The Average DC Experience

by wicked1321

One bad day is all it takes to send an average man to the fringes of madness, or so a wise, demented clown once said. But if one bad day that started with getting fired and ended with a meteor falling over one such average man's head didn't drive him insane, then maybe waking up in a fictional world full of monsters would do the trick?

15. Chapter 15

Gotham

The Batcave

"You know nothing good will come out of this, Dick..." Barbara Gordon, daughter of the police commissioner, currently known as Batgirl, said with a frown as she turned to leave.

"I know that. But I still have to do it," Dick Grayson, also known as Nightwing, replied with a helpless sigh as he watched the redhead walk away to the cave's exit.

"He needs to explain himself. You know that, Barbra," he added, shaking his head with another tired sigh and his frown only deepened as the redhead kept walking without replying.

Frustratedly passing a hand over his hair, Dick couldn't help but reminisce about the past as he watched the redhead leave the cave, images of his time as Robin flashing in his mind.

Things were much simpler then, especially in his first year acting as Robin. Although his career as a vigilante only started because of the death of his parents, Dick managed to find the culprit with Batman's help and get over the trauma of losing his family.

He found solace in the crusade against Gotham's crime and the oath he shared with his mentor that night in the bat cave. It was something straight out of a fairy tale, and he couldn't help but see his vigilante activities as an adventure.

However, everything took a turn for the worst when Two-Face kidnapped the new district attorney and got the drop on Batman, had each suspended from a hangman's noose, and dared Dick to appeal for their lives.

Desperate, Robin played along, calling for neither man to hang if Two-Face's next two coin-flips came up clean. Both flips landed in Dick's favor, but he didn't account for Dent's obsession with the number two.

It was a two-fold trap, and the floor gave way, dropping the D.A. into the water, where the man drowned. Dick couldn't prevent his death and received a beating at the hands of Two-Face.

A beating witnessed by Batman, still tied up on the platform, trying to free himself. Eventually, Bruce was able to free himself and apprehend Two-Face. This event, however, scarred the young crime-fighter, and it haunted him for the rest of his life.

Still, Dick didn't give up his identity as a hero and even started a superhero team of his own, the Teen Titans. Together, with his team, they foiled a major conspiracy and even cured the Justice League members from brainwashing.

Dick found his purpose, calling, and self-worth in the new team as its leader. He also found love in Starfire, a beautiful alien who joined shortly afterward.

And things looked like they could only go up from there. However, fate had other plans.

At the age of 19 and after six years of being Robin, Dick was shot in the shoulder by the Joker, which prompted Batman to end the young vigilante's career as a crime fighter for good.

Distraught by such a turn of events and uncertain what to do with himself, Dick turned to someone he knew would understand: the man of steel himself, Superman.

Very briefly, Dick had considered giving up the whole crime-fighting gig, but he couldn't imagine his life any other way; but if he couldn't be Robin, who would he be? Superman had the answer.

Never one to disappoint those who seek him and always the ever-shinning beacon of hope, Superman told Dick about a Kryptonian cast out by his family - just as he had been.

The man dreamed of a world ruled by justice and set out to protect the helpless of Krypton. He was known only as Nightwing, and no one figured out his identity.

Inspired by the man of steel's story, Dick fashioned and donned a suit inspired by his father's old circus costume and took on the name Nightwing, creating a new identity for himself.

Tough Dick stepped out of Batman's shadow; he and Bruce remained at odds. Their conflict only escalated when Batman found and trained another protégé (Jason Todd) to act as his sidekick, despite ending Dick's crime-fighting career.

The conflict affected the new Robin as Dick's friends and colleagues in the Teen Titans sensed his anguish and inadvertently alienated the young Jason, despite the latter's lack of guilt.

Dick didn't stop his friends from mistreating the young Robin, much to his later shame, as he came to regret it greatly later, and has been trying to patch things up with Jason, but the latter wasn't making things easy either.

"What are you doing here, Dick?" Batman blankly asked as he interred the cave, noticing Nighwing's presence, which caused the latter to snap out of his reminiscences-induced daze.

"Barbra asked me to keep an eye on Harley Quinn and the new guy while you were away since she was busy," Nightwing calmly replied, shrugging his shoulders as he struggled to keep a neutral expression at the caped crusader's estranged tone.

"I know," Batman replied, his tone even blanker somehow, and Nightwing understood the hidden dismissal of his former mentor's question, which was a polite way of asking him to leave.

"We need to talk," Nightwing firmly remarked, shaking his head to make clear that he won't be leaving without the talk he was here for, and to no one's surprise, Batman didn't show any reaction.

"Then talk," Batman said as he walked towards the Bat computer, passing by Nightwing without giving the latter a second look, much to Dick's frustration.

"Harley Quinn, why did you leave her with the kid? You know damn well what she's capable of..." Nightwing asked as he followed behind Batman, standing beside him as the latter began working on his supercomputer.

"It was a test. I needed to understand the boy's bottom line and breaking point," Batman casually replied without twitching an eyebrow, much to Nightwing's shock.

"You what?!" Nightwing exclaimed, immediately losing his temper as he moved to get into Batman's face with a scowl, which again did not phase the caped crusader.

"The boy was a sickly, malnourished mess not long ago, and in the short span of a month, he's grown strong enough to fight people like Killer Croc and Kyle Abbot," Batman replied, still calm and collected as he looked his former sidekick in the eye.

"He has a power that allows him to control a pocket dimension of sorts and different advanced gadgets of unknown origins," Batman added as he brought up what precious few footages he had of Gray on the Bat computer screen.

"There are even rumors that he'd killed the beast in the docks," Batman explained as a video showing Gray fighting Killer Croc on the street started playing.

"The boy is dangerous, and you know it. Don't make me repeat myself," he dismissively concluded, maintaining the same neutral, emotionless tone he had since the beginning of the conversation.

"That doesn't justify leaving with a nutcase like Harley Quinn or leaving her loose in Gotham," Nightwing exclaimed, his tone even more outraged at the cold reason Batman had given him.

"For fuck's sake, Bruce! The kid was halfway through beating Abbot to death in the shipyard. He might have gone through with it if I didn't stop him," Nightwing exclaimed, forcefully slamming the Bat computer with a palm in his anger.

"It was part of the plan. Harley would push the boy to the limit of his patience, and Abbot would drive him past it by simply refusing to stay down," Batman replied, dismissively waving Dick's anger off with a gesture.

"As an immortal werewolf, there is nothing the boy can do to put him down permanently," Batman explained, his tone growing slightly cold as he finally displayed some emotion.

"Had you not interfered, I would have been able to see how far the boy would go to vent his anger on an unkillable target and how long it would take him to get his emotions under control," Batman concluded. He quickly regained control over his emotions as he gestured to the side in dismissal.

"And what about Harley Quinn? What if she started killing the moment you left her there? What about all the people she killed and crimes she committed after escaping Arkham?" Nightwing questioned as the caped crusader's words did nothing to assuage his anger.

"Irrelevant. I know Harley well enough to be sure that she'd play nice, and I was going to capture her and send her back to Arkham after she played her part, regardless of the outcome," Batman quickly replied without hesitation.

"You think you have the answers to everything, that you know everything, don't you, Bruce?" Nightwing asked, gritting his teeth in frustration, his scowl deepening.

"There was a time when I thought that about you myself. But you're only human, Bruce, and what you're doing now is clearly a mistake!" Nightwing stated, clenching his fists as he took a deep breath to calm himself.

"Are you done?" Batman blankly asked, much to Nightwing's annoyance, as the latter heaved a sigh and turned to leave.

"Remember the people your paranoia pushed to villainy, Bruce, and mark my words..." Nightwing calmly remarked as he turned to leave without bothering to give his former mentor a second glance.

"If you push the kid away into a darker path, that would be your biggest failure as a hero to date, and I will never forgive you for it..."

,,,

Gotham

Gray's hideout

I smiled as I confirmed the order on my computer and watched as the 20k I'd made in the past three days evaporated, replaced by more stocks in Wayne Enterprises.

I'd spent a day getting electricity and setting up my new hideout, and although I still had to furnish the place and make it more presentable since it looked empty and ugly as sin, it was still comfortable enough for me to spend my time here.

I spent the next few days grinding my Computers skill while stealing minuscule amounts of money from different sources through scams or directly hacking into any corporation with lax cyber security I found.

