Dimitri nodded with satisfaction as he set the platter of lamb chops in the center of the patio table. He felt Regis begin to climb over his shoulder in an attempt to reach the meat, but this charade was quickly put to an end by Dimitri snapping his teeth together loudly near the reptile, "Try it and those lamb chops won't be the only thing bitten into today." he stated sternly. The words were lost on Regis, but the animalistic action of snapping jaws told him all he needed to understand that the food set out was not meant for him. Regis slithered back and climbed down Dimitri's back almost dejectedly before curling up under the table to rest in the shade. Dimitri rolled his eyes at his pet's antics before taking a seat and staring at Kassy silently.

He intentionally allowed the silence to hang in the air to the point of awkwardness before darting his hand out and pulling a lambchop onto his plate with a thin smirk, hoping the sudden action would startle Kassy. It rarely did these days, but on the few occasions it worked Dimitri found it genuinely amusing to watch her jump. Dimitri began ladling a bit of salad onto his plate with his fork, "You should've let that guy splat on the pavement y'know. Wouldn't have killed him, cripple? Maybe. Scar? Definitely. But kill? Nah, I don't see it.".

Kassy met Dmitri's eyes without flinching. She knew this game. Even after he moved, she made a show of blinking slowly and yawning, revealing stellar eye-teeth. She'd learned early not to show her teeth when she was happy. Not after terrifying a boat full of rescued tourists...

"Dima, if we go around doing as much damage as the people we're trying to stop, then where is the line between us and them, hm? If you become your enemy, even to defeat them, then they have won a much greater victory." She cut into the lamb, making a pleased little noise when she saw he left it nice and pink. It was nice to have something nice and tender to eat. She was still working on convincing him to season her a raw steak. One day, maybe. He didn't have to eat it, but sometimes she missed a fresh killed catch...

"If you want the city to keep liking us... well, tolerating you, really, then we have to at least be somewhat willing to attempt non-lethal harm to criminals. This world is strange that way, you know." She put a bite into her mouth and chewed, her expression radiating pure bliss. It was a few moments before she continued speaking. "Death is at the end of all roads, yet humans fear it so, because they have no predators here. All manner of harm is fine, until life is snuffed out. And then, there is no excuse." She shook her head a bit. "I will never understand it, really. If the guilty are caught, and they have killed, then why should they not be killed too? I'm sure the clan would wish their honor to be restored."

Dimitri resisted the urge to sigh in disappointment at Kassy's lack of shock from his movement. It was to be expected sure, but the exaggerated response from her took the wind out of his sails for all of one nanosecond before he speared a cucumber with his fork. The hero listened to his companion as he nibbled at the item half heartedly before he placed the fork down, still not all that thrilled with eating any sort of vegetable despite his awareness of the nutritional value. "Well, that's what we've got the death penalty for. Unfortunately as you said, the world is a strange place. I can wallop on thugs all day non-lethally and more will crawl out of the woodwork, which means people complain that i'm not doing all that I can, yet the moment I resort to a method I know puts fear, real fear into a crook, people complain because I don't have the law backing me. It's like the world's shittiest balancing act.".

Dimitri felt a bit of tension build in the muscles where his prosthetic met flesh, something he remedied by sitting back and rolling his arm a bit as he prepared to continue furthering his point, "The weirdness of our planet and its people aside, i've sorta come to believe that sometimes you've gotta be willing to become the enemy to do what needs to be done, because at some point the lines are going to get blurred no matter how hard you try to avoid it. You know why? Because there are always going to be people out there that leave you with no other options but to sink to their level. And if you aren't willing to do that, then they will snuff you out.".

Dimitri's eyes bored into Kassy's as he raised his prosthetic limb again and allowed its metallic surface to catch the light of the setting sun, "We've both met people like that before Kassy. We met them, and we learned first hand what happens when you don't want to blur the line.". Dimitri's expression changed quite drastically, he was almost always scowling as if angry at the world for having the gall to exist, but this was different: Dimitri's mouth twisted into an aggressive -almost primal- sneer, his eyes bore a cold intensity that bordered on murderous as he stared not at Kassy, but rather through her as he recalled his final encounter with Slade and Kijani.

