighing.

"... Oh no... don't tell me the trailer for 'The Desolation of Smaug' was playing..." he says, afraid to turn around.

Still urging people to get the hell out of the theater - which most tend to do so, and any that want to stand and gawk are swiftly leaving from Nova's quick action to send the villain flying through the seats. Content that most everyone is (at least in this section) gone, the redhead turns just long enough to get a full view of .. of ..

"Oh ..no." And Those words are Caitlin's first, though her actions are swifter. A calculated idea on just what the freaking DRAGON is going to do next.. and Caitlin's charging forward with a speed and reflex that really defies her massive form. "Nova, in case you didn't know. Smaug has one weakness." Such a geek, Caitlin is. "Left breast, area uncovered by scales and jewels and.." And hopefully the dragon isn't paying attention to Caitlin. The redhead is first and foremost.. a geek at heart.

Oh yes, and she's also charging forward and is now standing in front of Doug, any flames sent their way she'll do what is necessary. Like grab Doug and shove him and herself out /of/ the way with a speed that is once again, fairly defying of her massive weight and scale.

Nova feels pretty satisfied when the guy at the center of all the ruckus is blown off his feet and into a crumpled heap. Waiting for a second or two just to make sure the guy's not going to come right back at him, the light from the big screen flickers off Nova's helmet as he looks back over his shoulder, checking on Caitlin. When he sees that she's up and urging people out of the cinema, he offers a quick thumbs up, though she's probably a bit busy to pay much attention to him.

Letting her get on with her self-appointed task, Nova starts walking toward the ragged hole in the wall, seemingly intent on joining Doug. "Thanks." He offers easily, then frowns behind the helmet. "Engineered superhuman? You know this guy?" Yep, he clearly /hasn't/ seen that movie yet. Or even the trailers, seems like.

He's looking at Doug expectantly when he realises the other man's attention just isn't on him any more. "What...?" He begins, starting to turn, even as the Worldmind chimes in once more. |Attention, Richard! It is ...| and the Worldmind actually pauses. |That does not seem possible.| it continues flatly. "We'll argue about it later." Nova mutters, about to take a step to interpose himself between Doug and the... the... /DRAGON/ is the only word that fits. "This is what I get for missing part one." Nova remarks in Doug's direction, as he takes in just what's facing him.

But then, Caitlin's just THERE. "What?!" He starts, startled by her sudden presence, but she's still talking. "You need to..." He fails to break in, then just shakes his head. "Thanks, you're definitely on my quiz team." He tells her, but she's already running - the WRONG way. "Damn it, Cait, get yourself clear!" So. Not. Listening. Sigh. But then you can't call yourself a Human Rocket if you can't be hovering between the others and the dragon in seconds. "Worldmind..." |Target tracking already, Richard.| "Phased pulse, full power, right hand..."

Of course, whether he has the TIME to do what he's intending...

Indeed, where once stood Khan Noonien Singh, now looms the massive form of what can only be described as a full-bodied dragon. The reptilian beast takes up nearly the entire front half of the movie theater, it seems, and is barely able to rear back on its back legs before its head threatens to bump against the high ceiling of the room. He strikes a dynamic pose there, flickering images of the next movie trailer dancing across his giant body, offering fleeting glimpses of some heist thriller. "Oh, I like this!" the dragon's voice booms out, strangely similar to how it sounded previously, if a little deeper and more resonant in this new form. Dark red scales ripple as the creature's powerful muscles flex, testing out the power of the new body, before the dragon narrows its gaze on first Doug, and then Caitlin as she moves to protect the blonde mutant. "And I think you've interefered just about enough!" Smaug opens his maw wide then, a searing jet of red-hot flame erupting forth from his throat towards both Cait and Doug, likely also setting fire to the chairs about them. The roaring flames are sustained for a good couple of seconds before the blast is interrupted by the timely attack of Nova, gravitic energy impacting against the dragon's hide to cause the beast to stop and turn his attention towards the other hero. He doesn't seem really hurt by the pulse though - mostly just annoyed, at the moment. "I'm a frickin' Dragon, man! You're gonna have to try harder than that!"

As Nova expresses his displeasure with Caitlin positioning herself between Doug and the dragon - well, the redhead can only offer a shrug of her shoulders. A very, tiny, miniscule lifting of her shoulders upwards and back down. She can't very well let the dragon /eat/ Doug for goodness sake! That just wouldn't be proper friendship there! Her emerald eyes watch as the annoying meta tests out his new found power, scanning and waiting for the attack she -knows- is going to come. As the massive maw turns its attention towards her and Doug, Caitlin is quite prepared for what comes next. She's read the Hobbit a hundred times, Lord of the Rings just as many (as you can't just read one and not the entire series). She knows that Smaug is a fire breather and can pretty well guess this meta knows as well.

