2012-09-09 Welcome To The Big Apple

The arrival of the former Fury named Knockout is a rather understated affair, the only thing to herald her having been left in the middle of Queens, New York being a hollow *thump* and a fairly sedate show of lights that flash when the Boom Tube deposits her unconscious form in the middle of the street. Thankfully it's still fairly early in the morning so there's nothing like innocent bystanders to witness this but while that means there are no people to hurt there is quite a lot for the fiery red head to damage once she finally comes to.

She's been at it for only a few minutes but already there have been cars thrown about and large window panes for her to destroy, the evidence of which can be found in growing piles of crumbled metal and quite a bit of broken-out glass. Whether or not the police have been called yet is anyone's guess but at least for the moment there is no sign of people who seem to be willing or able to put an end to this destruction or, for that matter, who are willing to play witness to this, the street eerily empty save for the woman warrior.

As usual, Rhodey is tucked away in his workshop. He's become like Tony in more ways than he cares to admit. Nearly all of his free time is spent tinkering on things; taking them apart, putting them back together, and figuring out how they work. He's in there at all hours of the day and night. Right now he's working on something new. Schematics for a suit of armor that's slimmer and more streamlined than his own are up on several of the Machine Shop's displays. He's manipulating one of the touchscreens, adding parts, removing them, and shifting them around when PATTON speaks up.

"I've got a red light in Queens, dirtbag!" the AI barks. "No info, just an alarm."

Rhodey pauses with one finger above the touchscreen. "Eh. I could use some exercise. Get my armor ready."

Moments later, he's bolted in and blasted off. At the speeds he's capable of, War Machine crosses town in just over a minute. When he reaches the scene, he cuts his engines and drops down to street level. The damage is visible, but there's no sign of whoever has been doing the damaging. "PATTON, give me a full sensor sweep," he orders, his voice made harsh and metallic by his vocalizer.

The closer War Machine gets to the source of the damage the more of it there is to be found, the ruined vehicles and windows now littered with lightpots that have been pulled up from the ground like trees that have been uprooted and trash cans that have been crushed like old soda cans. Things that should not... could not happen unless someone's very strong.

A block and a half PATTON will find someone, an unknown entity who does not show up on any records of any kind. She's tall for a woman but doesn't look incredibly built from a distance but suddenly she hoists a cab up over her head, the yellow car's driver woken up from a quick nap when he feels himself being shaken around. Screams for help come inside, the voice shrill, panicky.

A block and a half is an eyeblink for War Machine. Glaring through his eyeslits, he crosses his arms over his chest and examines the woman who's apparently responsible for all of this mayhem. "You must be new in town. Here's the deal. I don't warn lightly, and I never warn somebody twice. Right now I'm warning you. Put down the cab and go home, or I'm going to ruin your life."

It seems like an honest enough proposal. Rhodey isn't a patient man, though. "You have three seconds to decide. Two. One."

Knockout looks up as she hears the voice, her brow furrowed as she remains put, the cab still hold over head. "And just where is this... town," she asks, the cab left held above her head. There is no breathlessness, no strained quality to her voice as she speaks. She could just be standing there for how easily she is able to talk. As in afterthought it is finally set down but there is no effort in being gentle and the cab suffers in the form of broken axles, a suspension system that is rendered utterly ruined and a person who is shaken up and cowering upon the floorboard.

War Machine's approached at the same time Knockout brushes off her hands, her head angled to the side when she takes the man and the strange manner in which he is attired in. "Just what are you?"

"Mildly offended by your tone, for one," War Machine replies. "You really are from out of town, aren't you? This is New York. I'm War Machine, the guy who's going to kick your ass if you don't start minding your manners. You can't go around..." he waves his hands, indicating the destruction around them. "...doing this. You get me?"

The whole time he's talking, he's sizing the woman up. Scanning her. Photographing her. Measuring her potential. Cameras and sensors feed him information on the destruction she's already caused. Despite his friendly (for him) approach, he's still balanced, wary, and prepared for anything.

Oh. Yes. The attitude. That's a large part of why Knockout is here to begin with. Seems Darkseid and Granny Goodness take exception to their underlings when said underlings have more attitude than common sense. Being reminded of that has her coming up short, her approach of the man halted about ten feet away. "How far is this New York from Apokolips," she questions, her chin dipped slightly as she tries to think. "Not that it really matters, I suppose. I have no way to get home..." Kay's voice drops off and she tilts her head to the left, Rhodes openly taken in, appraised just as he has been doing the same to her.

