2013.05.21 - Bad Run-in in a Good Neighborhood

The warm afternoon has cooled down to a balmy 73 degrees, and the skies have cleared out leaving a beautiful night. Being later in the evening, there are fewer people on the streets, but there is still a bit of foot traffic thanks to the nice conditions.

One of the people who's out and about is a very well dressed man in a dark grey, three piece suit. Walking back toward his house from a local restaurant that serves some incredibly good chocolate cake, Justin Hammer takes leisurely steps as he heads back down 64th Street. He has is hands in his pants pockets, and is keeping a reasonable watch on his surroundings. He's not far from home, so he's fairly relaxed.

Coming down the opposite side of a street, Stray was cautiously making his way through one of the rich neighborhoods in New York. Clad in a dark colored t-shirt and a worn out pair of jeans, he seemed to fade into the buildings that surrounded him. Hands tucked loosely in his pockets he made calculated steps down the street, wating patiently for any opportunity that oppened up.

The mutant had been making his rounds in a desperation, trying to wait for a decent opportunity to present himself. Stray was starving, and it was starting to reach a point of critical. The smells wafting through the air from the nearby restaurants made his stomach growl even louder. The mutant's blue eyes scanned the street and spotted a somewhat familiar face. CEO Justin Hammer of Hammer Industries. A smirk crossed Stray's face, perhaps this was just the man for the job.

The well-dressed CEO catches sight of the man across the street, but he doesn't pay him much heed. This is a high-end neighborhood, but it's not too unusual to see the ocassional ruffian about. It's New York City, after all. Justin draws close to his home, one of the connected buildings in the middle of the block. He reaches the edge of the wrought iron fenching that surrounds the sunken front courtyard and slows, pulling his keys out of his right pants pocket to unlock the gate. Hammer loses sight of the lurking mutant as he looks down to pick out the right key from the ring.

Stray watched and waited patiently, keeping an eye on the CEO, perfectly aware of the mans profession, and knew there was a high possibility the weapons manufacturer had some kind of money on him. The mutant had also witnessed the man on the news recently, performing some sort of heroic act and stopping a hostage take over. Meaning one thing, the man is possibly armed. Guns hadn't stopped the mutant in the past however, and there is one thing that serves as an advantage, mutation.

When Justin had come to a stop in front of what Stray assumed was his home. Taking a quick glance around, the mutant didn't spot any nearby pedestrians, and started to cross across the street. With each step the mutant's appearence started to fade. The process starting with clothes, than skin, than muscle, and everything elese underneath. By the time the mutant had crossed the street he was completely invisible, and naked to the human eye. With a determined stride he made his way over to Justin, grabbing ahold of the CEO he attempts to wrap an arm under his chin to pull him to the ground.

Just as Justin was about to put the key into the lock he got that strange sensation you get when you're being watched. Straightening up and stopping his hand just before he gets the gate unlocked he glances back, and sees nothing. Shrugging it off he looks back toward the gate... The invisible arm is at his throat without any sort of clue or warning. Hammer drops the ring of keys and his hands go straight toward whatever's got him by the neck. He catches a ripple of color when he hits the arm locked under his chin, but it doesn't register. The CEO isn't in any way a combat trained individual, and the shock of getting hit without warning doesn't leave him much in the way of a defensive move. He goes down to the sidewalk hard, letting out with a surprised and pained yell.

Slamming onto his knee hard, the mutant had successfully brought downt he man to the ground, successfully planting him right where he wanted him. Pushing his knee between the weapon's manufacturer's shoulder blades, the mutant pinned him there in an attempt to keep him flat on the ground and from struggling. The ripples that had run over his body had started to dissipate, sending him back into the world of the unseen all over agian. To any outsider it would just look like Hammer had fallen to the ground, or was just lying there. Blue eyes shot around once more, making sure that no one had managed to make their way within range of the mutant and the CEO. "Hand it over!" the mutant growled, referring to the man's wallet. "I know you have money, I know who you are!"

The way he's pinned, there's no way Justin can see his attacker. Even if he could, there would be nothing to see. The pinned man struggles some, but it's pretty much pointless. The mutant is a lot stronger than he is, and Hammer doesn't have a chance in hell of getting to the concealed .40 caliber pistol he has in a mid-back holster. Not while being pinned, anyway. "Okay, okay!" he yelps back at his attacker, laying his hands flat on the sidewalk, palms down. "You want money, I'll give it to you. J-just take it easy, let me get to my wallet and you can have whatever I've got on me. Deal?" Hopefully this guy is just a random thug, and he'll let Justin up if there's a promise of making it away with the cash. And hopefully he won't figure out that Justin is armed. Flattened out like that the short-barreled pistol is likely to print pretty badly.

A small rush of satisfaction washed through the mutant when he heard Justin say that he could have the money. Stray hadn't realized the piece that was starting to take shape through the man's business jacket and he made the quick and reckless decision let some pressure off of the CEO's back. Just enough for Justin to reach for his wallet, since the mutant wasn't entirely sure of it's location. "Fine, but make it fast!" Despite the fact the mutant wasn't able to be seen he was still making an effort to try and keep out of sight, just in case any sort of accidental impact would take place again.

Great, the thug is willing to be sensible. Justin has a choice- he can go for his wallet like he said he would and just give the guy the cash, or he can try for the gun. The way he's pinned the pistol is caught under his jacket, and there's really no way he can get to it without being obvious. Slowly, Justin raises his right hand off the sidewalk. "Okay, I'm going for the wallet," he says to the attacker, his voice having only a slight shake to it. Carefully he brushes back his suit coat, hoping it doesn't reveal the pistol he has, and pulls his wallet out of his back pocket. It's a high-end leather one, and he has the normal assortments of credit cards and identification, as well as nearly a thousand in cash in it. Straighening his arm, Hammer holds the wallet out to the side, hoping that the attacker will have to move off of him to get at the prize.

Stray paid very close attention to not only Justin's words but his movements, trust being something he was severely lacking. As the CEO reached for his wallet the mutant balled his fist in determination and anticipation. When Justin pulled up his jacket, the mutant didn't notice the gun he had holstered in the back of his pants, all he was focused on was the wallet that he was soon going to reveal. When it came into view he snagged it, not even allowing Justin to pull it the rest of the way out of his pocket. Immediately the mutant started going through it, not yet allowing the man he had pinned to get up. Satisfied with the amount of cash there was in the wallet he quickly let the man up and started to take off down the street, hastily shoving the wallet into one of his pockets. With each running step he took away from Justin he started to phase back into visibility again, and by the end of the block, he was completely fleshed out. Skidding to a halt at the end of the block he swiftly turned back around and started laughing and taking a few steps backward. "Thanks for the money, human!"

As soon as the weight is off his back, Justin flips himself over and pushes himself into a sitting position. His glasses are skewed on his face, the hinge on the left side tweaked, but he can still see out of them. He catches the mutant as he takes off down the sidewalk, the flashes of color before he finally materializes at the end of the block. And of course the comment. Scowling heavily, Hammer pulls himself to his feet, still looking toward where his attacker fled to. A car alarm chirp down the next block causes him to jump, and he scrambles to pick up his keys and unlock the gate. Once safely inside his residence, with the gate and front door locked, and the alarm perimeter set, he calls the cops to file a report. Dammit, his driver's license, credit cards, everything is gone. But at least the mutie didn't end up with his gun, which would have been a much larger hassle. Or his life.