I avoided stealing from anybody who'd miss what I took, and even then, I didn't take much to make sure no one would notice or bother investigating the missing funds.

I could have easily made ten times more, but I didn't want to risk it, and I won't have to either way since Wayne stocks were already rising back up, and it's only a matter of time before I could sell what I bought at a tremendous profit.

And although I've been ignoring the notification prompts to focus on my work, I'm pretty sure close to maxing out the Programmer class if I didn't already.

'Let's what we have here...' I mused, smiling as I brought up the accumulated notifications from the last three days.

[New quest initiated: Get Rich Or Die Trying (literally) IV]

[Would you like to accept it? Yes/No]

...

Get Rich Or Die Trying (literally) IV:

You finally got a taste of money, but is that really enough to fill the black hole in your heart? You want, you need; it makes the world go round. Go for it.

[Objective: Gather $1,000,000 through any means]

[Rewards: [unique random equipment] [+5 levels to the crime skill] [+5 levels to the Computers skill]

...

'Oh? A new money quest, and it just jumped to one million...' I sighed as I read through the quest, feeling the urge to scoff at the rapid escalation that reminded me of my teacher.

'Whatever...' I shrugged as I accepted the quest, intending to treat the current money quest as I did the latter by ignoring it until I suddenly got the prompt that it was complete.

The rewards were much better, but I don't want to end up obsessing over it like when I first got the quest. Thank you very much.

'Moving on...' I dismissed the new quest notification windows and moved on to the rest.

[+3 levels to the Computer skill]

[Computers (level 31)]

[+1 level the Crime skill]

[Crime (level 34)]

[+2 levels to the Programmer class]

[Programmer (level 29)]

[+6 skill points]

'Shame... I only needed one more level in Computers to max out the Programmer class, oh well...' I dismissed the notification windows and retrieved my laptop to grind that last level.

And sure enough, I got the level-up notification an hour later since I was already close to leveling up the skill.

[+1 level to the Computers skill]

[Computers (level 22)]

[+1 level to the Programmer class]

[Programmer (level max)]

[+1 level to the Archetype: Mad scientist]

[You gained the power: Personal Computer]

[Personal Computer: the ability to integrate a single computer into your brain, giving you full, telepathic access to all of its functions (you may choose to assimilate a different, more powerful computer at any time)]

'Huh... that will definitely be convenient...' I mused as I pushed down the urge to try my new power immediately since I wanted to get through the rest of the notifications first.

[You have reached the maximum capacity of your current class. Would you like to choose a new one now?]

'Well, geez, what do you think...?' I immediately agreed and began browsing the list of available classes.

[Available archetype specific classes: (Mechanic) (Surgeon) (Chemist) (Biologist)]

[Available basic classes: (Gunman) (Duelist) (Artist) (Scholar) (Linguist)]

'Nothing new...' I mused, my eyes inadvertently turning to the Gunman class. The best class choice would be the Mechanic since it would give me another venue to make money and enable me to create and improve weapons and gadgets.

However, I couldn't pry the idea of getting the Gunman class to better use Ivory and Ebony. After several seconds of hesitation, I gave in to the temptation and took the Gunman class.

[You have gained a new class: Gunman]

[You have gained the skill: Gun Mastery]

[Gun Mastery: This skill covers your basic things that go "bang" — shotguns, pistols, and the like]

[Due to your prior experience, you have gained four levels in the Gun mastery skill]

[Gun Mastery (level 5)]

[+2 levels to the Gunman class]

[Gunman (level 3)]

[+6 stat points]

"Too bad I don't have an extra stat point, or I'd raised the three of my attributes to 75..." I remarked, chuckling with a shake of my head as I turned to my character screen.

I didn't need to have OCD for the mere idea of only one attribute being behind by one point while the other two were matching to irritate me.

"Now to try out the new power..." I muttered as I turned to my still running laptop and touched with my right, feeling the energy leave my body and move into it.

The energy disappeared, but something else came back, rushing directly to my brain as the laptop shut down, and I felt a surge of information coursing through my gray matter.

A slight headache accompanied the strange feeling, and information rush and it quickly disappeared, giving way to an even weirder sensation, as I could already feel my brain turn into a high-powered alien computer.

I instinctively knew how to operate it and had direct access to every function of the laptop, enabling me to do anything I'd typically need the computer for and then some.

I could now easily do everything mentally with no input lag or delay, and I'd go as far to say I might even have a chance if I end up clashing with Anarky again in a fair cyber fight since I'd have the reaction time and speed advantage.

It would also make active hacking, during combat or any other urgent situation to achieve some watchdogs level bullshitry, possible.

'Oh, the things I'd be able to do with this power once I grind my Computers skill a bit more...'

I couldn't help but grin as I began imagining several scenarios of how I'd use the power, but I shook my head as I retrieved Ebony and Ivory from my inventory.

'Still feels the same...' I mused as I raised the guns to aim through the iron sights, not feeling better at shooting, which made sense as the system merely translated my already existing shooting skill into experience and levels.

'How about this then...' I raised an eyebrow as I took out one of the guns I'd pocketed during my attack on the Black Mask's warehouse on the docks.

It was an uzi machine gun, and as I raised it and looked through the iron sights, it felt as comfortable as holding Ebony and Ivory. I knew I could use it as proficiently as the twin pistols, despite never touching the machine gun until now.

'Nice...' I nodded in satisfaction as I put the uzi back into my inventory and equipped my gear, making my way outside, looking forward to grinding out the Guns skill.

'Maybe I can max out the Gunman class before Richard even gets back if I'm lucky...'

...

Somewhere in Upper Gotham

Black mask hummed, tabbing the armrest with his finger as he listened to his most trusted subordinate and second command, Tattoo, report about their latest failure.

Tattoo was a tall man, standing roughly 6.3 feet tall with a broad, muscular frame. He had a bald head and vicious, tattoo-covered visage that seemed frozen in an eternal scowl that would scare the most wilful of children into their going into bed early.

Tattoo was quite an intimidating sight, which was quite fitting considering his notoriety for violence and cruelty as he crossed every line in service of Roman Sionis' whim.

But even such a violent, brutal man could not help but sweat and feel suffocated as Black Mask calmly stared into his eyes, gently and slowly tapping at the luxurious chair's armrest.

"We had the Vietnamese in Bludhaven by the balls, an' we were ready to take over..." Tattoo uncomfortably explained, opening the top button of his shirt as he felt suffocated.

"But that freak Nightwing showed up, hospitalized half of our boys, and sent the rest to Black Gate along with the Vietnamese..." Tattoo added, unable to take Black Mask's gaze any longer as he turned away.

"I'm not happy, Tattoo. I'm not happy, and despite appearances, this ain't a damned smile on my face," Black mask remarked, his tapping turning more rapid, much to Tattoo's chagrin as he visibly cringed.

"First, it was that bitch Harley Quinn and that new guy... then the Intergang encroaching on my city, and now this..." Black Mask remarked, his tone growing colder and his face turning more menacing with every word.

"And there's wasn't a goddamned thing any of you could do about it..." he scowled as he stood up and turned to the window, staring into the dark, grin cityscape.

"This is your last chance to do something about it... or I'll have to resort to finding outside help..." he concluded, and Tattoo understood that the conversation had officially ended.

"I won't let you down, boss."

...

Gotham

The Bowery

I took a deep breath as I took cover behind the bar, bullets, glass shards, and alcohol splashes flying right over my head as I held on to Ebony and Ivory, raising them next to my face.

It had been three days since I took the Gunman class, and I managed to raise my Guns skill by an additional eight levels thanks to my eagerness to stop sucking at using Ebony and Ivory.

I spent most of my time hunting for thugs, taking them out with my guns to grind the skill, but I quickly noticed a pattern that whenever I went out, a bunch of Black Mask's goons would always show up whenever I stirred a fuss.

And being the homicidal maniacs one would expect them to be, they usually just start shooting as soon as they'd see me. I welcomed them with open arms, of course, since more thugs meant more EXP, and even started targeting Black Mask whenever I had the chance.

And it led me to the current situation, where after a bit of hacking, I discovered this neat little bar that was a front Black Mask used as a drug lab and came knocking. On Black Mask's goons' heads. With my guns.

I might have grown a bit cocky as of late since Guns wasn't the only skill I was grinding, even now while I was in the middle of a shootout. I was using the Personal Computer power and also working on the computer skill, raising it quite a bit, but I'll get to that later.

I still had a bunch of gangster fucktards to deal with and all that jazz. I'm sure you understand.