Even after several years he still vividly remembered the taste of dust and blood in his mouth, and the sensation of pain wracking his body as he battled Slade in the decimated remains of the hotel room he and Kassy had shared. He'd never told Kassy this, but he was certain that he could have finished both of his aggressors off with his decimation attack, but that he'd chosen not to knowing that it would have killed her alongside Slade and Kijani. Not once did he ever blame his partner, nor hold it against her, but there was still that one little part of him that wondered; should he have gone all out? The bionic hand began to open and shut slowly "Some days...I can still feel it. Like it was never gone..." Dimitri muttered as he remained lost in memory.

Somehow sensing something was a bit off with Dimitri, Regis crawled over to the hero and began climbing up Dimitri's leg. It took a few seconds, but the sensation of something skittering on him snapped Dimitri out of his daze, his expression quickly returning to normal. After realizing that he'd zoned out in front of Kassy, Dimitri quickly made a move to shut down any concerns she might have had for his lapse of focus. Which is to say, he folded his arms and snorted dismissively before haughtily announcing that sometimes you had to let a criminal, as he put it, 'eat shit on the pavement'.

Kassy saw that look on his face, and saw his eyes leave the present. She'd seen him do this before, but never in front of her. It was just something she picked up on. Knowing full well Dima would deny it to high heaven if she asked, Kassy had kept quiet about it.

She was lucky. She didn't remember most of the experience with Slade and Kijani, having been unconscious for most of it. Still, she had nightmares of a sort, her whole body burning with the memory of pain. Sometimes she had to dump ice into her pool just to sleep. She'd never told Dimitri, figuring his memories were far worse. There was no right for her to complain about shapeless night terrors.

This was no time to stay silent, though. Without giving a damn about the consequences, she reached across the table and cupped Dimitri's face in her hands. "You don't have to say anything." She looked him steady in the eyes. "You're here, with me. Not there." A tiny bit of inner predator showed in her smile. "Also if we ever encounter those two again, I will not hesitate to interrupt one of their minds. I am merciful, not pacifistic." There was a difference. One was letting a shark eat you without trying to stop it, the other was leaving the shark be unless it tried to eat you, at which point you cut it from gill to tail without guilt.

"You're okay, Dima." With a definitely wicked grin, she moved and swiftly kissed the tip of his nose, then pulled back before he could get a grip on her.

Dimitri failingly attempted to suppress a small squeak as he felt Kassy's cool hands clasp the sides of his face. Even after over a year of living in the same house hold as Kassy he still had a hard time coping with any sort of physical contact that wasn't violent, and had on more than one occasion fought to resist the urge to lash out at her in some way when she sent the odd hug his way. It was simply a knee jerk reaction really, but thankfully he'd gotten much better at keeping it in check. The stark contrast between the coolness of Kassy's skin and the warmth of his own caused Dimitri to squirm a bit as he heard her speak. "You're okay, Dima.", this perplexed Dimitri a bit, though any of the questions he had in regards to that statement died in his throat as Kassy leaned forward and planted a kiss on his nose.

There comes a time in every person's life where it seems like their brain simply short circuits on them. This right now was Dimitri's time. He opened and shut his mouth wordlessly as his brain poorly attempted to process this new input. When he did find his voice the results where decidedly less than profound: "I- You- WHAT?" Dimitri barked before he reached up and clasped his nose. The hero met his partner's predatory gaze and turned away, refusing to let her see his face flush. Folding his arms a bit like a petulant child, Dimitri huffed and cleared his throat, "I'm going to remember that when we train again!". This time it was Dimitri's turn to crack a predatory smile, "And considering that I still owe you for earlier today. Well...lets just say that you and epsom salt are about to become real close friends.".

