[IC] [1x1 SporkoBug/Ryuhill] Unlikely Allies

[SporkoBug]

The sky was covered in clouds over the small city of Greyport. Greyport was never really famous for anything; a mediocre small town with a small tech company that slowly became a big technology firm.
That small little company is called Alp Tech, they work with household technology and computers, a lot of people come and go from the company but no one ever really seems to speak about what they actually do there.

Is there something they're hiding?

---

A young woman clocked out of her workplace, she stopped just before the door to the outside world.
She looked to the logo on the wall, Alp Tech She thought to herself, The way of the future for Greyport.
She shook her head before she walked outside. She looked up to the clouded sky and gave a small sigh, pulling their coat closer to their body.

A lot had happened in the last month, things she wasn't sure even were real. She looked at her hands as she walked, pausing as she looked around before crossing the road towards a small cafe. She gave a small sigh to herself as she looked around more.
It was a cold day, nothing too out of the ordinary here in the town. The female walked into the little Cafe and moved to the counter.
"Jackie!" The male barista started, "You're early! The usual?"

Jackie nodded and moved to pay, not feeling too much like the small talk she'd usually do. She took her number and went to her usual table, pulling out a sketchbook from her sidebag and grabbed a pencil.
"Everything'll be okay..." Jackie said to herself, she thought back to everything that had happened the last week.
That Spider.. She thought as she moved to rub her face, That damned spider.
She flinched as her coffee was placed in front of her, she smiled quietly before she watched the barista move away.

[RyuHll]

The grey clouds that hung overhead did nothing for his mood. The man had left his office, taking a half day to go over paperwork. Like anyone of importance in this small little town, he worked for the technological giant, Alp Tech. Unlike most of those people, though, he had made his way up in the world, if his finely tailored suit was anything to judge by. He had only been there a short time and it hadn't been long enough to truly become known throughout the company, but that was fine with him. He didn't care for the attention.

Tired blue eyes caught the coffee shop as he was walking past. He paused only for a moment before deciding to head inside. Maybe the coffee would perk him up and help him get ready for the rest of his day.

His hand brushed through his messy brown hair as he made his way to the counter. He gave his order, ignoring the raised eyebrow he earned from the barista. An exhausted suit was probably not the typical clientele he would deal with on a day to day basis. "Do you have a name for the order?"

"Will," the man replied, stifling a yawn on the back of his hand. "Thank you." He took his number and stepped away, finding his own table to sit at, awaiting his order to be ready.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie moved to start some sketches on her paper. She heard the door open and close, for some reason she looked up. She noticed it was another person who worked at Alp Tech; of course higher up than her. Anything was a Higher up position than a janitor of course- not that Jackie really cared anymore.

She turned her attention back to her sketches, she had doodled out a scorpion, slowly working on the details before she stopped to drink a bit of her coffee.
She found herself watching the other employee of the Alp Tech firm before she looked away. She didn't want to be seen staring; that would end up awkward to all parties.
Jackie glanced to the wall beside her, noticing some small flecks of spidersweb drifting in the airwaves from the heaters.

Part of her wondered where the spinner of the web was, despite her fear towards spiders. She shivered at the idea of spiders, she took another sip of her drink before she turned her attention back to her sketchbook to continue drawing.
She looked up as the Cafe's TV played the tune to the news, "Good afternoon, todays news recap; Are there vigilantes in GreyPort? Weather said to stick around, more information on New Alp Tech technology!"

Jackie looked to her sketchbook again, it was almost full by now. "I'll have to get a new one when I get a paycheck..." she uttered to herself.

[RyuHll]

Will sipped at his drink quietly, enjoying the brief moment to himself. The cafe was quiet. There were only a handful of other patrons enjoying the food and drink. There had not been much opportunity to sit by himself as he would have liked, but he opted for the quietest looking of the group; a young woman drawing in her sketchbook. At least there was little chance to be bothered with her absorbed in her own work.

He glanced up at the TV, listening to the new prattle on. The main story, though, caught his attention. He sighed. "Vigilantes," he muttered to himself, the tone of disgust clear in his voice. "Such a thankless, pointless profession." He clicked his tongue gently in disapproval. He took another small sip from his coffee before starting to get up to leave. He did not have the luxury for spending too much time just sitting and watching the news.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie glanced up as the man spoke, she didn't say anything, but she watched the news.
"There aren't many stable photos of these people, but there have been sightings of some of these Vigilantes." One of the reporters said, putting up a picture of a blurred photo, all of the colours kind of mixed together and nothing was really seen.
"Sounds like some dumb people wanting to get themselves killed." One of the presenters said, laughing at his own words before they moved on to the next topic.