I looked around and spotted an alcohol bottle, causing me to grin as I picked it up and threw it high over the bar. The trigger-happy thugs immediately turned their attention to it and opened fire, the hail of bullets shattering the bottle to countless pieces.

I emerged from behind cover as the bottle's contents began raining over my head, guns in hand and ready to shoot, and shoot they did as I pulled Ivory's trigger like a maniac with my right, firing five shots in a single second.

My left wasn't idle as I fired Ebony, firing one from the dark pistol for every five from its counterpart. And whereas one in every five shots fired from Ivory missed with the others slightly deviating but hitting the target, all Ebony's projectiles landed where I wanted them precisely.

The thugs started dropping like flies as I ran sideways, continuously firing my guns without stopping as I dodged and weaved through an almost never-ending hail of bullets hitting everything but me.

And no, Black Mask's goons weren't storm troopers, but I was making it very difficult for them to aim with my constant movement, and I could predict any shot that might hit and adjust my course accordingly.

So yeah... sucks to be them, I guess.

My eyes darting around, I located the last two-four thugs standing and calculated the trajectory of their bullets based on where they were looking, the way they held their guns, and their posture as they began firing.

I could easily avoid getting hit if I kept going, but I wanted to show off for no particular reason, and I stopped in place and threw myself to the side, spinning my body as the first bullet flew right over my abdomen.

I raised my left hand, taking aim with Ebony and firing a single shot that hit the furthest thug between the eyes, causing them to roll back as he fell to the ground in a boneless heap, very much unconscious.

One spin and another bullet flying past my shoulder later, I fired Ebony again, causing the second furthest thug to fall, suffering pretty much the same fate his buddy did.

I put Ebony in my inventory and reached with my now free hand for a table below me, gripping the edge to balance myself in a one-hand stand as several bullets flew past me.

My grin deepened as I fired two energy projectiles from Ivory, the first of which hit one of the last two standing thugs in the forehead, knocking him out, while the latter missed, flying just over the last one's head, much to my chagrin.

'Damn it... that would have been sick as fuck if the last shot didn't miss...'

I pushed myself off the table, landed on the ground with a flip, and turned to the last thug, holding back a snort of amusement at his petrified expression.

He flinched and stood frozen for a second before pursing his lips and hurriedly began touching his body, inspecting to find a gunshot wound that wasn't there.

His petrified expression quickly turned smug, and his pursed lips stretched in an obnoxious smile that gave me the urge to punch him in the face as he realized I'd missed.

"Hah, guess ya weren't all that, ya damned wraith!" The tug exclaimed as he raised his index finger and pointed at me with a jubilant expression that quickly disappeared as I retrieved Ebony and put an energy bullet between his eyes.

"Who you calling a wraith, bitch?" I remarked, scowling under my mask as I walked over the unconscious thugs, making my way to the bar's backrooms to look for some sweet loot.

Just because I went a little far with my Phantom Belt and spooked a bunch of thugs for no reason other than sheer boredom doesn't give him the right to call me a wraith!

After a bit of looking around, I found a secret room, and when my eyes widened as I opened it at the sight of dozens of guns, crates full of drugs, and a suitcase full of cash.

I ignored everything as I walked to the suitcase, throwing it into my inventory before I started doing the same to the guns, leaving nothing but the drugs in the secret room.

'What to do with these...?' I mused, hesitating as I scratched my head while looking at the several drugs-filled crates. I might be a thief, but even I wouldn't stoop to peddling drugs like some common third-rate thug.

I could leave the drugs here for the GCPD to find, but they would only stay in their hands for a few days before some crocked cop smuggled them out of the precinct and back into the streets.

Though I was taking out thugs to grind my skills, and my motives for acting were selfish, it didn't change the fact that I was actually doing some good and cleaning up the streets.

"Oh well, when in doubt, kill it with fire..." I remarked, chuckling and shrugging my shoulder as I turned back to the bar and started hauling the unconscious thugs outside.

I didn't leave a single drop of blood in the restaurant this time, but I was still going to burn it down to get rid of the drugs, which was a refreshing turn of events, and it felt like I was doing something because I wanted to, not just for survival like I usually do.

I retrieved a gas canister from my inventory and headed back inside, dousing the entire bar with gasoline, starting from the secret room full of drug crates.

Once finished, I went outside and lighted up the bar as I turned to the neat heap of unconscious thugs, looking for a phone to call the police. But I didn't have to as I heard police car sirens echoing in the distance.

"Whelp, my work here is done..." I casually remarked as I equipped my Steel Wire and prepared to swing away. But a brief look at my pigeon drone's video feed made me reconsider, as I spotted a suspiciously unique-looking guy on a rooftop nearby looking directly at me.

The man was tall, broad-shouldered, and had a bald head resting on top of one of the meanest faces I'd ever seen in both my lifetimes. He wore a tight bronze shirt with a tiger stripes pattern that empathized his muscular torso, covered by a brown leather jacket and a fang necklace hanging around his neck.

And you know how shit in comics goes; the weirder and more unique someone looked, the more likely it meant they had a part in the story, signifying the guy's probably a named character from the comics.

'I wonder who this guy is...?' I wondered as I turned to the man, and he raised an eyebrow upon realizing I'd spotted him. Still, he looked unphased by the realization and even had the audacity to smirk at me, clearly issuing a challenge.

'Challenge accepted, bitch...'

...

I took Ebony out of my inventory and immediately fired at the man standing on the rooftop, causing his smirk to become more pronounced as he tilted his head to dodge the projectile.

Still smirking, the man beckoned me to follow as he turned around and started sprinting, casually jumping from one rooftop to another as he zoomed away.

I let out a scoff as I had my pigeon drone follow the man and moved to the nearest alley, activating my Phantom belt and disappearing into the darkness as it spread its light-refracting field around me.

Though I'd admit I've become a bit cocky as of late, that didn't automatically make me stupid enough to blindly follow some random, obviously up-to-no-good guy who was clearly trying to lure me somewhere.

I did not know what the man was capable of, and even if I did, I still wouldn't blindly follow him since he could be leading me into some elaborate, inescapable, deadly ambush or something along those lines.

You'd be surprised by how regularly this kind of shit happened in DC and how often the alleged heroes of this world would walk right into it every single damned time.

They eventually walk out of it unscathed for various reasons that sometimes made sense and sometimes didn't, but still. Haven't they heard of our lord savior Vaas and the message he brings about the sin of insanity?

In any case, I situated myself on the nearest rooftop and waited for my pigeon drone to follow the man to the limits of its receiving range until I started following him.

I couldn't help but grin as I watched the man's smug expression gradually fade as he realized I wasn't following him, turning into a mixture of disappointment and bewilderment as he frowned.

Still, he kept moving, and I kept the pigeon drone on his tail as I followed from as far as I could. The man clearly was up to no good, and he'd likely show up again eventually.

I needed to know who he was so I could figure out his motives and be ready for him when he does show up again, or even strike preemptively and get rid of a possible threat if I thought such extremes were necessary.

...

Ben sighed as he entered Gray's abandoned apartment through the window, barely holding back a scowl at his friend's smug expression as the latter stopped meditating and turned to him, grinning.

"Save it, Richard," Ben remarked, annoyed as he shook his head and sat next to his ginger friend and fellow student on the ground.

"I told you he wouldn't fall for it..." Richard replied, his expression growing even more smug as Ben let out a scoff and turned away. "The kid is too cautious. He'll die before letting you lure him in like that," he added, chuckling and shaking his head.

After saving Ben and removing the explosive chip from his head, Richard had spent another two days helping his fellow student regain a sense of self, and they had only returned to Gotham yesterday.

Learning that Richard now had a student, Ben decided he wanted to see what the student was capable of by provoking him into a friendly spar.

Although Gray was hard to find, Ben had spent years working as an international assassin, then as a member of the suicide squad, and he only needed some basic information from Richard to track Gray down since the latter was beating thugs left and right.

However, he was disappointed and somewhat satisfied to learn that Richard's student wouldn't fall into such an obvious trick.

"He's definitely not what I expected from someone studying under you, Richard," Ben thoughtfully said as he leaned into the wall. "You've only ever relied on your fists, the kid, on the other hand..." he added, trailing off as he recalled the rumors about Richard's student and what little footage he got his hands on.