Her muscles tense upwards, as Smaug's attention rivets upon her and Doug, voice low and quiet. "Be prepared.." And then as the maw parts, Caitlin's arms wrap themselves about Doug's torso and she springs her entire body to one side. A powerful jump that is designed to place herself and Doug out of the stream of flame and to the other side of the room. She's not /quite/ so experienced that the landing is going to stick, and sadly and most likely, Doug's going to go tumbling about with Caitlin into the chairs opposite, but at least they're not /toasted/.

It wasn't as though Doug wasn't -unaware- of the Hobbit and the weakness of Smaug, but he wasn't as -voracious- over that book as much as its successor trilogy. But he -had- to stop and look at Caitlin as though surprised -she- was that much of a geek that she'd remember it -instantly-.

But Caitlin's moving, just as Doug starts to point out the way the dragon -moves- was a little awkward, that it was cramped for space, and that the weak spot wouldn't really be exposed until it could really rear up...

Going tumbling with Caitlin as she grabs him and jumps over to the side, rolling over and onto the chairs. Grimacing with pain as, for the second time, he's hitting something -hard-, Doug gradually realizes he's come to rest on something softer than that. But no time here... Attention shifting to the dragon, Doug leans closer to Caitlin, whispering, "Listen... see if you can get it to rear up and give Nova a better shot at the weak spot?" How, he wasn't sure, as he glances up and about... maybe just clearing out more room...?

"Did you like THAT?" Nova shouts at the dragon as his blast hits home, trying to get its attention on him once more. He'd like to turn, to make sure Caitlin and Doug are all right, but he's not an idiot. He needs to contain this creature, whatever it turns out to be, before he can go looking for the others. He just has to hope that Caitlin's strong and fast enough to keep them from getting singed.


 * Richard, the creature you are facing may resemble a native of Kakaranthara, but...| "Dragon. Got it." Richard says, quiet and tense, to shut the Worldmind up while he eyes the angry lizard. "You want harder, Puff? You just made my day." Throwing himself into flight in the confined space, Nova shunts full power to his right fist and aims a rocket-powered uppercut at the beast's jaw.

Flames start to spread along the rows of seats directly in front of Smaug, the cushions there having caught fire from his initial attack against Caitlin and Doug. The rest of the theater is mostly empty at this point, the majority of the patrons having long fled the scene - save for a pair of enterprising, if foolish, young teens who stand in the back corner of the room, cell-phones held up at arms length as they fervent record the happenings for later upload onto the internet. So enthralled are they, in fact, that they don't quite realize how near the flames are starting to get to them - or how close the dragon's tail seems to be sweeping back and forth towards their location...

The heat of the growing fire doesn't seem to bother Smaug - but then, why should it? He is, after all, a dragon - surely, his tough, scaly hide can withstand flames of his own creation. He turns fully away from the sprawled-out forms of Doug and Caitlin to face down Nova directly, red eyes glowering malevolently. "Oh, my day's /been/ made, helmet-head. I mean, I thought a genetically engineered super-human was cool enough, but this? Game over, man." The dragon stands his ground as Nova issues forth the heavy-handed upper-cut, a mighty 'KRAK!' sounding out as Smaug's head rocks backward from the blow. But the huge beast just seems to shrug off the blow, rolling his head forward again with a twist of his long, sinuous neck. "That almost hurt. But now it's my turn! And you know, I feel like giving these wings a little try..." With that, the dragon surveys the would-be arena of the theater, and then lifts his head to send another high-powered jet of flame and fire towards the ceiling, the blast bursting through the plaster and metal there to open up a sizeable hole to the open air above - and send down a rain of large-sized debris at the same time.

As Doug comes to a roll next to and for a brief moment on top of Caitlin - the redhead lets out a soft, long, and quick breath. That was a bit /too/ close for comfort. With a swift motion, Caitlin's rising upwards to stand, and then immediately crouch down, eyes taking in the damage the flames are causing - as well as what Nova's doing /about/ the dragon. As Doug offers his suggestions to get the annoying meta open enough to actually expose his weakness, Caitlin's gaze narrows downward. "That's.. that's not going to be too easy." She murmurs, then tilts her head towards the audience. "See what you can do to get those kids out of the flames way, and anyone /else/ out as well."