Kassy started to eat, simply so that she could hide the wide grin that spread on her face. Dimitri's reaction was downright adorable, and it was only her respect for him that kept him from laughing. Even that was more because she knew it'd upset him more than anything else. Still, what she'd done had worked. She knew that being so obviously upset in full view of her would unnerve Dimitri. He needed to come to his own terms about that, there was no forcing it. Her little distraction had allowed him to shift his embarrassment and shame to something he had a lot less difficulty with: indignation. It had worked like a charm. The blush was interesting, though, she'd never seen him do that before.

To his flustered threats of training her until her tail fell off, she simply lifted a pale brow at him. This was an expression she'd picked up from television and practiced. Who knew humans had wrestling too?

"Dima, I sleep in ocean water. I like salt." Definitely she was pushing his buttons, but it was better than knowing he was moping. Angry Dimitri was happy Dimitri. Well, sort of, anyway. "Your threats don't worry me. Besides, if I'm too sore, then I won't be able to bake that second batch you want so much." Kassy had learned to be quick on her feet as well with her mouth, though she was almost certain Dima hadn't meant to train her to keep up with him that way.

"You should eat before Regis decides you're done."

As quickly as it had come the somewhat smug smile that had plastered itself on Dimitri's face was wiped away by Kassy's rebuttals. The extremely subtle antagonistic notes in her words paired with the fact that she was right served to bring about the exact results Kassy had hoped to achieve. "If you were a dude i'd slug you. You know that right?" Dimitri's growled flatly and snatched up his fork again in order to imbed it into the lamb chop that was seconds away from being stolen by Regis. The lizard shot Kassy a look that could almost be registered as betrayal before slinking back under the table.

All traces of embarrassment left Dimitri's face as he grabbed his knife and cut into the chop. A vein could be seen pulsing in Dimitri's temple as he took a bite and began to grumble lowly around the mouthful of meat. The hero swallowed and pointed his fork at his comrade, intent on changing the subject before Kassy could answer the rhetorical question to antagonize him further, "You said you wanted a pet, right? Got any idea what you'd like?".

Kassy continued to eat, trying to hide a bit of smugness. It wasn't hard to forget, though. The rare lamb all but melted in her mouth. "I am not sure. I don't want it to be... like a human pet. I don't want it confined and tied up. I want a companion, like you have Regis." She snuck a decent chunk of meat under the table, gently dangling it from her fingertips as apology for the loyal reptile. "I truly don't know what that would be, but I'm certain I'll think of something." She patted her mouth on a napkin and then drained her glass of water. She'd need to be well hydrated for where she was going. "As far as you 'slugging' me, Dima..." She locked eyes with him, smiling in a way that made her teeth flash in the sunlight. "I doubt my femininity has anything to do with your decision. You won't retaliate because you're my friend." There was something creeping into her gaze that was a reminder: her people lived with whales, sharks, and pressures that would crush a human into a fine paste, and she was born to fight predators. Rising from the table after Regis had snagged her treat, she walked to Dimitri, never looking away.

"You also won't retaliate because you're no longer sure of my skill level. You don't like starting a fight that you might not win." She leaned down and kissed him on the cheek, lingering there for a moment longer than necessary. "...that's a smart strategy, Dima." Pulling away, she headed back inside.

"I'm certain you can take care of the dishes, can't you? I'll be back after dark." She vanished into the house with her shoulders squared, and hips swishing.

Dimitri fumed silently as he let Kassy enter the house without a word of retaliation, at least this time around he was still ornery enough to have kept him from becoming flustered by being kissed a second time. Further adding to the list of things he'd never admit was the fact that he honestly didn't have a full on rebuttal to what she'd said. She had him beaten on all points. Again. He waited until she was out of his view before tilting his head up towards the darkening sky, "FUCK!". He slumped down in his seat and brooded for a bit before looking under the table at Regis, whom had finished he treat and stared expectantly at Dimitri for more, "You know you're going to get fat and start breaking those branches in your tank if you keep eating like that, don't you?". If the lizard could somehow understand what was being said, he certainly didn't show it. Rather, Regis began to crawl up into Dimitri's lap and nuzzle Dimitri's stomach with his snout, a moderately endearing habit that the reptile had learned netted him treats many times in the past.