"It's like he's trying too hard," Ben remarked with a chuckle, causing Richard to scoff in amusement. "Advanced gadgets, bulletproof armor, and even that weird pair of guns," he concluded, trailing off and suddenly freezing as a white gun materialized in front of his face.

...

"You mean these?" I asked, pointing my guns at the man's head as I made myself visible and smiled under my mask at his shocked expression and slightly widening eyes.

I've been following the man for an hour now and eventually tracked him back to my old, still-empty apartment, much to my surprise. Luckily, the cameras I'd installed to watch Harley's reaction were still there.

I activated my Personal Computer power and peeked into the apartment, my surprise only growing as I found not only the man making himself at home in my old place, but he was there with my teacher too.

I immediately felt a mixture of annoyance, exasperation, amusement, and a bit of happiness at what I saw in my apartment. It's been a while since I last saw Richard, and I'd grown used to seeing him every day, even if he did little other than kick my ass all across the park.

Seeing Richard there, even my paranoia had to give way, and I made my way inside, despite not knowing much about the other guy.

"I thought you said he wouldn't follow me?" Ben asked, raising an eyebrow as he turned to Richard as he quickly got over his surprise and shrugged.

"I only said he won't fall for such an obvious trick," Richard said with a chuckle as he turned to me with a smile. "I tried something similar when we first met; it didn't work," he added as he started rummaging through his pocket.

"Which reminds me," he concluded as he took a watch from his pocket and threw it at me, which I caught and gave an inspecting look, immediately recognizing it as the one he swiped from my pocket in the park.

"You still have this old thing?" I remarked, my eyes widening as I removed my helmet and turned to Richard, to which he smiled, and I returned the gesture and put it in my inventory.

"So... guns, huh?" Richard asked after a second, raising an eyebrow and I visibly cringed, sheepishly laughing as I rubbed the back of my neck.

"Yes, and no. It's kind of complicated," I said as I presented the two guns to my teacher. "See for yourself," I added as I offered Ebony and Ivory to Richard, and he gave them an inspecting look before taking them from my hands.

"Chi-powered guns? Now I've seen it all," Richard remarked, his eyes widening in surprise as the two pistols immediately reached out to him and tried draining some of his energy.

"But how are you able to use them? Did you awaken your chi while I was gone?" my teacher asked after a second of thoughtful silence as he turned to me.

"Not just chi, any form of energy would do as far as I know," I replied with a shrug as I took off my leather gloves. "A lot happened in the past few days..." I added, channeling energy into my hand, causing it to shine in a golden hue, much to the surprise of Richard and his friend silently observing our interaction.

"How are you..? You don't have an artifact to focus your chi — you don't, right?" Richard asked in genuine shock, correcting himself mid-sentence, his eyes alternating between the pistols and my glowing fist.

"An artifact? No, I just do it on my own," I replied, scratching my head as I dissipated the energy in my hand, tilting my head to the side in genuine confusion.

"No matter, we'll get to the bottom of your ability to generate chi on your own later," Richard said with a sigh, his tone firm as he turned to the pistols in his hand.

"Where did you get those?" he asked, raising the pistols in front of his face, and I barely held back a wince at the question. I knew Richard would start asking questions eventually, even though I hoped he wouldn't.

"The same place I got the rest of my stuff," I replied with a shrug as I gave Richard's friend a side glance, hoping to use him as an excuse to postpone the talk I've been dreading and expecting at the same time.

"Ben is like a brother to me, and I'd trust him with my life... though I'm sure he wouldn't mind going on a walk if you insisted," Richard replied with a shrug as he turned to Ben, who smiled and nodded without hesitation.

"And you know that's not what I meant by my question," Richard added, narrowing his eyes as his tone gained another degree of firmness, causing me to sigh in defeat.

"I don't trust where they're coming from if that's what you're asking, but it's not like I have much choice in the matter..."

...

"This is concerning, kid..." Richard earnestly remarked after hearing my words, rubbing his chin in thought. "Under normal circumstances, I'd advise you to stop. Power always comes at a price, and the easier and faster it comes, the higher the price.." he added with a grimace as if speaking from experience.

"But I understand your circumstances aren't exactly normal, and I'm willing to trust your judgment and your impeccable survival instinct," he jokingly concluded as he smiled at me, offering Ebony and Ivory back to me.

"Impeccable survival instinct, huh? Why do I feel that's more of an insult than a compliment," I replied in mock exasperation as I took the pistols back and put them in my inventory.

"You can be a bit too cautious sometimes," Richard said, still smiling as he shook his head. "In any case, what have you been you up to while I was away?" he asked, changing the subject as he gestured to the side.

"I hear you've been making quite the name for yourself..." he concluded, trailing off at the end of his sentence as he paused, waiting for me to answer the question.

"More like what have I not been up to?" I replied as I scratched my head and began telling Richard about everything that happened so far, from my encounter with Croc shortly after he left to my most recent clash with the Intergang and Anarky.

Though I'd be spilling some of my secrets in front of Ben, I didn't mind since Richard vouched for him, and he already knew about me, so there was nothing I could do about it.

...

"I lost control two times. The first, I ended up killing the Russian mercenary and almost killed that werewolf in the second..." I said, having already explained everything to Richard while keeping the system-related parts to myself.

"So you really did kill that piece of shit?" Ben, who had been silently listening so far, remarked, not bothering to hide his impressed expression as he gave me a once over.

"You don't have to feel bad. The beast was a ruthless killing machine, and he probably killed more people than the dumb fuck could count," he added, shaking his head in dismissal. "No one will miss that guy, probably not even his mother," he concluded with a shrug.

"That's not the problem. I brought it up because I lost control; twice now," I replied with a grimace as I pushed my weight against the wall and let out a frustrated breath.

"I've never experienced anything like this before, and to make things worse, I didn't feel a single thing both times," I added as I looked down at my hands, opening and closing my palms.

"There is no use crying over spilled milk. However, we do need to do something about your anger and aggression..." Richard remarked, trailing off as he turned to Ben with a meaningful look.

"I might be able to help you there, since I owe you one, kid..." Ben remarked as he quickly offered to help, having understood the meaning behind Richard's look, much to my confusion as I had no idea what they were hinting to each other.

"You owe me one...?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as I turned to Ben with a genuine look of confusion. It was my first time meeting the man, and I don't remember doing anything to get him in my debt.

"Yup, you just don't know it yet," Ben said with a weird chuckle, and I didn't like the sound of it, causing me to turn to Richard with a skeptical look.

"We'll get to that later," Richard said, bitterly smiling as he shook his head, which only deepened my confusion. "You see, Ben here had what you'd call anger management issues back in the day," he explained, gesturing to the dark-skinned man, who grinned with a shrug.

"It was so bad that he'd always kill whoever he fought, and it took many months of study under our teacher, O-sensei, for him to get his anger under control," Richard remarked in an exasperated tone.

"He definitely looks the type," I remarked as I turned to the menacing man, raising an eyebrow as he carelessly shrugged but didn't bother to refute my comment.

"He's something of an expert in the matter. I'm sure he'll be able to teach you to control your aggression in no time if you let him," Richard concluded, waving a hand to the side.

"If you're vouching for him..." I said, sighing after some thought. "But I still don't understand how he owes me one?" I asked as I turned back to Ben, but he didn't reply. It was Richard that did instead.

"Remember that lady friend of mine you met in the park?" Richard asked, and I immediately nodded. There's no way I'd forget that vicious look she gave me before she left.

"Her name is Sandra Wu-San, but she goes by Lady Shiva these days," Richard casually added, and I barely stopped my eyes from twitching at the mention of a familiar name.

The world's greatest martial artist, the mother of Cassandra Cain, one of the deadliest assassins on the planet, and do I even need to say more? Lady Shiva was Bad news, and that sums up her entire shtick.

"I'm already not liking where this is going, but keep going..." I blankly said, rubbing my forehead in frustration as I urged my teacher to keep talking.

"Well, Sandra has a daughter that she wants me to train. I refused, and she offered me a wager," Richard said, his tone growing progressively more embarrassed as he spoke, which was a first for my teacher.

"She'd wagered me that her daughter can beat you, and if she did, I'd have to take her as a student," he added, snorting in derision, and I had no idea of it was at the offer, Lady Shiva's daughter beating me, or what exactly.

"If her daughter lost, Sandra would give up, and that will be the end," he added, his tone growing helpless. "Again, I refused, but..." he remarked, turning to Ben with a complicated look.