And then, as Nova sends a powerful blow to the 'dragon's jaw, Caitlin's in motion, grabbing hold of two long pieces of metal from up turned chairs, and continuing forward as she does so. "What the hell am I doing." Thankful for long legs, Caitlin's darting forward, leaping upwards, and /sinking/ those twin pieces of metal into the scales of the dragon. It isn't enough to actually go through skin, but it /is/ enough that when the Dragon (or should the dragon) head into the sky, Caitlin's going with him.

By this time - her jean skirt has long sense been ripped to shreds, the material barely clinging to her legs - exposing Caitlin's intuitive nature. She isn't going to be caught without clothes anymore. No. She's wearing spandex shorts and leotard beneath. They'll last. For a bit.

"Sorry," Doug murmurs quickly, by way of apology on where he'd landed, before moving quickly to get out of Caitlin's way, so that she can handle the situation. Watching her briefly to make sure she's got things well in hand, Doug moves towards the children, glancing upwards to dodge between the debris.

"Okay, fellows, time to get out of here," Doug comments, as he snatches the cell-phones quickly, and moves towards the lobby. "Everyone out!" he comments, tossing the cell-phones out towards the lobby and leaving the teens to follow.

He starts to return to the theater to make sure Caitlin (and oh yeah, that Nova guy too) was okay, but pauses as he sees a security guard. "Get everyone out, there's a dragon on the loose... oh, mind if I borrow that taser? I think we're gonna need it..."


 * Richard, your rather blunt application of the Nova Force aside, that blow /should/ have...| "Yeah, I know. Getting the feeling Cait was on to something, keep hunting for that weak spot." Even as he's in conference with the being sharing his head, Nova is winding up for another swing. "Hey, I'm not finished with...!" Nova begins, but then has to throw up a gravimetric shield to deflect the burning debris from the roof away from the idiots recording the fight on their phones. He's about to yell at them to get clear when an alternative plan strikes him.

"You know what? That's a great idea. Up, up and away!" Drawing on the Nova Force's control of gravimetrics, with the Worldmind to guide him, it's child's play for Nova to reach out and invert the effect of gravity on the great dragon, who'll suddenly find himself falling UPWARDS, right towards the hole that his fire just created. That's enough to make Nova smile a bit grimly as he takes off after the big lizard. "Worldmind, keep looking for that opening...!" He orders as he flies upwards in pursuit...

...and catches sight of Caitlin clinging to the dragon's back. "Blue Blazes, CAIT! ...you're supposed to be with Doug." The first is loud and shocked, the second quiet annoyance with himself for not actually checking she'd got clear. "Hang on!" He shouts, cutting the gravity inversion and sweeping in, trying to get to her. The two would-be internet/MyFace stars appear to want no part of leaving the action - in fact, as Doug comes near, they start to back away as he's clearly obstructing their view of the battle on the other side of the room. "Hey, get out of the way!" one shouts, before both phones are nabbed and tossed mercilessly out toads the lobby. "Wha..!! That's a brand new ePhone 7!!" An irate look is given to Doug, before the dragon's tail thrashed closer to the teens, flaming chairs sent flying about and giving a bit of a wake-up call that, yes, perhaps getting the heck out of dodge isn't a bad idea at all! They duck and run, leaving Doug and the lone security guard, who has peeked into the room to stop at the entrance, gape-jawed at the sight of the dragon. "Uh. Yeah," he meekly responds, limply handing over the small taser. "Be my guest..."

Meanwhile, at the front of the theater, a much more dynamic event is playing out than could ever be represented by mere 3-D special effects! There, Smaugh himself (or a reasonable facsimile thereof) is battling the combined forces of Nova and Caitlin. The former hatches her daring plan with aplomb - twin spikes of twisted metal easily finding purchase underneath the dragon's crimson scales to grant her a somewhat precarious hold along the dragon's hide. They're enough to allow her to ride along with the dragon as it begins to take advantage of the opening in the ceiling, wings unfurling as he prepares to take to the skies - only to find that his route there is made even easier by the helpful assistance of Nova's gravimetrics. The combination causes Smaug to ascend quite rapidly upwards, bursting through the remainder of the roof up into the evening sky, a sort of unholy laugh bellowing forth from his reptilian jaw. "Ohhh yeahh!! Flying is even easier than I thought! Man, no-one's gonna stop me now!" He sends another jet of flame along the roof the theater (or what's left of it) for good measure, before he notices that he's got a passenger. "Hey, I said no-one's gonna stop me. That means you too! But if you wanna ride... I'll give you one!" And with that, Smaug starts to put his new wings to the test, swooping this way and that and even trying out a barrel-roll as he tries to shake Caitlin loose. Of course, such antics do offer the occasional (if fleeting) exposure of his underside, and that one tiny spot that Caitlin had been talking about earlier...

