[Game Thread] Case 0: A Troubled City Calls

[PalladiaMors]

Echo gives Psyrin a bit of a glare at her comment, clearly not appreciating the disrespect shown towards one of the legends of music. "Pft, no, I'm twenty-two. I just like good music. Probably a Swiftie," she adds with a derisive snort as she munches on more of the mixed nuts. She pays the purple girl no further mind though, having much better things to worry about other than her complete lack of respect for the classics. Bat-Boy raises a good question, but the sheriff raises better ones, so she focuses on those first. "Tin Whiskers makes a good point. Do you want us to just wander around beating criminals up, or is there a more organized plan of action here? Can't help but think just goin' out there and causing mayhem wouldn't be very productive, we'd probably get in each other's way more than anything. Or is anyone here of a more... eh... tactical mind?" she asks, looking to the others, especially those of a more militaristic showing.

[Boss Nadar]

First Impressions Cyber Ghost (click on image for sheet) The drone twists towards Echo as she offers a lift up. "That won't be necessary. In case it isn't obvious, I do my best work at a distance. I have a couple of other drones that are combat capable if necessary, but otherwise I believe my primary contribution will be in information acquisition. 'The guy in the chair', if you will." At Bullocks' comment, Grace's nose twitches in mild annoyance, and she suddenly very glad her drone is incapable of displaying facial expressions. "The feeling is mutual," she replies, "Just remember that we're all here because you couldn't do your job. And while we're on the topic. Commissioner, what is the extent of our legal protections? Obviously I don't plan to go around killing innocents, but are we bound by the same rules that the police follow? Or at the least, the rules they're supposed to follow? Or are we afforded a bit of leniency in terms of, for example, privacy rights violations?" "It would not be difficult to assume the role of a dispatch, if that is what is required," Cyber Ghost offers up in response to Echo's question, "While I would not call myself tactically minded, information gathering is something of a speciality of mine."

[Rockerboy]

Commissioner Gordon When the question was raised about Batman being missing, Gordon worked his jaw muscles, before he spoke slowly. "The GCPD is treating Batman and his associate's disappearances as a missing persons, yes, however we are limited in our capacity to provide effective policing procedures, due to not knowing the identities of the individuals..." Gordon cleared his throat and added. "We are doing what we can, with information we discover. Though - unfortunately - I don't have the Justice League on speed dial, so Gotham is doing what it can." Gordon considered the follow up question. "For now, I have no answers regarding that. Bottom line: we need help, and we have a legal approach to help us. Though I will state that Batman is not associated with the GCPD in a legal capacity, unlike yourselves right now, since emergency deputization changed all that... we'll have to cross that bridge when we get to it." The remark from Tin Whiskers caused Bullock to scoff, though the Commissioner kept his face neutral. He would never admit to it, but it was clear his approach to vigilantes was... flexible. Still, the next line of question did get a response: "Good questions. I'll answer both at the same time. Our plan is to utilize the bat-signal," Gordon motioned, needlessly, to the beacon behind him. "Not only does it serve as a symbol, one that can help just by lighting up in a lot of cases, it solves the problem about contacting you all - especially since we're avoiding personal details, including cell phones." Gordon offered a nod to the other man. "We'll light the signal when you're needed, and I'll give you the details of how you can help. The GCPD is doing its best to contend with the day-to-day, so it's mainly the unexpected fluctuations of criminal activity... and again, if it's too dangerous, you're free to decline. We want your safety being considered, too. We just need the help." When Echo spoke up, Gordon turned to look at her. "We, uh, try to avoid missing due process. Batman has methods some--" "Pfft, most." Bullock muttered. "--consider 'strong armed', but ultimately all of the criminals he intervenes with - before our arrival - are left in positions of easy arrest. So long as charges can be made, I'm happy, because that's what our aim should be." Bullock glared at the drone, even as his right hand - his shooting hand - twitched a little, as the voice spoke up. The Detective was about to say something, but Gordon held up a hand and stopped him, speaking instead: "Because of your positions as legal agents, you are fully capable of justifiable arrests and delivery of the apprehended to the GCPD building. But, I don't know what your methods will be, I don't want to know, so long as criminals don't die... and while I cannot officially comment on my relationship as Commissioner with Batman, I can say that our file against his violations of law as a vigilante is on-going, though evidence compiling is slow and limited due to his fastidious nature. "You, however, are deputized agents. You have protections as the Courts recognize you as deputized civilians entitled to qualified immunity, so long as you are acting reasonably according to procedures dictated by the law or by superiors. In this case, as long as you aren't killing and murdering, or using undue force, you'll be fine. Our DA has seen to that." Gordon looked between the group, as the drone asked about dispatch services. "That won't be necessary, it would involve access beyond your deputy level, and our largest concern is having more people on the street. You will be given information about any case or activities you're called to, though, and you'll have access to correlating files - so you're more than welcome to use that access to support any fellow deputies, so long as it directly relates to the crime at hand." "He's sayin' don't go snoopin' in our data centers, but nicely." Bullock added with a further glare at the drone. "Last thing the Commish needs is to be held responsible for leaked files 'bout GCPD business. He's trustin' you folks, for whatever reason, an' going behind his back to find out what doesn't concern ya, is a problem we don't need." Gordon shrugged. That seemed about the sum of it. "Do we have to work together?" Asked the skull-faced man, as he waited for the chance to speak. "I do my best work alone, but sometimes teaming up has benefits." "That's entirely up to you," Gordon said simply, as he looked to the military type. "When the signal activates, whoever shows up will get the brief. If it's one of you, that's fine; if it's more, even better. You can choose to take part or not." Regulator nodded. "Any other questions?" Gordon asked.