Dimitri rolled his eyes and pulled the lamb chop from his plate, "Ugh. Fine, you scaly little lard. Just take the damn thing and leave me be, will you?". He'd scarcely finished talking before Regis claimed the meat and scurried back under the table to eat. With his pet preoccupied Dimitri got up and began to clean up the mess. 'You won't retaliate because you're my friend.'. Dimitri paused, his hand hovered over a plate as those words replayed in his head. A mixture of emotions that hadn't been felt since before he'd gotten into the hero business churned about in his head as he tried to gauge the weight in those words. How many years had it been since he'd had a friend? He didn't even know anymore. Even his relationship with Gizmo whom had built him his new arm was more in line with that of a friendly business partner than it being a legitimate friendship. Dimitri felt an odd lightness and warmth in his stomach. It took a few seconds to process the sensation before he realized what the sensation was: he was happy. More than that he was relieved that Kassy had said it herself rather than him just assuming.

He reveled in the warmth of the feeling before realizing that there was something off about the situation. There was a certain look in her eye, before she'd came closer to him, one that reminded him a bit of the look he saw in his own before he'd met her. Every morning that look would be reflected back at him in the bathroom mirror of his apartment. Dimitri dwelled on this a bit as he brought the plates and utensils inside to wash them, though he still clung to that warm feeling for as long as he could.

Hours later, Kassy was walking down the beach with a small bad slung over her shoulder. She was humming in a breezy, happy way, and she was several hundred dollars richer. While they didn't truly need the money, Kassy wanted to give something to help the household. So far, Dimitri had yet to ask about where she went some nights. That was good - she didn't want his input.

While she moved down the beach, she was alerted to noises of people and what seemed like animals, in the dark. The sloshing of the water told her that there was a boat tied nearby. The voices were angry and forceful, and she could detect the filth and fear of the animal scents. Something was wrong here.

"Get the fucking cages, hurry up!"

"You couldn'ta picked a spot with some cover, Manny?! God, this sucks, anyone could see us!"

"No one comes on this beach at night, dumbass. Now hurry up!"

Kassy exhaled slow, and her magic masked her from sight and sound immediately. Something illegal was going on, and she was determined to stop it.

@Mistress Dizzy
"Come on man move it! Cobblepot'll have our asses on a platter if we're late!" One of a group of five thugs barked to his comrades as they moved a series of cages off of the partially beached boat. Each of the thugs sported similar clothing: Every one of them sported a thick, ice blue winter coat with a penguin insignia on the back, and darkly colored pants and boots, two of them even wore ski googles. One of the thugs, this one female, grumbled and dropped a cage containing a heavily sedated kestrel and placed a hand on her hip, "The fuck does the boss want us to unload these things for anyway, Manny? He's a bit rich for smuggling animals isn't he?", "Money's money, Viola. Besides, not all of these are being sold as pets or food. A few of these things are being used to transport other shit.". One of the others perked up, "You mean like drug mules?" he asked a bit too excitedly.

Manny's brow shot up a few centimeters as he looked at the most recent speaker, a new guy by the name of Reece, who was so far proving to be troublesome "Amongst other things. It could be anything from coke to diamonds in those animals.". Reece looked down at the caged ocelot in his arms, "Niiice. What do you guys say we crack a few of these bad boys open? Y'know, make sure the merchandise is all there, maybe sample a b-AGH!". Reece was cut off mid sentence as a particularly large individual came up from behind and gripped the back of his neck with vice like strength "You lost your fucking mind? You're talking about stealing from the boss. Don't no one steal from Penguin 'cept for people with a death wish.". Manny raised his hand to signal Reece's release, "Percy is right. You so much as pull a single strand of fur from one of these animals and i'll shoot you myself. Or maybe I could just bring you back to the boss and let you tell him what you did. You do know what he does to thieves, right?". Reece went ridged for a moment before shaking his head, prompting a satisfied nod from Manny "Good boy. Now hurry up. Last thing I want is a cop or a cape to show up.".

