Welcome to Gaia! ::

A man, ordinary in most respects, tried to flee out of the alleyway he'd gotten trapped in. He was bruised, battered, and not entirely sure what he'd ended up walking into.

Jane tripped him with a well-timed jab of her foot, then kicked him for good measure while he was down. Her big brother Dan and her boyfriend Gat (a moniker short for 'Gatling Gun') did most of the subduing work. Soon, the wannabe hero was out cold and being bustled into the van they'd parked in a convenient place.

"You up for getting another one, J?" Dan asked.

"Depends." she said, glancing at the van, then back down the alley where it led into the sidewalk. The man was their first pull that day, and it would be greedy to try to get another. "Let me take a look."

Jane peeked out from the alley to see that, for the time being, the coast was actually still fairly clear. A few eyes on the alley but sometimes that actually helped. A commotion made her act more believable. It was a risk, but the profit was large. It was worth it.

In fact, she saw another mark walking by already. A nice young man, probably stupid -- perfect. She signaled the boys with a thumbs up and began her act again.

"Oh help! Help, please help!" she cried out as her mark walked past, staggering exaggeratedly into plain view in the alley as they hid in the shadows. She looked a sight -- beat up and bruised, her makeup expertly applied to maximize pity and make it clear that she was a 'beautiful damsel in distress.' "Help!" she cried again, walking towards the startled passer-by before faking a collapse. She gazed imploringly at him from the shadows of the alleyway, letting her dress dip enough to show more of her makeup work as well as her cleavage.

The bait was set.

And, of course, no one noticed that another was watching.