[DrowNinjaPrincess]

A Provocative Question "That doesn't seem to be a very fast system," Tin Whiskers remarks about the bat signal. He also felt it would only serve to put a big target on their backs in the future. But he supposed there was not much he could change about it at the moment. "Just one more question," he says. "You aren't one of those chickens*** commy political hacks that values the rights of criminals over the lives of innocents, are you?" The question was about as outrageous as was the awkward silence that followed. "We lost a lot of good people that day at the parade, all because of one crazy. If I read you right, I'd still say you want that son of a b**** brought in alive. Fair enough, due process of law and all that crap, so long as he doesn't escape. Again..." "But, if any of us were in a position to stop another similar massacre, and all it took was a bullet in the bastard's head to prevent it.. is that going to be a problem?"

[Mcderth]

Murder Is As Murder Does Bro... your joking, right? Jayden says when the old guy talks about headshotting villains around the city. Like, don't get me wrong, we have to stop innocent people from getting hurt. And we've gotta get the city back under control. But, like, Batman doesn't like people killing, right? I bet he REALLY doesn't like people killing in Gotham. We don't want to do stuff out there that ends up pissing him off when he comes back, even if The Commissioner says we can. Jayden looks around the group that has assembled, beginning to wonder just what he may have gotten himself into. We've gotta be better than the bad guys. We HAVE to be willing to make the hard choice and risk maybe failing as heroes instead of winning as villains. We need to bring the city hope, real hope. Not with the threat of killing people, but with bringing safety despite the violence and the crazy s***t that's been going on. We gotta carry on his mission while he's gone. I mean, I don't want to deal with a pissed off Batman wondering what we've been doing when he gets back.

[Boss Nadar]

First Impressions Cyber Ghost (click on image for sheet) The drone nods-or at least, does as reasonable a facsimile of such a gesture as is possible- "A final question, commissioner. Do those same protections apply even when we're not acting directly under your command? Say for example, we discover evidence of some sort of gun deal, and want to try and bust it. Do we need your permission to do so, or are we free to act at our discretion so long as we maintain honorable conduct?" When the conversation turns to killing, Graces sighs, though the sound does not reach the drone. "Cops kill criminals all the time, but only when necessary. Please correct me if I am mistaken, but I think what he's trying to say is that we are protectors, not executioners. If we can take them in alive, then we are obligated to attempt to do so, but given the choice between killing a criminal and letting them kill an innocent, we have the authority to act. We'll just need to be prepared to explain ourselves. Now, speaking of which, if we're done here, it seems some people have been tweeting about some gunfire in west Gotham." The drone hangs back just a moment to ensure no one has anything else to add, then turns to fly off. A few blocks away, Grace starts packing up her stuff and starts to head off to investigate.

[PalladiaMors]