Kassy stood, invisible and soundless, listening to the rabble talk. It was wonderful what you could learn when people thought they were alone. SO far she'd found that they worked for the Penguin (not at all a flattering name, honestly), and she had most if not all of their names. Interesting that this Penguin employed women too- she'd often seen villain squads that were very male, which made little sense to her. Why cut out 50% of potential warriors just because of breasts?

The one named Reece was obviously a weak link- she could go for him first. Weak willed people, cowards or fearful types, were the easiest to manipulate. She could turn this man, or simply terrify him. The chaos would spread. She stepped in closer, and reached her hand out toward her target. Then, she whispered, not into his ears but his mind.

'Are you on the right path, Reece? Are you sure you can handle this work?' It would start out as an echo, a reverberation of a thousand voices in a whisper. 'You heard him. One toe out of line, and the Penguin will kill you.'

Having been in the process of helping Viola lift a large crate housing a quartet of cheetah cubs, Reece found himself jolting upwards with a barely suppressed yelp of surprise at the sudden intrusion into his mind. The action caused him to release the crate, leaving his partner to stumble and let go as well before she could get her fingers smashed under the heavy wood. "The fuck is your problem man?! Are you trying to damage the supplies!?", The woman hissed venomously as Reece looked around wildly. Reece looked at her incredulously "You didn't hear that just now?!", "Hear what? Your retarded ass mouth breathing? Or the sound of your noodle arms straining to lift the crate?", "Oh ha-ha, very funny. Those voices just now, you didn't hear it?". Viola's face scrunched up in confusion, "Voices? What voices?" "You're shitting me, right? I swear it sounded like people whispering. Like, A LOT of people."

Viola rolled her eyes with disgust and gestured to the open expanse of dark beach, "There's one around for miles. The only one I hear right now is you blabbering instead of helping me with this crate.". Reece couldn't believe it, he'd heard the voices as clear as day. It wasn't like he was high, Manny already said that he would kill him if he tried sampling the supplies, that is, if he wasn't handed over to the Penguin instead. 'One toe out of line, and the Penguin will kill you' Reece felt a cold spot form in his stomach as the message slowly replayed in his subconscious. He'd always considered himself a hardened man, ran with a few gangs in his youth, served time for grandtheft and assault, but his partners? His boss? They were stone cold killers. Reece didn't realize Viola had been trying to get his attention until she punched him in the chest. He flinched and buckled over slighty, "Done day dreaming, asshole? We don't have all night you know. Hurry up and-" THUMP. Both Reece and Viola jolted with a start as the heavy hands of Percy came down on the large crate and effortlessly hoisted it into the air, "You two still haven't loaded this yet? What's the hold up? We're on a time crunch ain't we?" The impossibly large man rumbled with a voice comparable to roiling thunderclouds.

Viola shrugged and gestured to Reece, "Says he's hearing voices", "Oh yeah? And what are the voices saying?". Reece looked up at Percy and properly drank in just how much larger than him he was. Reece was no shortstack, standing at an even six foot with a body built from more than his fair share of brawls and heavy lifting, but Percy? Percy was an absolute monster in comparison. He towered over Reece by nearly seven inches, and had a physique that suggested that the man would have been far better suited to wrestling grizzly bears than working as hired muscle. A glance at Percy's large hands instantly tipped Reece off to the fact that Percy could have very easily wrapped them around his throat and crushed his windpipe rather than just grabbing him earlier. "It's nothing. Guess the wind's just playing tricks on me." Reece said in a hushed tone. Percy and Viola only glanced at one another and shrugged, "If it's nothing then stop wasting time. Viola, Manny wants you to take another patrol shift while Reece and I unload this stuff. Reece, pick up that bird cage over there. You screw this job up for us and I swear i'll snap your neck." Percy stated in a disturbingly calm and measured tone.