Richard then proceeded to tell me about the offer Lady Shiva gave him, his relationship with her, and Ben, who turned out to be the Bronze tiger, another guy I wanted nothing to do with, but that's Murphy for you.

It was that kind of thing where the more you listened, the less you liked what you were hearing as the shit-pit only grew deeper with every word coming out of Richard's mouth.

"And here we are right now..." Richard somberly said after finishing his explanation. "Sandra said you should be ready for a fight in a month's time, though I don't know what she has in mind exactly," he concluded, shaking his head.

"I'm a bit confused. If Lady Shiva wanted you to train her daughter, why didn't she ask you to do that in exchange for the info?" I asked, scratching my head in genuine confusion as I gave my teacher a puzzled look.

"I asked her the same thing..." Richard replied with a shrug, snorting in bemusement. "She didn't give me an answer, but she's probably trying to prove her daughter is better than you or something along those lines.." he added, letting out a helpless sigh.

"I'm going to be honest here... I really don't like this, none of it, but..." I said, rubbing the back of my neck. "You are my teacher. You've done a lot for me. If beating the Asian murder chick's daughter will help you, then I'll gladly do it," I concluded with a shrug, causing Richard's bitter smile to turn genuine as he sighed in relief.

Even though I'd have to fight Cassandra Cain, who will one day walk in her mother's footsteps to become one of the greatest martial artists, I couldn't back down. I owed Richard too much to refuse.

Cassandra, as the daughter of David and Lady Shiva, was probably the most talented human in martial arts. However, she would only reach her potential in the future under the mentorship of Batman.

She was probably still decently skilled enough to give me a run for my money, but she was a baseline human, and unless she could pull a Batman on me, I can't see myself losing. Not by a long shot.

I'd still face her with all my strength and not underestimate her. But the only reason I was reluctant to involve myself was Lady Shiva and David Cain since the latter hounded Cassandra like a hunting dog in the comics.

"That's good to hear, kid," Richard said as he patted me on the shoulder with a smile. "We have a month until the fight, and you can now channel Chi, so we'd have to pick up the pace in our training," he added, and I sighed as countless images of the beatings Richard gave me flashed in my mind.

"I'll be taking care of the physical training as usual, and Ben will teach you how to control and channel your anger..."

...

Gotham Park

"Breathe..." Ben calmly said as he turned his body and sent a high kick to the side of my head, with his arms crossed in front of his chest. I immediately reacted, taking a deep breath as I ducked under his kick, causing it to fly right over my head.

"You must remember that the anger is inside you. It is part of the man you are, and to deny it is to deny yourself, a fruitless endeavor," Ben said, nodding as he raised his fist in a feint, only to kick at me again, and I dodged again.

"It will always be at the back of your mind. It is a part of being human, so is every emotion you feel, be it negative or positive," Ben remarked, bringing his foot down after stopping it above my head, causing me to raise my hand, blocking the attack and warding it to the side.

"You cannot deny it. You cannot overcome it; you must embrace it, control it, and channel it," Ben said, nodding as he took a step back and stopped his attacks.

"That's cool and all, but shouldn't we be doing this more peacefully, like meditating or something...?" I asked, scratching my head to cut off Ben before he could continue.

"Under normal, peaceful circumstances, you are in perfect control of your emotions. It's during stressful situations that you tend to lose your temper, or so I understand," Ben said, shaking his head as he waved a hand to the side in dismissal.

"You had an outlet to let out your anger and temporarily put it under control when Richard was around to spar with you daily. You began losing control after he left," he added, gesturing towards Richard, leaning on the lone tree nearby, reading a book.

"No, you need to learn to control your aggression while fighting. We need to fight the symptoms before curing the roots because you need to be in control of your emotions as soon as possible," Ben explained as he spread his arms and beckoned for me to attack this time.

"You've been lucky so far, but if you happen to face a group of competent opponents, they can easily take you out while you're tunnel-visioned and focused on one of them," Ben added with a shrug.

"That's why we need to prioritize the symptoms before dealing with the sickness itself," he concluded as he beckoned for me to attack again with a gesture.

"Makes sense, I suppose," I remarked with a nod, sighing as I slowly approached Ben, raising my fists in front of my face.

"Good, now breathe... and remember, you are in control..."

...

Gray's hideout

"83k? Don't mind if I do," I remarked with a chuckle as I opened the money bag I took from the bar, my brain calculating the rough amount of money inside.

I'd left the bag in my inventory as I didn't need the money and focused on my training with Benjamin and Richard, which mainly included sparring with the former for the first two days.

And although Benjamin was Richard's equal, the former didn't have the advantage of teaching me everything I knew about fighting, and I managed to land the occasional hit on him.

Of course, he'd land five for every one of mine, but getting an advantage over someone on the same level as my teacher still felt immensely satisfying to me.

We only started working on my so-called anger management issues today.

It wasn't that different from what we've been doing before, other than Benjamin teaching me how to regulate my breathing while fighting and the mentality I needed to stay calm and in control.

Long story short:

Breathing in, I am in control.

Breathing out, I release my impulsive urges.

Breathing in, I know that I am stronger than my anger.

Breathing out, I slip out of anger's grasp.

Breathing in, I make my own conscious choices.

Breathing out, I break free from anger's puppet strings.

Breathing in, I am in control.

It was a bit more complicated than that and came with a mind-clearing breathing pattern, but that's basically the gist of the training session.

Now, if it would work in a life or death fight or not, I had no idea since I wasn't feeling angry or stressed enough to lose control, but it definitely helped me clear my mind.

Other than his methods, I had my own doubts about Benjamin himself. As the Bronze Tiger, he tended to switch between hero and villain regularly, and people like that rarely have a happy ending in comics or any form of narrative.

Worse yet, these types of characters are infamous for making everyone around them miserable, so it wasn't Benjamin himself that I mistrusted, but the damned comic book narrative.

But in the end, he was an okay guy, and there was nothing I could do about it since he was close to Richard, and I'd have to deal with him if I wanted to maintain my relationship with my teacher.

And speaking of my great teacher, Richard told me he had a specialized training method to let me quickly grow stronger by utilizing my healing factor and energy channeling.

Though I didn't know the specifics yet, I couldn't imagine it being anything pleasant since it would rely on my healing factor and how hesitant Richard was when he told me about it.

'Oh, well... I'll deal with it when it comes, and I can always refuse to use it if I don't like it...' I mused, shrugging my shoulders as I turned to the accumulated notifications.

I still went out to beat up thugs to grind my Guns skill every day, and kept up my usual swinging and hacking routines, so I most likely maxed out my Gunman class already.

[+3 levels to the Guns skill]

[Guns (level 16)]

[+2 levels to the Crime skill]

[Crime (level 36)]

[+3 levels to the Gunman class]

[Gunman (level MAX)]

[+9 stat points]

[You have reached the maximum capacity of your current class. Would you like to choose a new one now?]

'There's still more level up notifications, but I might as well chose a new class first...' I shrugged as I looked at the available classes and took the Mechanic class without hesitation.

I've already explained why I wanted the Mechanic class (what with creating gadgets and repairing my equipment if it broke), but now that I had a hideout, I could use it to build some defences and contingencies to fortify it, just in case.

[You have gained the Mechanic Class]

[Mechanic (level 1)]

[You have gained the Mechanics skill]

[Mechanics (1): if it's broken, this skill can fix it. If it's not broken, it can improve it (sometimes making it worse). If it just isn't, it can build it. Mechanics covers all technical and craft skills, from carpentry to mechanics to roadie work. It is what you need if you want to rebuild the engine of that mean machine you're tricking out or to make sure the rock concert comes through loud and clear]

[+1 level to the Mad scientist Archetype]

[You have gained the Machinery Scan power]

[Machinery Scan: the ability to understand the inner and outer workings of any machine through scanning it with energy, enabling the user to find any malfunctions and generate a blueprint of the it in their head, depending on how advanced the target is and how high the Mechanics skill and Mind attribute are]

'Not bad...' I raised an eyebrow as I took out a regular gun from my inventory and activated my Machinary Scan on it.

A rush of information flooded my brain, and I instinctively knew the gun needed to be cleaned and oiled, or it would malfunction and most likely jam after going through another magazine or two. It goes without saying that I now know how to create a copy of it as well.

'Let's see what other notifications I have...' I shrugged as I put the gun back in my inventory and turned to the rest of the notifications.

