TMNT Megamix The RP

Katarina

Katarina grumbled at the fishman. With her large ears and sense of smell, she saw him coming a mile away, but she had other things to worry about. Now that he was in front of her, she couldn't help but lick her lips. Her stomach grumbled, the smell of fresh shrimp stronger than ever, wafting towards her big kitty nose. She tried not to stare, but even with his bandages and abnormal appendages, he was proving irresistible.

"K-Kat..." She shook her head, stray strands of fur floating down. "T-that's Katarina Kato to you! But I don't see how it's any business of yours. What freshwater basin did you crawl out of, the Mississippi?"

She turned to Dibbler. "Oh, I bet you have. The same man who helped secure all those smelly cabbages no doubt? For a minute I thought they'd fallen off the back of a truck. It's a wonder you could smuggle them in..."

The wheels began to turn. Despite the man's protests, it was clear he was a man. Most humans weren't allowed in Mutant Town, but somehow he'd gotten in. If he could sneak in so easily, perhaps he could sneak out?

Edited by kkhohoho on May 22nd 2023 at 2:00:32 PM

Dibbler shrugs. "People gotta eat, right? I gotta REALLY good cabbage guy. You don't like cabbage, you tell me what you do like and maybe I'll have it next time."

Edited by Nodrog on May 22nd 2023 at 5:33:28 AM

"Thank you." Art said simply as he was served the bowl of gumbo, his eyes flickering briefly to the black cat mutant. "You hungry?" he asks, but starts eating his cabbage thoughtfully without waiting for an answer. He slaps down some cash on Dibbler's serving table, and, looking Katarina up and down, asks, "Cat, huh? Must be nice." he muses.

Edited by Jules-Firenze on May 23rd 2023 at 9:18:33 PM

Katarina

Kat's stomach continued to grumble. She sniffed the bowl of soup, nearly vomiting from the stench. She leaned against the cart, holding it in. "I appreciate the gesture, but I'm afraid I've lost my appetite..."

She pushed herself up, turning to Gary. She'd order something else if she was desperate, but she had bigger fish to fry.

"I have something else in mind. I may not approve of your cuisine, but your methods are worthy of praise. I can't say I know anyone else who's handled such audacious cargo without being strangled first. It's clear you can smuggle things in, but what about smuggling out?"

Dibbler-Mobile

"I told yas, I'm an honest business rat." said Gary Dibbler, drawing himself to full height. "However, I'm also one with a lousy sense of navy-gating, so occasionally it might be I find myself outside of Mutant-town, purely accidental-like and completely not-on-purpose."

Gary glanced around, then leaned forward. "Now, on a completely unrelated note, I'd be willing... purely as an honest business rat with no intention of smuggling... to transport some cargo or even persons till, shall-we-say, something accidental occurs. "

Edited by Nodrog on May 23rd 2023 at 7:59:33 AM

Art continues eating his gumbo, but listens in as inconspicuously as possible.

Katarina

Now they were talking. Katarina could care less about his rat sthick, but they were making progress.

"That would be a shame, wouldn't it? Though I cant imagine such an upstanding gentlerat as yourself would perform such a task for free. I'm afraid my purse is running a tad empty, but there must be something that tickles your fancy..."

She leaned in, bending down and batting her eyes. It wasn't her favorite technique, especially with this body, but who could resist a pretty face?

Gary glances down. "Well, if I knews what it is that you'd be wanting transported, then perhaps we could work out some friendly-like terms."

Katarina

So far so good. She hadn't sealed the deal, but she was making progress. Katarina didn't know about getting 'friendly-like', but it seemed to be working.

"Oh, nothing too extravagant. A warm bundle of fur roughly..." She held her hand flat over her head, comparing measurements. "...this big? It may not seem special, but it carries some generous assets."

She didn't say much else about the nature of her cargo, but it should have been obvious.

Edited by kkhohoho on May 24th 2023 at 3:01:14 AM

Gary glances around. fingers tapping on the counter of his food truck, then nods. "I... might have some room for that, assuming we're talking something that can... fold up tight and not make too much noise."

He reaches under the counter, taking a few minutes to prepare something, and then hands a paper plate with some spicy cabbage slaw on it to Katarina.