As Viola set off to look around and Percy carried off the crate of cubs, Reece picked up the kestrel cage that had been dropped a bit earlier and started to move forward. He was surprised to find out as he took his first step that he was shaking quite badly. The voices, disturbing though they may have been, might have had a point...

Kassy saw Reece's reaction, and smiled unseen. He'd almost wet himself, and she'd barely begun. Where Pulse liked to punch his way through a problem, she got great satisfaction in making an opponent defeat themselves. Concentrating, she started to push at his mind again.

They think you're crazy, Reece. Maybe you are crazy. Do you really think someone who hears voices is going to last long? Look at him. He could break you like a glass bottle. I don't doubt that he will kill you with his bare hands when the time comes. Maybe not this time. Maybe not even the next. But that man will be your death if you continue on this path, that's a fact.

She had him good and scared. Now was the time to press the advantage.

Run, Reece. The words echoed, 'run' bouncing back and forth in his head over and over. Run away, before they decide your mouth breathing isn't worth the trouble. Take your things, wait until they are distracted, then run run runRUNRUNRUN

Pulse wouldn't like her if he knew how easily she could break a person from inside out. He would distrust her, just like everyone else. Or worse... he would like it. The dark possibility of her magic, and everything she could accomplish if she really, truly used her full power. He'd want her to do more terrible things.

No. All things aside, Pulse was her friend. He'd always be her friend, whether she wanted that or not.

Reece couldn't help but grind his teeth together in frustration as Kassy's invisible assault on his mind continued to wear him down. The voices told him to run, they whispered to him about how Percy would kill him one day, of how he should get out of dodge the very first chance that he got. He risked a glance at Percy as the other man put down the crate beneath the pier, the way that the guy moved, the way his muscles rippled beneath his flesh, even the way he looked at things, everything about Percy could be summed up into one word: Predatory. He walked, clutching the cage in his hands just a bit tighter as he looked back at Viola and Manny. Viola was definitely more than willing to grind him into a fine paste, she'd proved it many times before, such as when he'd tried flirting with her just one too many times on his third day in the gang. She would've probably ended him if she hadn't been pulled off. Those two would tear him apart. Then there was Manny.

Manny was a whole different beast altogether. Percy was a monster who was ready to kill if he thought his livelihood was at risk, Viola a violent spitfire who was all too happy to pummel anyone that looked at her wrong, but Manny, he was completely and utterly detached. Reece knew well that no one in the group really cared about one another, but Manny seemed to take it a step further; he was like a machine, following orders to the letter without a single shred of shame...or mercy. If he screwed up, if he even hinted that he might screw up, he'd be shot, have his jaws shattered, his fingers cut off, and his body dumped in a trash compacter or river. Manny had taken the liberty of explaining this to him, rattling off the details of Reece's potential demise with the same sort of hollow tone as a voice machine.

Reece gulped quietly as he saw the handle of Manny's gun poke out from the back of his pants as he bent over to grasp something. That settled it; Reece had to get out. He needed to get out and stay gone, at least for the next year or two. He had a few minor connections in California from his days as a small time hood, enough to keep him going for a few months at least, from there he could find somewhere that the penguin's reach was at least a little diminished. 'That could work...' He mused as he slipped past Percy and set the bird cage down, "H-hey Percy?". He felt himself instinctively shrink down as Percy turned to look at him, "I gotta take a leak right quick, you mind lettting Manny know?" "Turn out your pockets.". Reece blinked, "What?" "Your pockets. I'm not letting you do shit until I know you aren't stealing from us." The larger man said flatly. Reece eagerly complied, after all, the only things he had with him were a burn phone, a few dollars, and a crumpled up receipt. After taking Reece's phone to ensure that he wasn't trying to call in help, Percy allowed Reece to scramble to the other side of the pier to do his business while he returned to the others.