[+1 level to the Brawling skill]

[Brawling (level 39)]

[+2 levels to the Acrobatics skill]

[Acrobatics (level 18)]

[+4 levels to the Computers skill]

[Computers (level 26)]

[+4 levels to the Mechanic class]

[Mechanic (level 5)]

[+12 stat points]

'Everything checks out...' I nodded as I turned my available 47 stat points and didn't hesitate before investing 15 points into each of my three attributes, taking one last look at my character screen.

...

Name: Grayson Whitlock

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Age: 17

Archetype: (The Mad Scientist level 3)

Class: [Thief (level MAX)] [Fighter (level MAX)] [Acrobat (Level MAX)] [Programmer (Level MAX)] [Gunman (level MAX)] [Mechanic (level 5)]

...

Stats:

Body: 85

Mind: 85

Spirit: 85

Stat Points: 2

...

Skills:

[Brawling (level 39): call it fighting, martial arts, fisticuffs, or flailing your arms around wildly, this skill covers the art of using your hands and other assorted body parts to hurt your fellow man (or critter) and avoiding such punishment yourself]

[Crime (level 36): breaking and entering, pickpocket, lock-picking, skulking around, lifting evidence—if it's illegal, this skill covers it, with two exceptions, computer hacking uses the Computers skill, and conning people the Influence skill. You don't have to be a criminal to have this skill; cops, private investigators, and other honest but street-wise folks have it as well]

[Acrobatics (level 18): the favored skill of cheerleaders and circus performers, the ability to perform tumbles, somersaults, and other such maneuvers; You can use it to dodge attacks, climb obstacles, and achieve similar feats of agility. Acrobatics can replace Crime when trying to move silently (use the higher of the two skills when attempting to sneak around)]

[Computers (level 26): the nerdy art of keyboard slinging for fun and profit, and with this skill, you can make computers do what you want, including programming and hacking. People don't need this skill to use a computer. Anybody can find the on-switch and use a mouse. The Computers skill lets you do fun things like breaking into confidential databases, writing your own programs, programming your VCR, and other cool stuff]

[Gun Mastery (level 16): This skill covers your basic things that go "bang" — shotguns, pistols, and the like]

[Mechanics (1): if it's broken, this skill can fix it. If it's not broken, it can improve it (sometimes making it worse). If it just isn't, it can build it. Mechanics covers all technical and craft skills, from carpentry to mechanics to roadie work. It is what you need if you want to rebuild the engine of that mean machine you're tricking out or to make sure the rock concert comes through loud and clear]

...

Perks:

[Dormant Metahuman: you have the Metagene, the source of all Metahumans' powers. However, it lies dormant for now]

[Silent Step: as a seasoned, hardened criminal (your mother must be proud,) your footsteps are silent, and only those with supernatural hearing ability could detect you through the sound of your footsteps]

[Eidetic Kinesthesia: sometimes called Muscle Memory or Photographic Reflexes; it is the ability to instantly mimic any physical skill, including various fighting techniques, acrobatics, or weapon skills]

[Superhuman Stamina: sometimes called enhanced stamina, it is a term used to describe the ability of some characters to function without tiring or feeling undue strain. People who possess this perk can often go for long periods of time without rest or even sleep]

[Perfect Recall: sometimes confused with genius-level intellect and known as photographic memory, it is the ability to recall anything and everything you have ever been allowed to remember over the course of your life]

[Accelerated Healing: is the ability to recover from bodily injuries or disease at a superhuman rate. It differs from Regeneration because although you can recover from tissue damage and even regenerate entire cells, it cannot repair separated limbs or torn cells]

[Energy Detector: the ability to sense the presence of energy, whether they are electromagnetic (magnetic/infrared), psionic, magical, spiritual, etc and possibly gain a detailed understanding of the power you are sensing, including the amount/size of energy they are perceiving depending on the particulars of the target, and your energy]

[Energy Concentration: The power to focus one's energy into any point of the body to perform attacks, techniques, or spells (if they are trained in the arcane arts)]

...

Archetype powers:

[Network Crash: the ability to negate or destroy protected networks by injecting energy into them through physical on wireless contact (the Network Crash power is dependent on your programming skill, and you will not be able to salvage any information from any network you may destroy]

[Code Manipulation: the ability to create and break any code, from simple firewalls all the way to the universal equation itself, depending on your combined Programming (Computers) skill and Mind attribute]

[Personal Computer: the ability to integrate a single computer into your brain, giving you full, telepathic access to all of its functions (you may choose to assimilate a different, more powerful computer at any time)]

[Machinery Scan: the ability to understand the inner and outer workings of any machine through scanning it with energy, enabling the user to find any malfunctions and generate a blueprint of it in their head, depending on how advanced the target is and how high the Mechanics skill is]

...

I smiled as I did the last screw, my eyes alternating between the ugly-as-sin metal box and the equally hard-to-look-at workbench that the said metal box was resting on.

I immediately started working on my Mechanic class as soon as I got it, and the first thing I did was sneak into the nearest junkyard to fish for some mechanic components and metal scraps.

The first thing I built was the workbench, which I fashioned after the Tinker Workbench from the Fallout games because I'm an unimaginative bastard and not ashamed to admit it.

Still, it was absolutely unsightly, but it did the job, and I already equipped it with the basics like cutting and welding machines, a bunch of power tools, and all the assorted stuff you might typically find in a man cave.

I also started working on repairing the damaged circuits in my trench coat, and even though I wasn't at that level yet, I managed to do it thanks to a mixture of luck, effort, and mental access to the internet.

The next project after fixing the electrical circuits in my coat was the small ugly metal box, and again, despite being ugly as shit, it was still a success. Kind of.

'Let's put it to the test...' I mused as I picked up the box and started walking to a corner of the hideout I'd made into a target practice area with several humanoid targets of different sizes, placed at varying distances.

I put the metal box on top of a table in front of the target range and took a step back, activating my Personal Computer power to access and start the metal box.

The box groaned as it opened at the top, a gun barrel with a bullet chain attached to it revealing itself. I nodded as I began fiddling with controls in my mind, causing the gun barrel to start moving around, aiming at different targets to test its speed and flexibility.

'Good enough...' I smiled and had the gun barrel aim at the closest target, and it immediately responded. I took a second to analyze the gun's alignment and compare it to the crosshair in my brain before nodding in satisfaction at the result.

'And now for the last test...' I frowned in concentration as the gun started rapidly firing at the target, with its accuracy decreasing as the barrel heated and affected the coils I'd installed to control the recoil.

'I should add a single shot mode until I can figure out a solution to the overheating problem...' I sighed as I stopped firing, retracted the gun barrel into the metal box, and picked up my invention.

'Maybe some sprinklers...? I'll have to switch to stainless steel and isolate the electronics into a waterproof compartment, or they'll short circuit...' I mused as I walked back to the workbench.

'On the other hand, I could use non-conductive cooling liquid, which wouldn't affect electronics or liquid nitrogen, but both are crazy expensive...' Ideas began bouncing in my mind, and I had the urge to open up the metal boxing and start working immediately.

However, I pushed down the urge as I took out my phone to see the time, sighing as I put the metal box in my inventory and made for the hideout's exit in a hurry.

I still have to go to the park to continue my training with Richard and Ben, and I had to be there early this time. Today was supposed to be the day Richard revealed his specialized training that would rely on my healing factor and ability to channel energy.

...

Metropolis

HSC International Banking

"What do you mean she's gone?!" Bruno Ugly Mannheim, the leader of Intergang, exclaimed in a rage, slamming the table before him and causing the hologram in front of him to flinch.

"She escaped Black Gate along with Abbot, and we lost their trail," the hologram, an Intergang foot soldier, uncomfortably replied as he stepped back in fear despite not being physically there.

Bruno Mannheim was once a regular gangster, no different from any other until he one day disappeared. He later emerged, claiming that he was reborn by the grace of a new god.

Though Mannheim was never known to be a kind soul, his so-called rebirth only furthered his villainy and wickedness. Whereas he was a simple opportunistic thug, he was now an utter and complete psychopath after re-emerging.

Now a devoted worshipper of crime itself, Mannheim took control of Intergang and had it follow "The Crime Bible," of which the original copy was etched into the stone with which Cain killed Abel.

He even resorted to cannibalism, killing and then eating those who do not submit to (or did not immediately join) Intergang like he did with Mirage. He ruled the gang with an iron fist, causing his subordinates to fear him greatly.