Jackie looked back to her sketchbook and turned to the next page, presented with the back of the book. She gave a bit of a frown before she closed the sketchbook itself. Her phone gave a small buzz, she checked it quickly.
Head home, dropped off a package. The text said from a contact she had labelled as 'Mysterious'. She had never really met this person, ever since the accident they had dropped off things to her house when she wasn't there, things that she needed, things that helped her.

She slipped her sketchbook away into her sidebag before she took the last swig of her drink. She placed her cup gently on her saucer and stood quietly. She moved to fix up her hoodie, feeling it riding up quietly.
She moved to set off towards her apartment, luckily it wasn't too far from work; which meant it wasn't too far from the Cafe either.

[RyuHll]

Will was just starting to leave when he was shoved past by another in a black hoody, the hood pulled up to cover his face. A thin black cloth was pulled up to cover his mouth and nose, masking the rest of his face from view. Will paused briefly to glance back at him in annoyance, but hesitated again when he saw the glint of metal in his hand.

The man pulled out a gun, pointing at Will. "Get back in here," he demanded. "I'll be wanting what's in your wallet. Along with anything the rest of you have. Do I make myself clear?"

The barista backed off immediately, ready to start taking whatever was left in the cash register for the man to take. Will, however, didn't budge. "No, I don't think I will," he replied, turning away to leave all the same. He took a single step before a shot was fired off, the bullet striking the door frame just to the right of the man's head.

"I said, come back in," the robber demanded once more. "And empty your pockets. Now. The next shot won't be a warning."

Will glanced back, but there wasn't fear in his eyes. Only annoyance. He let out a sigh. "I think you'll be putting that gun down. Now," he stated. The robber frowned beneath his mask, about to retort...but his hand was lowering all the same. His own anger turned to confusion as he placed the gun on the counter and let go of it. "Take it. Call the cops. He won't go anywhere." He turned away and left, not paying the robber any mind and leaving the onlookers with the now disarmed robber.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie managed to watch that all happen from the outside, as they had pushed passed her. She blinked at the situation, before her phone buzzed again.
Hurry. The Mysterious number had texted, You need what I have given you. She read it over before she sighed.
Things here seemed to be in relative order as the robber seemed to be disarmed... By themselves. She narrowed her eyes slightly before she started to head off.

She moved past an alleyway before something grabbed her and pulled her out of sight.
Jackie let out a yelp as she was slammed into the wall of the Cafe, as she opened her eyes she looked at the taller man pinning her there. He had the same sort of outfit as the robber at the cafe.
"Give me whatever is in your bag, and in your pockets." He ordered, still pinning Jackie to the wall. He had his hand against her collarbone, and his other hand pulled out a sharp knife.

"So your buddy got the gun and you got stuck with the knife?" Jackie said with a bit of a smirk before more weight was pressed against her chest. "Okay... Okay, I get it.."
She moved her hands down the wall quietly, figuring out the right height to hold her hands before she swung forward, smacking the thief in the chest. The impact sent the man to the other side of the alleyway.
Jackie twisted herself around, landing her feet on the wall as well, sticking there for a moment before dropping down.

[RyuHll]

Will had left the cafe, though he paused as he seemed to hear something. He was passing the alleyway beside the cafe, but turned in time to see the would-be robber slammed back into the wall. The girl who had been drawing seemed to...stick to the wall?

He let out a frustrated sigh. You could barely go about your day without being in the presence of one of these kinds of people. He could do without it, if he were being honest. Still, he let his curiosity get the better of him. He stepped around the corner, keeping himself hidden, but wanting to watch what unfolded. It was good to know who to avoid in this town and he wanted to understand what her powers were. So, for the time being, he hid and allowed her to handle herself.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie watched as the mugger slowly stood back up, his knife was more near her than himself. She reacted quickly, moving to stomp her foot down on the handle and flicked it into a trash bin.
"You won't be needing that." She uttered out loud as the Mugger stood up shakily.
"What the fuck..." They started, looking towards Jackie. "Did you do?"

"Kicked you, obviously." Jackie said with a smirk, readying herself for whatever he was going to throw at her.
The Mugger looked at her for a moment before he stepped to try and grapple her. Jackie responded on instinct, stepping back to spring off the wall and flip over him. A small string of strong web stuck to the wall before Jackie landed and she gave it a tug, the loose brick it was attached to swung out and slammed into the Muggers head.

She stood there as the mugger seemed to collapse, unconscious. Her phone buzzed again, Hurry. The text said, People are returning home, I don't want this package stolen or looked through.
She rolled her eyes before she looked around, seeing if anyone was in eyesight before she flicked back her hoodie.
She focused momentarily, breathing slowly before she flicked her wrists, two spits of web flicked out of each of her palms, sticking to higher up on the building before she stepped back and sprung forward, the dust under her feet making a bit of a cloud where she stood.