He and the others had no way of knowing that instead of sticking around, Reece quickly shed his jacket and goggles, and, after getting out of earshot, ran as fast as his legs would carry him into the night.
--


Dimitri yawned and idly scratched at the stubble growing along his jaw. There wasn't too much on television right now, and the old police scanner that he'd "found at a pawn shop" wasn't giving him much to work with in the way of action. A few B&Es, a drunkard flashing people outside of a bar, all kid's play by police standards, and definitely not something worth him getting out of the house for. The hero sighed and sprawled out on the living room sofa, deciding to pass the time by arcing energy between his hands to see how much his metallic one could take before the palm and fingers started to glow red from the heat. When that grew boring he started teasing Regis with a laser pointer he'd gotten at a dollar store a few days ago, briefly finding amusement in the monitor's spastic antics as it tried to devour the small bead of light. When that too stop being a source of fun Dimitri rolled off of the couch and wandered into the kitchen, intent on relieving his boredom by stuffing his face with cookies.

Kassy resisted the urge to laugh as she watched Reese's cowardice take hold. It had almost been too easy. She was rather pleased that he'd shed his uniform. That made things less complicated. She stepped over to his discarded clothes and put them on. Her form shimmered, and in her place was Reese. Or, at the very least, a close proximity of the man. Getting clothes right could be a pain in the blowhole- even though she could see well at night, she wasn't all that good at discerning color. She made sure the jacket was on firmly, and put the goggles over her eyes. She hadn't been able to discern Reese's eye color, so she'd just made them a general brown. If she was wrong, the goggles would help with the ruse.

Inhaling and bracing her nerves, she stepped over to the rest of her group, trying to match a casual male walk. Her staff had been hidden just out of the way, buried in the sand. Thank goodness for Dima's fighting lessons! If things went poorly, she wouldn't be completely defenseless.

Taking a quick moment to observe the group's movements, she stepped over to one of the cages, the one that Reese had set down. It held a beautiful bird, a predator if that beak was any indication. It screeched rather loudly, and she resisted the urge to flinch. Quickly she bend back the lock of the cage, making sure that it would close, but not lock. THen she set the cage down the the others. Picking up another, she did the same thing. If Pulse was a brutal sword, then Mirage was a hidden dagger. Hopefully she could damage the locks before anyone decided to speak to "Reese".

The animals trapped within their cages stirred ever so slightly as the sound of their locks being fiddled with roused some from their drug induced slumber. Thorough though they may have been The Penguin's hired hands still had their faults; faults not knowing the proper amount of sedatives one could give a white rhinoceros calf to safely put it out. Their ignorance and desire to avoid overdosing and killing the creature had lead to their under dosing it instead, a fact that they would soon come to regret. As Kassy went along her plan the young beast woozily got to its feet and began to snort in confusion. The snorts would soon give way to grunts as a combination of poor eyesight, disorientation from the drug, and a lack of it's mother sent the calf into a panic. In true rhinoceros fashion, the young rhino's fight or flight instinct kicked in and almost immediately landed on 'fight', prompting the herbivore to back up as far as its cage would allow before it rushed forward and bumped into with all the might it could muster. It's first attempt fell a bit short however with the door budging only a bit under the blow. That bit, however, was all the incentive that the calf needed to give a small bellow and try again

The combination of grunting and clanging against the bars eventually roused the less that fully sedated animals from their slumber, as well as served to alert Viola who was fresh from a patrol. "The fuck?" The woman asked aloud as she started making her way towards the cages. She was almost on top of the cages and "Reece" when the little rhino gave one last grunt and forced the cage open with a strong headbutt. The rhino's momentum caused it to stumble a bit, but it gained it's bearings just enough to avoid bowling over Viola as it drunkenly began to run down the beach. "SHIT!" The woman screeched as she spun on her heels to take off after the calf. Back on the boat Manny and Percy were alerted to the ordeal by way of Viola's scream and were quick to make their way land side once more to figure out the commotion.