Holding up the small taser, regarding it and then activating the tiny little electricity, sniffling the ozone crackling about, Doug looks back towards the very very very large dragon, then the small taser. "Uh... thanks," he says, offering a weak smile, before turning around to go back in.

Only to find that the dragon was gone, Caitlin was gone, and Nova already bursting through the ceiling.

"Hell," Doug sighs, watching the large spots in the sky.

Pausing, as he watches the film still roll, Doug tilts his head, frowning, before glancing back towards the theater projectors... Hmmmm...

Well. This isn't exactly what Caitlin was expecting. Granted, there is always the threat that the great dragon will take to the air. Caitlin's weathered worse and fallen from a height to sustain little to no injury. And she -did- want to make certain the meta got out of the theater and into the air - where it'd be much easier for Rich to get to that weakness. If the Dragon is focused on her, he isn't going to be covering up his chest now is he? Her hands tighten about the metal rods that she jabs a bit further into the 'dragon's scales, keeping a firm hold over them. Her voice is cool and calculated. "Try and knock me off, you limp .. limp lizard." Oh fierce words!

The barrel-roll is worse than any mechanical roller-coaster ride. Caitlin's hanging upside down, fingers creating small indention into the metal rods, enough to get a firmer hold and not slip. Her voice yells outwards, "You fly like a pink elephant."

So intent upon keeping up with /holding on/, Caitlin doesn't hear Nova's words, not until the faint 'Hang on!' echoes into her ears. Her head swivels slightly, casting a gaze out over the sky - only to refocus her grip upon the metal rods, shoving them even further into the scales. She isn't able to quite see Nova yet, but considering he's there - well, she knows when he hits, he'll catch her. Or. Hopefully at any rate.

That settles it. If the dragon's whooping with the joy of flight, Nova's not dealing with a professional here, for all the power that's on display. "Keeeep thinking that, scaly!" Nova calls back as he powers in. "Worldmind? Rapid pulsing fire, left hand." Coming in close, dodging the thrashing claws and tail as he lays down a rapid series of pulses. Without the power behind them of his previous strikes, Nova's only hoping to add to the beast's distraction with Cait. Well, that and one OTHER thing...

"Oooh, tough words," Smaug growls out as he continues to twist and swivel dangerously in the air, doing his best to avoid the multiple shots from Nova, as well as to buck off the offending Caitlin as she holds on for dear life. "But I didn't get this form from any Disney movie, princess. And I can fly a *lot* higher than this, I'm sure!" To prove his point, the red dragon banks sharply and suddenly upwards - inadvertently angling himself to allow Nova a rather easy time of gathering up Caitlin. The liberation is quickly noticed, and the dragon spins in mid air, serpentine maw open and prepared to shoot out another jet of fire as he bellows angrily. "Distraction? I'll give you both a distraction!!" Though, unbeknownst to the dragon, his current position has him so oriented that the single vulnerable scale on his breast is showcased in perfect, targeted view. He seems to hang there in the air for a moment, almost moving as if in slow motion, a few curls and sputters of flame only barely starting to lick outwards from his jaw - before Nova's focused attack lances forward to him in the one, precise spot that can lay him low. Which it does, in spectacular fashion.
 * Target acquired and locked in Richard.| Nova smiles in satisfaction. "Nice timing Worldmind. Hang on." Rolling onto his back to almost lazily evade a talon, Nova loops around to Smaug's back. "Pink elephant? Stop flattering the guy." Nova tells Cait as he scoops her up, his right arm around her waist, and boosts back to open the range a bit. "Great distraction, though. Couldn't have done THIS without you!" Raising his left fist, another gravimetric pulse lashes out, but this time? This time that one, particular, vulnerable spot of Smaug's is lit up brightly on his targeting array. And just for good measure... "Focused gravity node, twenty gravities, Worldmind." As Smaug suddenly gets very, very heavy, Nova calls, "Try flying with the training wheels off!" There's plenty of bravado, but as Nova shifts Cait into a more solid carry in his arms, part of him is fervently hoping this all works...