[RyuHll]

Will's eyebrow rose in curiosity as he took note of her powers. Spider based powers? If he remembered correctly, the boss had been working on something based around those powers. That's an interesting predicament.

He withdrew his phone, looking down at it for a moment as he contemplated his next move. The boss would want to know...especially if there was a chance that this new super was using his tech. It was expected for him to call. In the end, though, he pocketed the phone. Screw him. He should have been more careful with security.

Will began to walk again, but he followed an unseen trail, tracking the new spider girl. He wanted to learn more.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie felt weightless as her body leapt over buildings, she wasn't fully used to it yet but she was slowly getting the hang of everything. Every third or fourth try she missed her mark of fumbled- picking herself up and continuing.
She made sure to keep out of view of cameras and most people; or so she thought, she was unaware of the male following her.

She landed out the back of her apartment complex, fixing herself up before she moved to head up inside. The stairs used to hurt her legs after a long day of work, now the three flights of stairs were easy for her.
She stopped at her apartment door, looking down at the small box placed under her doormat, she pushed the door open and walked inside, moving to close the door but left it slightly ajar.

"Hey I'm home!" She called out, looking around at her apparently empty house. She walked to the counter between her kitchen and her lounge, placing the box down gently and looked around again. "Where are you?" She called out into the empty house again.
She furrowed her brow, moving to grab a craft knife to open this box; finding where her 'room mate' was would come later.

[RyuHll]

Will's steps took him to a small apartment complex. He glanced around with a frown. Meager living. She didn't have a well-paying job. Not like him at least. The trip over made it clear that she was not trained with her powers. She was still getting used to them. This was a recent phenomenon. The two logical answers was that she was a current employee or a recently fired one. Which that was, he would need to figure out at a later date.

He took a moment to consider his options before ducking down an adjacent alleyway. He didn't get far before he crouched to the ground and took a leap. His feet left the ground and he soared above the rooftop of the nearby apartment. He landed just as gently at the roof, brushing off his suit as he did. His eyes trailed back to the apartment in question, looking to the window, shutter-less and clear in his line of sight.

What had her getting home so early? What was the situation here? He wanted the full story. He needed it. Any small bit would help him.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie had no idea she was being watched, that feeling was usually just natural when you lived with someone like her 'roommate'.
"I'm here!" A voice echoed through the air, a voice only Jackie seemed to hear. She turned around, looking at the tv stand to see a slightly larger than normal, jumpy spider.
"Hey buddy!" She said, "I worried you weren't here." She said before she turned back to her box, "Our friend dropped off another package."
The jumpy spider moved quickly, making her way over to where her human housemate was to see what she had been given.

Jackie glanced as her tiny arachnid friend before she moved to open the box. She pulled open the box and looked inside; she pulled out a pair of goggles with a small note attached. She pulled out a small case of what looked to be like pills, To control what you had previously complained about. These will work this time. The note on it read.
"Is that about the-" The spider asked before Jackie nodded.
"Yeah, that stuff." She said, moving to look back in the box, there wasn't much left in there. Mainly more paper, the tests on the samples she sent to her friend.

She lifted the papers up out of the box and moved to place them on the table in front of her couch before she moved to go to the goggles.
Since you're going for the Aesthetic of the bug, I thought you'd like the googly-eye type goggles too. The note said, which caused Jackie to smirk slightly.

[RyuHll]

Will frowned as he continued to watch. Nothing was happening. He didn't know what to make of things, but this was a good start. With a small sigh, he stepped away from the ledge, opting to end the surveillance for the night. He would need to gauge her strength now. If she had powers, though, she would likely want to use them. Maybe for good, maybe for evil. He would have to see what she decided to do.

With that in mind, he stepped away, walking to the edge of the building. He took a leap, carrying himself over to the next rooftop. He began to make his way across the city in that manner, only slowing as he began to reach the nicer neighborhoods. Once that was done, he allowed himself to lower to the ground, ready to make his way back to his high rise apartment. He would do some research of his own. His next step would not begin until the following day, though. It couldn't until he formulated that next step in his head.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie paused, she thought she heard footsteps, she looked around before she looked at the pill case and looked at them. She placed the case down again before she looked to the notes.
She moved to sit on the couch, grabbing the notes quietly to give them a read; she had nothing better to do that night. She kicked her shoes off and slipped off her overshirt; revealing a pair of slender, soft fuzzy brown spider-like legs on her mid-back.