It's quiet for a while but then Knockout grins and picks up a manhole cover that she holds out, letting War Machine get a good look at it. "Let's play catch," she offers with a chuckle before it's thrown at him, tossed like a frisbee. It travels at a fairly good rate of speed and with no small amount of strength put behind the throw.

War Machine catches the heavy metal disc, grunting with effort as he absorbs the impact. He's driven backward, his metal feet scraping against the pavement. "Nice," he acknowledges. Rather than return the throw, he tosses the manhole cover aside. It clanks loudly against the ground. Before it's done rattling and rolling, he's taken off toward the big woman.

He feints low, then springs into the air and launches his true attack. A sharp, overhand punch with all of his substantial strength and weight behind it.

Knockout braces but for the wrong attack, her arms brought up in front of her body instead of lifted up above her head where she might have been able to block that punch or at least maybe deflect it so it wouldn't have the same kind of impact. Her misjudgment has Rhodey's blow hitting true and she's staggered, unable to keep on her feet. With a thud she lands on her ass, causing some of the trash she left behind to jump slightly once gravity takes hold. "Oh... damn..." Wincing, she reaches up and pats the top of her skull, that causing her to wince. Someone is going to have a knot.

The suited figure gets glared at before she attempts to turn the table on him; lunging forward, she seeks to punch him, her fist aimed for the left side of his head.

An arm is raised to deflect the blow, but War Machine has underestimated his opponent and isn't properly braced. She breezes past his guard and smashes him directly in one of the eyeslits. His HUD is scrambled and the red light that illuminates the slit flickers off, on, and back off again as he's sent flying backward.

He shakes himself off and picks himself up. A tap-tap from one metal finger is enough to get his left eye to light back up. He nods approvingly, and this time when he advances, he does so with a little more care. He still hasn't brought any weapons online, though.

His attack is vicious. A one-two combo; a high backfisted strike and a low uppercut aimed at her gut.

A proud smile lingers when Knockout feels the metal under her knuckles, the fact that she is able to do something to the suit pleasing. It's a pleasure that does not linger however as she has to move quickly and go back on the defensive when he goes back to giving instead of it being the other way around. The backfist hits, causing her head to whip to the opposite side, causing a pained yelp to all but explode from her. The yelp soon turns into a huffed, sharp exhale of air when the second punch comes, driving the air from her lungs.

Don't ask how but Knockout keeps upright unlike the first time and is even able to throw another blow, this time doing so faster than when Rhodes knocked her on her backside, but where she does it doesn't have quite the oomph put behind it.

The punch catches War Machine just to the side of the plate that protects his arc reactor. It's something he's very protective of. "Okay," he says. "No more Mr. Nice Cyborg."

His counterattack is an all-or-nothing gambit. He lunges like a fencer, bending one knee to extend his range as he throws out a palm strike at his opponent's midsection. At the same time, he fires a blast from his palm-mounted repulsor at point-blank range.

"Now are you done with th..." Knockout starts to ask Jim something but he interrupts her, not only by speaking over her but by pressing a new attack once he's done, the latter something she is not ready for. The motion keeps her attention solely on him and she is quick to cover her face as if expecting another punch to the head but that does nothing to prepare her for what comes next.

The beam catches her full in the chest and sends her flying, taking to the air for about ten feet and then she slides for another five when she comes for a very hard landing flat on her back. Eyes closed, she bites her lower lip, her body smoking slightly, her costume somehow managing to remain intact. "That's fighting dirty," she coughs. The fight must've been taken out of her as there's no more rushing to get onto her feet.

"Baby, I'm just getting warmed up." War Machine levels his repulsors at her and they glow as the charge in them builds to dangerous levels.

The shots are never fired. He drops his hands to his sides and the glow fades. "I should probably hand you over to SHIELD, but you clearly don't get how things work around here. Don't hurt people. Don't break things. Mind your manners. I don't want to see you like this again. This is your only freebie."

Knockout turns her head to the left at the same time she raises her arm, the lower span of which is used to wipe the blood from a split in her lip. It takes longer than she likes to get her wits gathered around her again, more than enough time for the strange man to make with his exit. "Damn him," she hisses while looking around, not sure what to do with herself.

It's eventually decided that she should go and regroup, needing to figure out what she is going to do in this strange new city she finds herself in.