Under most normal circumstances, the sight of a diminutive angry woman chasing a small rhino might have given the average person a moment of pause and perhaps a chuckle of amusement or two, but these were not normal circumstances, and the witnesses were not average men. Manny's jaw bulged a bit as his temper flared slightly at the unwelcome interruption. He did not like it when things didn't go according to plan; not one bit. "Percy, help her get that thing back in it's cage." he ordered without even looking at the larger man. Percy obeyed without question, taking off to pursue Viola and the rhino as Manny's attention turned to the other cages lying along the beach. Either someone had screwed up, or something was off. Being the professional he was Manny didn't want to leave it to chance; drawing his pistol from his waistband, Manny marched across the beach towards the rows of cages, his jaw bulging even further as the mixing sounds of stirring animals and his companions arguing just a bit too loudly amongst one another as they tried to corral their quarry serving to fan the flames of his rising temper.

Kassy did take a moment to stare openly at the spectacle. She had no idea what kind of creature that was, though it did look very young. Hopefully it'd give them a good chase. A tired enemy would be easier to fight and defeat. There was no "honorable fight" with these kinds of people, unfortunately.

She continued to manipulate the cages, sometimes giving the tranquilized animals a little mental nudge. If one horn-baby stomping creature could cause this much chaos, imagine how much more of them would create. It didn't take long for squeaking, squawking, and all sorts of other noises start to elict from the cages, as other animals tried to get free.

Unfortunately, the ruckus made Kassy unaware that Manny wasn't far behind her. She would have been caught by surprise, but a small hawk screeched in response, diving clumsily at Manny's head. It was still half-dazed, but it was loud enough to make Kassy turn around, still wearing Reece's form. She lifted a hand in nervous greeting.

As Viola and Percy struggled to keep up with the rhino calf Manny continued towards the stacks of cages. A pair icy black eyes that would not have been out of place on the body of a Great White Shark scanned the cages and the beach that surrounded them. Momentarily he paused and turned to his other compatriots just in time to see the baby rhino turn and knock Viola off of her feet with a drunken charge, but this failed to receive any sort of reaction. The sounds of stirring animals caused the thug to not only pick up his pace, but to lift the back of his jacket slightly to allow for easier access towards his gun. He was almost on top of Kassy when the shrill cry caught his attention. Manny had just enough time to turn to face the sound and was met with a face full of feathers, talons, and a viciously hooked beak as the kestrel plowed into him gracelessly.

The thug cursed loudly out of surprise and struggled to grab the bird, being momentarily grateful for his ski-goggles as his eyes would have undoubtedly been gouged out. The bird gave yet another cry and back away from the grasping appendages, but not without leaving a long gash down the jacket's arms as it pulled back. Manny was pissed, so pissed in fact that he would have simply pulled out his gun and shot at the bird were it not for the fact that he didn't want to risk the sound being heard. "Reece!" He hissed as the kestrel awkwardly began to circle him from just out of reach for another dive bomb, "Were the fuck are you? Help me with this!".

Kassy went toward Manny, trying to act like a scared subordinate. It wasn't exactly hard. She wasn't afraid of the man, but the gun in his hand was another story entirely. "Sure thing, boss, right away!" She moved toward him, "accidentally" knocking one of the cages on it's side as she did so. The more chaos, the better.

While she did so, she looked up at the attacking bird. It was not hard to peek into an animal's mind. The issue was communicating to it properly. Most animals didn't think in complicated ways. She pressed against the bird's psyche, indicating Enemy and Danger about Manny, and Friend to her. The second one she wasn't sure of. Did birds have friends? Maybe she should have indicated Flock? No matter, there wasn't enough time. One last nudge, one last command.

Attack!

"How do you want me to catch it?" She made a good show of jumping, trying to snatch at the bird in the air. She really hoped she could get rid of this guy soon - her illusion could start to break under scrutiny. It had been so easy with Reece because the man was so obviously weak-minded. This man was different.