The energy pulse impacts heavily against Smaug's chest, sending the dragon tumbling end over end in a downwards arc, his leathery wings beating feebly for an instant before the creature crashes through the remainder of the theater's roof. Dust, debris and wreckage spray about from the dragon's impact, and a small crater of plaster and mangled theater seats frame the creature's body as it lands - or, it should be the creature's body. But it seems that both the blast and the impact of the landing have combined to revert the meta back to his normal form - a rather scrawny, pimply-faced individual who peers upwards at the conveniently nearby form of Doug, blinking and stunned. "D---don't tase me. Please, I... I just wanted to have some fun!"

"It was suppose to be an insult." Offers Caitlin as she feels Nova's arms wrap about her waist. In that instant; Caitlin lets go of her finger holds, arms now wrapping tightly about Nova's neck, holding on tightly as Richard lets loose with his attack. A closing of her eyes momentarily, as Caitlin tightens her grip just enough to almost offer an embrace to Richard. Her voice comes out quiet and soft in Nova's helmeted ear - or where it should be at any case. "Thanks for the rescue. Again." A wry grin spreads itself over Caitlin's features at that, as she lets her arms loosen their grip again afterwards. "Glad it worked. Team work, yes?" She inquires as her gaze watches the dragon descend down and down and disappear into the theater.

"It just never seems to get easy. I wonder if being a danger magnet is a new found power I have?" Caitlin's voice is teasing, as her gaze flickers momentarily to the spandex outfit that now remains. Though she doesn't express it, her mind does wonder /why/ she always ends up losing her clothing so dramatically. At least she was wise enough to have spandex on beneath this time around.

He'd been ready to go try -something- with the projectors, when the overhead shadow grows. And when Doug looks up, the shadow is descending... and shrinking at the same time.

Shading his eyes, pulling back, Doug covers himself from the impact, and then braces himself and walks over quickly to check the crater.

Arching his eyebrow at the individual, Doug quirks his lips. "Some fun. Couldn't you have been a little -less- obvious?"

"B-but it was -that- exact costume I wanted!" whines the individual. "So -cool-."

Resisting the urge to just tase the individual for being such an ass, Doug instead glances up towards Caitlin and Nova, pausing to quirk an eyebrow. "Nice job, you guys," Doug comments, rubbing the base of his neck where it hurt, as he yanks the meta up. "C'mon, let's get him to the cops, and then... uh..." He glances at Caitlin. What now?

"Well, that worked." There's a little more relief in Nova's offhand tone than he was really shooting for, as he watches the dragon fall. Not that he watches that for very long, Caitlin's not only an effective distraction for dragons, after all! As Caitlin's arms tighten around his neck, Nova holds her a little closer. Just, y'know, in case she's worried he's going to drop her, since they're still standing on thin air high above the wrecked cinema below.

Turning his head so he can offer her a quick grin, Nova's quick to reply. "Hey, I like rescuing you. So... any time." It's hard to see in the shadows of his helmet, but there might be a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. "Even if you don't want rescuing."

As Caitlin relaxes her grip, Nova follows her gaze and realises that they'd better make sure things are REALLY over. "Definitely teamwork." He says firmly, as he begins to lower them back toward the ground. "But with your head for trivia? You're never meeting my brother." He's joking. Mostly. And is quickly distracted again by her teasing in any case. "Maybe." He concedes, still grinning. "You're getting pretty good at it."

Passing through the hole in the roof, Nova alights in front of Doug. "Thanks, but Cait said it already. Teamwork. Don't think I missed that tackle." And since Doug seems to have the miscreant well in hand, Nova leave him to it - and lets Caitlin answer his last question.

Taking a step away from Nova, as a quiet laugh echoes from Caitlin - relief etched into her features as her gaze flickers to the annoying little twit, and then back to Doug. A breathing sigh echoes again, as her hand lifts upwards, running splayed through her red locks. "I'm right behind you, Doug. Regardless if I have to register now or not." And she means it. "I wont leave you alone to handle this. I just hope this place has super hero insurance." And a slight face is made. Thankfully, the flames that the dragon created are slowly dying down, and not spreading to the rest of the theater.

Turning to Nova, Caitlin impulsively reaches a hand outward to plant upon his shoulder. "Not sure how well this would have been if you hadn't been here." And her voice offers its truthful tones.

Turning back to Doug, Caitlin's head tilts towards the exit, her fingers clamping a firm hold over the annoying nerd's scuffed neck, "And as for you - you've got a lot of explaining to do, don't think I wont still box your ears either." And with that warning, Caitlin draws towards the doors leading out, dragging the meta behind her, if she can.