"Here, why don't you try this 'till we meet again?"

Edited by Nodrog on May 24th 2023 at 4:05:47 AM

Katarina

Katarina stared dully at the slaw. Any other day she wouldn't be caught dead eating this swill, but desperate times called for desperate measures. She scrunched her nose, shoveling it into her mouth and forcing it down. She fell to her knees, coughing and gagging, eyes watering in in pain.

"T-that's... eclectic..."

Gary Dibbler smiles happily. "Another happily satisfied customer!" he declares, then goes back to looking for more customers.

There are some black marks on the paper plate, under where the spiced cabbage slaw was.

Art then puts a water bottle in front of Katarina, shrugging at her reaction. "You get used to it." he drones. "It's an... acquired taste." he hesitates, before turning to Dibbler. "I have to ask. Can you get people out? Don't lie."

Katarina

Katarina nearly knocked the bottle away, but she wouldn't look a gifthorse in the mouth. She guzzled it down, coughing and sputtering, the burning sensation on her lips cooling off. [T-thank you...]

She rubbed her eyes, her soaking up the remaining tears. She glanced at the paper plate. She saw the marks, wiping away the traces of slaw with her paws. She zoomed in, eyes turning sharp. She wasn't sure what it was, but she had a strong suspicion.

She glared at Art, rolling her eyes. "Be still my beating heart. Are you that much of a brainless clod or do you not understand the art of subtlety?" She glanced around, keeping her ears peeled for any intruders. Hopefully no-one was listening.

Dibbler frowned, then glanced under the counter, staring at some piece of equipment mounted under the serving counter. "Nothing is certain" Dibbler said. His voice had changed, still serious but his accent shifted from a low class, mixed ethnic voice to something more clipped and educated. "However, there are various people who... have issues with the idea of innocent, self-aware brings being kept trapped on reservations." Dibbler's fingers tapped on the counter, in the same rhythm from before. He suddenly grinned, switching back to his original accent. "Lahk ah said, I knows a guy. Ah can get someone out, or garrote my own throat in the effort."

Edited by Nodrog on May 25th 2023 at 12:59:15 PM

"I was getting impatient." he grumbles to Katarina, "No need to stoop to such methods when you could go with Brutal Honesty.", before slapping the table and facing Dibbler. "I simply was looking for options." he shrugs. "If you could get people out, then what..." his voice level lowers significantly, "would it take?"

Dibbler holds up a hand and rubs his index and ring finger up against his thumb. "Running a railroad ain't cheap." He says. "You either convince a conductor you have a genuine need, or you pay for your ticket."

Edited by Nodrog on May 26th 2023 at 9:10:25 AM

Donatello nodded firmly, pulling his goggles off of his eyes, and then quietly trying to follow Leo down into the alley. Another Watcher seemed to pass by, which gave Donnie pause, before he slid down a pipe and landed silently in the alleyway.

Having fallen slightly behind Leonardo, he caught up to his brother and kept an eye out for danger from their flanks.

Leo

Let it be known that Leo generally did not charge into situations with no idea of what he was doing unlike others, not naming any names, Raphael. Generally, if he did a thing, one could be reasonably sure he had thought it through to the degree that it made sense. To him, at any rate.

That in mind, here was his thought process for this occasion:

I don't know who this person is.

But they don't look too tough.

They don't know we're here.

We could probably take them anyway.

We have ninja training and real weapons.

And a reputation as actual effective vigilantes.

And it would probably be easier to get information if they're not trying to think through a concussion.

And I'm not down for giving a random person a concussion.

So let's act rational and not give a random person a concussion.

And here was the result of that thought process:

Leo carefully climbed down until he was just above the other vigilante's head, hiding in the shadows so only his silhouette was visible. Then, holding up a finger to signal to Donnie to hold off for now, he spoke.

"So are you gonna explain what you're doing here, or are we gonna have problems?"

Art nods in understanding. "Money. Of course. I would be a fool to expect otherwise." he grunts, then leaves a $5 tip to Dibbler. "Much appreciated, Dibbler. If I'm in need of your services, I will call upon you." he taps the table, then turns to Katarina. "Good evening, Katarina." he bows his head slightly, then takes his leave.