"I didn't ask about the how's and what's!" Bruno exclaimed through gritted teeth, causing the subordinate to flinch harder. "Whisper is a necessary part of my plan. You will find her, or I'll have you chopped and fed to the pigs. You hear me?" He added with a hideous scowl that did his moniker justice.

"I—I understand, boss," the man stutteringly replied. And Mannheim immediately ended the call, uninterested in mincing words with the incompetent subordinate as he was.

Whisper A'Daire was a useful woman, and she was an integral part of his plans. Not only did she act as the head of HSC International Banking, the front Intergang used to launder money, but she was also a world-class assassin and had the power to brainwash and recruit people into the gang.

Bruno appreciated all of those talents, but the main reason he kept Whisper around despite her complicated past with the League Of Assassins and risked offending Ras Al-Ghul was her ability to decipher the Crime Bible.

From what little he managed to decipher himself from the Crime Bible, Manheim deduced an incomplete rite that would help him attain boundless power.

However, to do that, he needed to find the daughter of Kain, prophesied to appear in the most corrupt, evil, chaotic city on earth, a description that everyone on this planet would tell you matched Gotham.

Bruno sent Whisper and Abbot to Gotham to establish a presence and a base of operation there to enable them to find the Daughter of Kain. But never in his wildest dreams did he imagine the duo would fail.

Still, Mannheim was willing to overlook the failure and even help Whisper and Abbot escape prison as he needed the former. But they had escaped somehow and disappeared to God knows where, putting a massive wedge in his plans.

"It won't be long now..." Manheim muttered to himself as he retrieved an ancient-looking book from a briefcase on his desk. "Your secrets will be mine and mine alone..." he added, his tone and expression growing fanatical as he opened the book and stared into its pages with endless fascination.

...

Somewhere on the outskirts of Gotham

Whisper frowned as she stared at the eyes of the thin Asian woman of average height standing in front of her. The woman was a baseline human and had no meta power whatsoever, and one would think the redhead only needed to spray her with a splash of acid vomit to put her down for good.

However, the serpentine woman couldn't help but fear her, despite all her superhuman abilities and having the unkillable Abbot at her side, for the woman was none other than Lady Shiva, one of if not the most dangerous woman on the planet.

"You still haven't explained why you broke us out of Black Gate, Lady Shiva..." Whisper asked, maintaining a respectful tone as she regarded Lady Shiva with a neutral expression.

"There is no need to be nervous around me, Whisper. We are old friends, after all, are we not?" Lady Shiva replied, raising an eyebrow as she let out a faint smile.

Hearing those words, Whisper had the urge to scoff as her relationship with Lady Shiva was anything but that of friendship, as the martial artist treated her with the utmost disregard and disrespect.

She resisted the urge for evident reasons.

"Though I disagree with your decision to leave the League all those years ago, I do not begrudge for it," Lady Shiva added, shaking her head as she turned away from the serpentine woman and Abbot, walking to the window.

"I'm not here to dig up the past, Whisper," Lady Shiva remarked, putting her hands behind her back as she gazed out the window at the dark cityscape of Gotham.

"However, I am in need of your help for a personal matter. A matter the League must not be involved in," Lady Shiva stated, her smile growing as Whisper walked to her side and nodded, failing to hide her resigned expression.

"You do remember my daughter Cassandra, do you not?"

...

Gotham City Park

"You might want to lose the shirt," Richard said, his tone solemn as he stood before me. He still hasn't revealed his method to me, and the fact he started with that wasn't exactly reassuring.

"That bad, huh?" I uncomfortably asked, sighing. Still, I obliged and took off my shirt, turning to my teacher as I waited for further instructions. I had my doubts about this whole thing, but I can't dismiss it until I knew I was sure.

"Now make yourself comfortable," Richard firmly said, not bothering to answer my questions, and that only confirmed my suspicion that I won't like what's to come.

"Are you familiar with how humans typically build their muscles?" Richard asked as he watched me sit on the grass, leaning against the tree. I shrugged, to which he nodded and continued.

"One would need to damage their muscles and put them under stress through training, lifting weights, and what not..." Richard added, and I nodded at him to indicate I was with him.

"Then one must allow the muscles some time to heal themselves, becoming stronger in a process known as muscle hypertrophy..." Richard explained as he sat next to me. He raised his left arm and flexed, showcasing the various muscles covering it.

"Muscle hypertrophy takes time and is relatively slow for most people. However, you are different..." Richard stated as he smiled at me. "Not only can you grow stronger at an astonishing pace, even beyond human limits..." he added, gesturing to the side.

"But your muscle mass works differently from normal humans. Heck, your arms should be as thick as barrels with how much strength you can muster," Richard remarked with a chuckle, causing me to smile as I shrugged my shoulders.

He wasn't lying. Despite being god knows how many times stronger than the average man, I was still as lean as the day I woke up and found myself in this world. However, my body was still muscular and defined.

"Long story short, stress your muscles, let them rest, expose them to more stress, rinse and repeat," Richard concluded, his tone meaningful as he raised an eyebrow.

"Are you suggesting I purposely destroy my muscles and let my healing factor fix them?" I asked, frowning as I sighed and scratched my head in confusion, to which Richard nodded.

"Muscles don't work like that, not even mine..." I asked, heaving an exasperated sigh. I researched the matter when I got my accelerated healing perk, and nothing I found suggested something like this would work.

Destroying muscles, healing them, and stressing muscles, then letting them heal naturally and grow stronger are entirely different processes with different results.

I've suffered muscle damage during my fights with Killer Croc and the werewolf and when I tried my 100% muscle usage for the first time. The damaged muscles only regenerated back to their original state without gaining or losing power.

"True, but aren't you forgetting your ability to channel chi?" Richard asked, and my frown and confusion only deepened as I had no idea what channeling energy had to do with it.

"Show me your arm," Richard instructed, and I only hesitated for a second before raising my arms and bringing it closer to him. "It's gonna sting," he added, frowning in concentration as he reached for his dragon amulet with his left.

He rested the palm of his right on my bicep, and I could feel the energy flowing into Richard's body, slowly and deliberately coursing through it and into my arm.

I grit my teeth as the energy reached my bicep and began tearing it apart, causing me immense pain. I've had broken ribs, punctured lungs, and even a slit throat before, but this was on a wholly new level.

It surpassed any pain I've felt before, and the energy completely destroyed the muscle, causing my arm to go limb and almost fall if Richard wasn't gripping it.

However, that wasn't the worst part; the pain only grew more intense as my healing factor kicked in to start repairing the muscle with Richard, injecting more of his energy into my rapidly recovering bicep.

The entire process lasted no longer than ten seconds, but it felt like an eternity, and I could do nothing but sigh in relief as it ended, turning to Richard, who had a thoughtful look on his face.

"The effects were minimal because your body rejected my chi. However, there should still be some results..." Richard said, rubbing his chin in thought as he inspected my arm.

"How do you feel?" he asked after a second's pause, having found nothing wrong after checking my bicep and the rest of my arm.

"Like someone just scraped the muscles and nerves off my bones with a rusty knife..." I blankly replied as I began moving my arm around to get a feel for any changes that might have occurred.

"Other than that... I feel slightly stronger in that arm and..." I added, frowning as I trailed off and focused my energy into the now-healed arm while moving it.

"Channeling energy through my arm feels slightly smoother, and the usual energy loss is less as well..." I added as I opened and closed my fist, moving the energy toward it and causing it to glow.

"The results should have been more obvious... but your body rejected my energy for some reason..." Richard said, sighing as he scratched his head in genuine confusion.

"I suppose it would work better if you used your own energy to perform the augmentation..." Richard added after a second's pause as he gathered his thoughts.

"However, I'd need to teach you body augmentation and infusion, which I was planning on doing anyway..." Richard explained as he nodded his head and suddenly paused again.

"You've seen the results, minuscule as they are right now, and you know what you have to get through..." Richard hesitantly said as he looked at me, still moving my arm around to get rid of the phantom pain.

"You'd have to repeat this process on every muscle and nerve in your body..." he quickly explained as he gestured to the side with a thoughtful frown.

"Your body will be stronger, more durable, and more attuned with your energy. You will channel your energy more efficiently with almost no loss, but.." Richard stated, shaking his head as he trailed off mid-sentence.

"It's up to you to decide whether such drastic actions are worth the increase in strength," he concluded, shaking his head as he paused and looked away to let me think.