Angie continues to munch on her snacks as Gordon starts going through all the legalize, but it's clear even on her inhuman features that she's already bored with listening to him drone on about law this, deputies that. It isn't that she isn't paying attention, it's just that paying attention requires such a small degree of her mental acuity that the rest is already restless. "Batman totally has the Justice League on speed dial. I saw him push a button and boop there's the Flash, right on screen. I waved but dunno if he saw me," she whispers to Bat-boy, still a bit giddy about having sort of seen a more colorful "super" hero face to sort of face despite having spoken to Batman and company several times over the past few months. When Tin Whiskers asks a question of a decidedly more vigilante bent she sighs, but it's of a contemplative nature rather than an exasperated one. She listens to his argument and Bat-boy's counterargument, finding good points in both and not immediately taking sides. She looks back and forth between them before offering her own perspective, for whatever that's worth in this crowd. "People have the right to self-defense and all. I'm sure there's a reason you don't see a bunch of costumed nutcases in Texas or Tennessee but that's not a debate for now. I'm not sayin' go all rooftop sniper mode or anything but... Look I dunno about anyone else but I've been on the receiving end of these nutcases. Some ninjas threw me out of a high rise like you'd throw a bottle in the trash, and if I'd had a pistol on me when they came runnin' up on me? You better believe I woulda used it. So I'm not gonna get mad at anyone who's in that situation. I get what you're saying," she says to Bat-boy, agreeing with him on an idealistic level even if not a realistic one. "But we're just regular people doin' our best and if it's life or death? We just hafta do the best we can," she concedes. She hoped she wouldn't be in that position given her own talents, but hadn't fully discounted the possibility. When the drone starts talking about something going on in West Gotham she's grateful for the distraction, not wanting the conversation to get any heavier. She quickly pulls her own phone out of a pouch on her makeshift tool belt to check on the drone's report as she walks backwards towards the edge of the building, tracking the drone's movements through her echolocation. She gives up quickly and stuffs it back in her pocket, trusting that this Cyber Ghost knew what she was talking about, especially if she was boasting about her information-gathering capabilities. "Shotgun!" she calls out of tradition even though it's meaningless in context. She stands on the edge of the roof and simply falls backwards over the edge, only to take to the air after the drone a moment later. She stops quickly and turns around to face the roof, hovering in place. "Oh! Uh... anyone need a lift? I promise it's only slightly terrifying," she asks of the others still present.

[Rockerboy]

Commissioner Gordon The question from Tin Whiskers caused Gordon to pause, as he clucked his tongue, and watched the other man from behind his glasses. It was an interesting approach to have for the situation, for sure, and a moment was needed for the Commissioner to answer in a manner that was appropriate... Though, it seemed others were content to speak up; and Gordon let them. From the way the group spoke, Bat-boy seemed to understand the most of it, so did the drone, and finally Echo added some interesting points. When it came down to it, the best Gordon could offer was: "Like I say to all my people: you plan to bring them in, but you keep yourself safe." the man in the coat cleared his throat, adding. "I'll never condone the shooting of anyone, not even a criminal, because I believe in justice and the legal system. Still, self-defense is your right, and justifiable response of force is expected in this dangerous field of work. Keep in mind that, like Bat-boy mentioned--" Gordon pointed a thumb to the young man. "--we're trying to make this city better, so making more bullet holes in bodies and adding to the chaos isn't what we're doing here - so keep yourself safe, but understand you'll be questioned about excessive degree of response." Hopefully that provided enough clarity. Gordon looked up to the drone: "Consider yourselves deputized at all times, until you finish patrol or take breaks as you want. This permits you to act in emergency situations, yes, and all I ask is that you give me a heads-up when something happens and you're responding - it helps me square things away and protects you all." In response to that, Gordon fished into his coat and pulled out a small stack of cards. He handed each out to those gathered, with the cards providing a direct number to his desk at the GCPD - as well as basic information for a business card, of sorts. "Now, onto other things--" Gordon began, but paused as the drone spoke up, and provided some intel on a situation in West Gotham. That announcement came from the GCPD call center, it was firewalled. "Huh, well, looks like Cyber Ghost is set to task already. Yeah, we've had reports of a number of nine-one-ones for assistance across Gotham, so we might as well get started..." Gordon began to flick through a touchpad from within one of the deeper coat pockets, as he scrolled through the police calls. He pointed to Psyrin and Gaseous. "There's a report of an ATM break-in, north Gotham. Details can be patched through en route." He turned to Regulator and Funnel Web. "We've got gang violence north, as well, but same deal - details incoming." and with a final flick of a finger, Gordon looked to the remaining members. "This one's bigger, we have a gunfight in West Gotham... might require a group, so I'm going to recommend you all stick together--" Gordon glanced up to the drone. "--and I assume you'll have no trouble finding out where to go. But I'll have dispatch ready with the information, anyway, just in case." With a sigh and a smile, Gordon looked around at those gathered...

Psyrin & Gaseous Across the way, Psyrin had taken the card, before her phone beeped. A message of some kind. She opened the device, casually, but then froze-- "Wha..." --and with a blink, she clicked the screen off and stuffed it back into her belt pouch. She glanced about within the hood, before she narrowed her eyes at the drone, then departed the area. She mumbled to her new partner, as she led the way: "Let's go, Gas." To which the man in the mask and jacket followed, silent.

Regulator & Funnel Web The pair nodded, almost in unison, as Gordon gave the info for the crime in progress. There wasn't much else to say, as the pair began to depart, though the skull-mask-wearing deputy looked back and gave a nod of his head. "Stay safe. Keep your heads on a swivel." Then, without further fanfare, the pair descended and disappeared from the rooftop...

Commissioner Gordon "I think we're done here. And God knows Gotham needs all of you... good luck." And with that, Gordon stepped back and joined Bullock, as the pair began to speak quietly. They left the deputy group to finalize whatever was needed, to organize whatever they required, and to get underway... To Be Continued: Case 1: The Sound of Violence