Case #52: Video

[19centconstable]

[It looks as though George did not mean for this transmission to be video, because his comm is giving a view of concrete passing beneath George's feet. It's passing a little unsteadily, and every now and then one of George's hands is just visible in the upper corner of the screen. His palm is bleeding, as though it has been punctured by something very small and very thin and very sharp. George's voice sounds raspy.]

I...this is Constable George Crabtree, requesting...I'm on orders of the GCPD. In pursuit of a gang ruffians who attempted...attempted...OI! You there!

[George's feet skid to a woozy stop.]

You... I feel...

[George's comm clatters to the ground. Three punks stand at the dead-end of an alley. A shadow begins loom over them, growing taller and broader and taller...]

Comments

Spam!

[isthenight]

[He'll deal with them after he's sure you're not about to drop dead or smash up the rest of the city. :V

He reaches slowly for one of the pouches of his utility belt.] Can I take a blood sample? Tim can analyze it and try to figure out a way to help you, and anyone else who gets hit with this.

Spam!

[19centconstable]

[What exactly do you mean by that, Dick? Take a blood sample where? And how? George looks wary.]

A wild Uberwaldian wolfhound appears!

[scentbombed]

[She runs blind for a little while, because George could honestly be anywhere, and she doesn't know Gotham like Dick does. But eventually she picks up the scent she knows as Actually George, which is easy to follow, and eventually it becomes... Other George. Which is troubling, but on the bright side, very little challenge to her nose.

The trail ends in the street below them. She looks up with a worried howl.]

[isthenight]

[Dick glances over the edge of the building, recognizing the wolf.] Angua?

[19centconstable]

[The howl is all George hears, and he turns his attention away from Dick, swinging from the building by one hand. And then he spots it:

Doggy.]

[scentbombed]

[Oh, shit, is the next thought that comes to mind, but she can't exactly say that. So she lets out a low whine and takes a few steps back, crouching lower to the ground.

Well, now she's here. What the hell is she supposed to do? She thinks about changing back, trying to talk to him. There's even some discarded curtain or something lying in the street nearby... Or she could just bite him until he quiets down again. But she's pretty sure that's the wolf's thinking.]

[isthenight]

[He's losing his attention, and Dick isn't sure if Angua getting it is a good thing at all. He's still not sure what the drug really does to people, what the potential side effects could be, and he didn't want this turning into some situation that put her in danger, too.

And he really needed to get a blood sample.]

George, [he said carefully, loud enough to hopefully get his attention back, pulling out a kit from his utility belt.] How about it, buddy? It won't hurt, I just need a little bit so we can figure out how to help you, and anyone else who gets hit with this stuff. Please?

[19centconstable]

[It does manage to get him to glance back. That is his name, after all. He's just not sure about the rest of what's being said. Well, 'buddy' sounds friendly enough.

It's funny, though. He seems to remember Dick being tall-...

...

...

IS THAT A NEEDLE?

OMG.

HULK RUN AWAY.]

[scentbombed]

[Oh, shit, again. Angua takes off after him, skids on the cloth, grabs it in her jaws and keeps going, racing down the street. She's still not sure what to do with him, but she knows they can't let him run off.]

[19centconstable]

[Good idea, doggy. Dick might try to steal your blood too.

George bounds blindly through the back alleys, unsure of where he's going. He reaches another dead end eventually, and turns to face whatever is pursuing him.]

[isthenight]

[Whelp, it's just Dick, dressed up like a giant bat, dropping down from a building. His hands are up again, non threatening, keeping his voice calm and level.]

I'm sorry, George, I won't try anything, I promise. I need you to calm down.

[scentbombed]

[Angua pads up on the other side of the alley's entrance, daring -- being lower to the ground and generally stealthier -- to come closer than Dick. She doesn't try to bark or whine, but her eyes are pleading. George, stop Hulking out already!]

[19centconstable]

[Stealthier, but not stealthy enough. George swoops down and snatches the wolf around the middle with one strong but surprisingly gentle hand, then sets to climbing a nearby building. They'll be safe up here.]

[scentbombed]

[Wait, what?]

--!!!

[Oh, fuck. Angua barks and wriggles frantically at first, until they get high enough that that becomes a terrible idea. And then... well, now what?]

[19centconstable]

[He doesn't stop climbing until he reaches the top, where he hunches protectively around her. He rumbles:]

Safe.