She glanced down at the legs before she sighed, moving to undo the small belt around her pants, feeling another pair of legs sliding up from the back of her legs. Both pairs of legs just relaxed before coiling gently around her torso.
She jittered her leg as she read the notes her friend had left for her.
This is information from everything you've given me as well as everything I have witnessed. She read, giving a small nod.
From the Blood Samples, I have noticed that your DNA seems fully corrupted now. There is no feasible difference between both strains now, they've formed to one strain of DNA. I've never really seen anything like this before.
Jackie raised an eyebrow and smirked softly, she moved to lie on the couch now, her extra limbs tucking up around her- cupping around her waist and just under her bosom.

The Behavioral aspects are... Interesting- Jumpy Spiders are known for spinning more of a cocoon to sleep in, and from the pictures you've shown me of your... Re-modelling, of your room is that's exactly what you are doing. The sudden loss of your fear of heights isn't too odd, as wall scaling must come naturally to you now.
The ability to go days without food and then eat a lot is natural as well, depending on how much you eat the night before. It's not something I would recommend, it sets the mind off and causes a lot of physiological bullshit. By now, Jackie seemed to start to doze off as the sun scaled into her building through the window.

She rested for about an hour before her phone buzzed, waking her up. She jolted forward- her spider legs lunging forward as if to strike someone in front of her. She blinked and relaxed, her extra limbs folding back as she looked to the notes, sleepily trying to read the next bit, Spinnerets on each limb is something I've never really seen before. Spinnerets on the back of your ankles are interesting- as well as the palm spinnerets. Testing the web strength and length should be the next thing. We'll get to that later.

[RyuHll]

Will was out of his apartment early that morning, despite his late night. The bags under his eyes never improved. He couldn't sleep through the night. His powers wouldn't allow it except in the rarest of circumstances.

His path took him a different route than usual, this time making the detour towards his new interest's apartment. He had already arranged for a later start to his day than usual. He would need to explain things to the boss fully, but he had time to figure that out. He would not need to worry about that. Not yet.

He stopped as he reached an alleyway near her home. He stuck to the shadows, watching silently. He needed an idea of who she was in the company. He needed more answers.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie had given her spiderfriend a gentle pat as she left the next morning; she had tried a different attempt to hide her extra limbs, moving to tuck the lower limbs down her waist and her upper limbs tucked under her breasts- almost pushing them upwards.

She stepped out of the housing area onto the street, her eyes flexing slightly before she looked around.
She had a few wisps of web in her hair from her last night of sleep... if she did even sleep.
She woke up in a different part of the house, sleeping on the floor of the kitchen. This happened a lot; yet she never mentioned anything to her mysterious friend- she had already said a lot.
She forgot she had the note they left for her in her bag, sticking out ever so slightly of the front zipper.
To anyone else; it would seem like a normal piece of paper, but it had a visible symble that could be recognized if Will paid attention the night before.

[RyuHll]

Will raised an eyebrow as he watched her leave, spotting the small piece of paper. He didn't make his move here, though. He let it sit for the time being, allowing her to make her way through town. He abandoned his attempt to follow her pretty easily. He had what he wanted out of the ordeal. He knew she would be at work. He would just have to find time to check in on her. She would be an interesting experiment to follow.

He made his way out of the alley, being sure to take a route that wouldn't intersect with the girl's. At least, not until they got closer to the headquarters. He didn't want to explain what an executive was doing in that part of town. In no time at all, taking his normal routes through the city, he found his way back to work, rubbing at his eyes as he fought off the last remnants of his lack of sleep. Perhaps he should have stopped for coffee again on the way in. He would just have to find some source of caffeine inside to help keep himself functioning throughout the day.

[SporkoBug]

Jackie let out a yawn as she walked along, feeling her mouth flex as well.
She moved along quickly; she knew where to go on instinct and it wasn't too busy yet.
She rounded the corner towards her work building; keeping an eye on her surroundings. She had felt like she was being watched... she didn't like it at all.

She got to the doors of the building and stepped inside; feeling the rush of heat from the heatpump above the door.
She stepped to the side as she moved to readjust herself, moving her bag strap and stretching her arms.

[RyuHll]

Will was waiting in the lobby as she arrived. He stood off to the side, taking note of her entrance before turning his attention back to the employee before him. He finished his instructions quickly, sending him off to continue his work. He turned his attention back to the entrance, watching her clock in for the day before he spoke. "Ms. Ailyn," he called out, stepping out from around the corner. "I will need a word with you before you begin your work." Voices quieted as he addressed her, already being recognized by the employees in the vicinity. As one of the upper management at this facility, he garnered enough respect - or fear, as things would have it. He could not always tell what it was.

Either way, it drew attention to them. He gestured for her to follow him, turning away to leave. The discussion was better off in private.