It didn't take much time and hesitation before I made my decision. The process was soul-wrenching and painful, and it was the worst thing I've ever experienced in both my lives.

I can't stress how much I hated every second of it, and the idea of repeating the process just one more time was enough to make me cringe, not to mention doing to every muscle and nerve in my body.

"I'll do it," I replied after a second's hesitation as I turned to my teacher with a resolute expression, causing him to sigh, his face troubled as he regarded me with a mixture of pride and concern.

If I was desperate enough for strength to trust the system and overcome my distaste for stat points, then a bit of physical pain definitely won't stop me, even if I'm if the word "bit" was not an apt description.

I might be paranoid, overcautious, and a bit whiney. Hell, I might be many things, but a coward and a hypocrite are none of them.

"I won't lie, kid. I was hoping and half expecting you to refuse..." Richard said, scratching his head in exasperation as he smiled at me. "But you have made a difficult choice, and it shows you've got the heart I saw in you back then," he added, his smile widening as he beamed at me and put a hand on my shoulder.

"I didn't take you for the corny type, teacher," I said with a chuckle, trying to hide my awkwardness and happiness at the praise as I honestly didn't know how to respond, and Richard's smile only turned broader after hearing my words.

Honestly, it's bewildering. I didn't even stutter with Batman standing in front of me, and words naturally came out of my mouth, but I couldn't even take praise from my teacher and keep a straight face.

"Cheeky little monster," Richard remarked with a laugh as he tousled my hair, causing me to roll my eyes as I slapped his hand away and stood up, clearing my throat.

"So... where do we begin...?" I asked as I straightened my clothes and changed the subject since I wasn't really good at dealing with emotional situations.

"We'll start with chi, or energy augmentation as you call it..."

...

I couldn't help but chuckle, my eyes widening in astonishment as I looked at my bank account, noticing the steady rise in my daily income.

Because of my Personal computer power, I've been able to constantly grind my Computers skill, regardless of what else I was doing. Whether I would be sparring or training with Richard and Benjamin, working on my workbench, or beating up thugs; a part of my mind would still be programming or hacking.

So, I decided to put the ability to better use, and started creating various apps and games, some free, some paid, and publishing them online for anyone interested.

I created photo and video editing programs, spell checkers, games, and various utility apps, all of which had some degree of success and earned me some money.

However, my biggest earner so far, leaving everything else in the dust, was a Flappy Bird rip-off I'd created out of sheer boredom. It was one of those shower thought moments, and I just did because I figured, why not?

Imagine my surprise when I discovered; it suddenly went viral and was making close to 3k a day with the highest rating and daily download rates out of every mobile game or app.

I remember hearing the guy who created Flappy Bird removing it because he felt guilty over people growing addicted to it, but I thought it was nonsense and forgot about it.

Looking at those numbers and the average use time for people playing the game, I think there was some truth to the matter.

'Whatever...' I mused, shaking my head as I deactivated my personal computer power and made my way to the shooting range, taking out my sentry gun.

And yes, SENTRY GUN is what I named the ugly metal box with a machine gun inside it.

I had just returned from my training session with Richard and Benjamin for today and was eager to get some work done and grind my Mechanics skills a bit more.

The sentry gun, as simple and ugly as it was, would provide me with actual security measures for my hideout. Though it wouldn't do much on its own, I planned to fill up the bunker and the tunnels near it with as many sentry guns as possible once I perfected the design and solved the technical issues.

The sheer firepower of so many sentry guns, and the fact I can mentally activate, aim and fire them at any target, would enable me to defeat all but the toughest motherfuckers who were stupid enough to come at me here.

Providing the sentry guns with specialized ammo (kryptonite, vibrating bullets, and that kind of shit) and upgrading them even more in the future would enable me to beat a good chunk of the toughest motherfuckers as well.

I plan on creating and installing other defensive measures, but for now, the sentry guns will do, with it being simple and cheap to manufacture as they currently are.

'Time to see how far my quick fixes improved the sentry gun...' I mused as I set up the sentry gun on a table in front of the shooting range and immediately accessed its controls with my power.

The sentry gun box opened, and the gun barrel extended from inside considerably faster than the first time I tried it, as I couldn't resist improving the mechanical joints.

I began turning it around and comparing the barrel alignment with the crosshair in my head to see if any new issues arose before I fired at the targets, starting with firing one single bullet at a time.

The gun barrel began rapidly moving, only stopping for a fraction of a second to shoot as it altered targets. Every bullet hit with impeccable accuracy, leaving me nodding in satisfaction.

Then I moved on to burst mode with every shot firing three bullets at a time, and the results were pretty much the same. The first two bullets landed with maximum precision, while the last would deviate by an almost microscopic distance.

'That will do for now...' I nodded as I looked at the bullet holes filling the targets, then brought my attention back to the sentry gun, switching to auto mode.

I didn't hesitate as I started firing, the accuracy wasn't as good as the burst mode, but it was still decent and consistent until the magazine was half empty, at least.

I solved the overheating issue by covering the recoil-compensating coils with a metal tube that I would fill with cooling liquid, but the problem of the gun barrel heating persisted.

'I'll figure something out... eventually...' I mused, sighing as I stored the sentry gun in my inventory and made my way to my living area.

The dark, dingy bunker had changed a lot since I got here. I bought whatever furniture I thought was necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle and stole whatever was too expensive, but in the end, the effort and money were worth it.

I had everything I needed or would need here, from a kitchen to a living room, a bedroom, a training room, and a workroom, with a few extra rooms that I left empty for the future.

I filled the entire place with RGB lights and the most comfortable furniture I could find or steal, and plastered the walls with posters of anything and everything I saw.

Though I didn't know what most of the posters represented, I didn't care since I just bought them to make the bunker look cozy and not empty, and I was satisfied with the result.

'Whelp, time to get to it...' I mused, frowning as I reached my training room and prepared myself to perform the training techniques Richard had taught me.

It's been three days since Richard told me about the new training method, and things were going well in that regard as he taught me how to use my energy adequately.

So far, I've been only using the energy to increase the power of my punches by channeling it towards my fist whenever I felt the urge to bury it in someone's face, but as it turns out, that was just the tip of the iceberg.

Richard showed me a lot of the stuff he could do with energy, like hardening his skin enough to take a punch from me without flinching, augmenting his physical strength, and other stuff that left me slack-jawed.

But I was a beginner in energy concentration, so I had to start by merely augmenting my physical strength, which I needed for the new training method.

My training with Benjamin was going equally well, and even though I had doubts, I was already noticing some results, as I feel lighter and more clear-headed.

I'll still need to get into a tough fight to know if it would really work or not.

Though I never admitted it, there was some anger, resignation, and resentment at the fact that I ended up in this world, gnawing at the back of my mind, among other things.

The guidance Benjamin gave me helped ease these negative emotions, and I now could wholeheartedly focus on growing stronger and making this world my own.

And no, I don't intend to start an edgy plan to take over the world or some shit; it was just a figure of speech.

Taking another deep breath, I sat cross-legged on the ground and began moving my energy all over my body.

I didn't really need to sit cross-legged, but it helped with visualization and stuff. That is most definitely the reason, and not because I think it's cooler that way, and there's nothing anyone can do or say to prove otherwise.

...

Somewhere in Gotham

The pale moonlight shined over the city, emphasizing its archaic architecture and the grim cityscape, but the citizens of Gotham were not in the mood to enjoy such a sight that only the most elite of hipsters would consider charming.

They were all in a hurry to return to the safety of their homes as the hour grew late as more and more mobsters took to the streets, preparing to go about their business.

One girl was the exception to this rule as she navigated the city by jumping from roof to roof, going further away from her shelter with every step she took.

She had no home, only a place to sleep to avoid nature's wrath. The girl had a home once, a twisted, dark excuse of a home where she was bred and raised to be the perfect warrior, assassin, and tool by her father.

David Cain was a harsh father and a taskmaster. He demanded nothing but absolute dedication and expected perfect results, going as far as tricking her into taking her first life at the young age of eight.

And that wasn't even the worst thing he did to his own daughter, the young Cassandra Cain.

However, Cassandra, despite not knowing any better before taking her first life, quickly realized the implications of what she did as she watched the life leave the body of the man whose name she would never forget; Faizul.

She immediately escaped and has been on the run ever since, constantly looking over her shoulder as her father hounded her every step of the way.

However, she was here now, and people needed her help, and she would not stop helping them in her attempt at redeeming herself.

...

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