Street Corner

Dibbler takes the sawbuck, tucking it away below the counter, then smiles at Katarina. "Well, will thar' be anything else, Miss?"

Edited by Nodrog on Jun 1st 2023 at 7:47:03 AM

Katarina

"Thank you, but I believe I'd had enough culinary experiments for one evening." She casually held up the plate, spinning it around her finger. "I trust we'll see each other again?"

But she had other priorities. The shrimp man was an imbecile, but something urged her to chase him down, her nose getting a good whiff of that delicious odor. Maybe there was a story there, but she a feeling it was far simpler.

"Not so fast! It's not every day you see a six foot shrimp shaking down a cabbage vendor without a shred of subtlety. Or with enough bandages for a first aid kit. Any more and you'd be a shoe-in for the The Mummy's latest irritation. Everyone says it's dead and buried, but they're bound to drag up its rotting corpse sooner or later. But I suspect there's more to it than a half-baked audition. Everyone else in this sorry hovel comes as they are, but you're the only one who has something to hide. Or at least something so transparently noticeable."

Dibbler stays open, figuring he'll wait a bit before driving back to his garage and getting three or four hours of sleep. He takes a few minutes checking on his stock of supplies, including a diamond-shaped bottle of liquid with a hand printed label saying "Helmut Spargles' Magic Liquid".

Edited by Nodrog on May 31st 2023 at 9:44:03 AM

Art saw from the corner of his eye Katarina coming for him, and stopped. He turns around with an almost bored expression. "I consider that a compliment, actually." he snarks at the bandage quip. "I do dislike looking at my... mutation." he pauses, letting the last word roll off his tongue. "As for my secrets..." he continues, eyes boring into hers.

(Brace yourself for a long one)

"My name is Art Shaver. I'm 30 years old. My house is in the northeast section of Mutant Town, near the sewers, and I am not married. I work as an employee for Ugly Groceries, and I get home every day by 10 PM at the latest. I don't smoke, but I occasionally drink. I'm in bed by 10:30 PM, and make sure I get eight hours of sleep, no matter what. After having a glass of warm milk and doing about twenty minutes of stretches before going to bed, I usually have no problems sleeping until morning. Just like a baby, I wake up without any fatigue or stress in the morning. I have no current medical problems except for my mutation. I'm trying to explain that I'm a person who wishes to live a very quiet life. I take care not to trouble myself with any enemies, like winning and losing, that would cause me to lose sleep at night. That is how I deal with society, and I know that is what brings me happiness. Although, if I were to fight, I wouldn't lose to anyone."

He takes a short breath, and continues, leaning closer to her.

"You already know my name, Katarina. But what you don't know about me is that I used to be a smuggler. Of rare animals, no less." he shrugs. "Ironic, isn't it, that I am stuck with mutation from said animals? Or is it karma?" Without stopping, he asks, "Why do you think I'm telling this to you?" he pauses for a brief moment, but doesn't let her answer. "It's because no one would recognize me anymore. You could go to the police, but would they really believe you when I deny it, especially when I never revealed myself during my missions? Not to mention we were at Dibbler's shop. Who knows what mind-altering properties his wares have?" he lets that sink in, before leaning back.

"I do not wish to scare you. I mean you no harm. But just so we're on the same page," He lets the bandages on his claw fall away. "I will repeat. I wish to live as comfortably as I can. If I would like to exit Mutant Town for better living space, that's my business." he intones. "Only when people get in my way is when I would start... fighting." he then uses his smaller claw to pick up the bandages and start wrapping his big one. "You seem alright. You seem versed in pop culture too, which is nice." he nods. "Anything else to add, or may I take my leave?"

Edited by Jules-Firenze on May 30th 2023 at 11:34:47 PM

"Listen I'm here delivering su—"

A pause, the roguish individual realizing that hey she wasn't actually out of potential danger yet and that voice came out of nowhere. All adding up to the fact that she was rumbled. Immediately her hands went to her over-designed knives as she tried to figure out which part of the shadows actually had these possible security guards.

"Good cause. Back. Off."

She tried to growl out her words as much as she could, still turning in place as she tried to anticipate the attack.